A Star Reborn: ISEA2026 Dubai Weaves Emirati Heritage into Electronic Art’s Contemporary Language

The North Star that guided desert traders and seafarers across centuries has become the creative heart of Dubai's landmark symposium, where traditional dhow imagery and Emirati music meet cutting-edge artistic practice.

In the nights before electric light remade the sky, the people of the Emirates looked upward for direction. ELYAH, the North Star, held their gaze. Beyond its function as a practical navigator for those aboard traditional dhows or traversing vast dunes, the star captured something deeper in the collective imagination, inspiring poets and becoming a symbol of guidance, hope and the constancy of human curiosity across generations.

Now, as Dubai prepares to host the 31st International Symposium on Electronic Emerging Art from 6th to 15th November, that same celestial guide has become the namesake and creative anchor for what will be the largest ISEA gathering in the symposium’s history. Under the theme “ELYAH: Constellating Place, Data, and Identity”, the symposium draws from Emirati heritage to explore how art, technology and human imagination intersect in an age of rapid change.

The visual identity carries its own narrative language. Two mirrored curves, reminiscent of dhow sails or hulls, form an abstract logo that incorporates four-pointed stars evoking the constellations once used to navigate sea and desert. A subtle green gradient flows through the design, offering a contemporary interpretation of maritime heritage that speaks to discovery and connection. It is a design of elegant simplicity, yet rich with symbolic intention, where place, data and identity converge through artistic expression.

The sonic identity proves equally thoughtful. Emirati artist and composer Faisal Al Jassim created the original melody in collaboration with music arranger Zaid Adel, weaving together orchestral strings with the oud, qanun and ney alongside traditional Emirati rhythms. International music director Ivana Nikodijevic subsequently developed an electronic interpretation, integrating contemporary sound design and varied rhythmic patterns drawn from instruments and traditions spanning flutes, sitars, marimba and African drums. The resulting composition retains its Emirati essence while embracing wider musical influences, a sonic expression of how art connects cultures across boundaries.

Together, the visual and sonic dimensions tell Dubai’s own story, one shaped by its journey from a centre of seafaring, pearl diving and trade to a global destination for creative and technological talent. As we reported in our coverage of ISEA2026 Dubai bringing global creative minds to the Emirates, the symposium creates spaces for experimentation and collaboration that reflect the connections between cultures and creative disciplines that ELYAH has always represented. The star that guided generations continues its work, now bringing together leading artists, researchers, thinkers and specialists working across art, science and technology from around the world.

As creative tools evolve and forms of expression shift with technological possibility, ELYAH endures as a reminder that creativity remains fundamentally human, rooted in curiosity, discovery and the capacity to transform imagination into reality.

What it means for Abu Dhabi

ISEA2026 positions the UAE as a centre for cultural innovation and artistic dialogue on the global stage. By grounding the symposium’s identity in authentic Emirati heritage, the region demonstrates that tradition and technology are not opposing forces but complementary languages that can speak together, enriching both contemporary art practice and cultural expression.

The symposium reflects the UAE’s broader commitment to supporting creative excellence and international exchange. As the largest ISEA event in its history, the gathering will bring the world’s leading practitioners in electronic art to Dubai, strengthening the emirate’s role as a hub where artistic innovation flourishes alongside technological advancement, and where cultural heritage informs the creative future.

Source: WAM