Mohamed Somji

Mohamed is the Director of Gulf Photo Plus (GPP), a Dubai-based gallery and community organization cultivating visual practices in photography in the UAE, and across the wider MENASA region since 2004. As part of GPP’s commitment to developing visual and critical literacy, the organization engages the community with regular educational and art programming, and for a number of years hosted an annual photography festival that draws international attendance and showcases the world’s preeminent talent in photography.

Mohamed is a co-curator of the bi-annual BredaPhoto Festival in the Netherlands, and has served as a jury member for various visual arts initiatives notably the prestigious Arab Documentary Photography Program, Mohamed’s pedagogical expertise is broad, from teaching varied photography workshops and designing photo walk experiences across the UAE, to conducting portfolio reviews for Canon’s Student Development program, and leading a capacity building mentorship program for students in the Emirates with Warehouse421, a multidisciplinary arts organization based in Abu Dhabi.

Mohamed’s documentary photography practice locates and probes schisms in contemporary life, challenging the status quo with sensitive, critical commentary on the politics of representation.

Mohamed is also the owner and founder of Seeing Things, a photo and video production studio employing a team of talented in-house artists who work primarily on art & culture projects. Our clients include Louvre Abu Dhabi, Alserkal Avenue, Jameel Arts Center, Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, among other regional industry leaders.

Mohamed Somji was born in Tanzania in 1976, and moved to Dubai a month later and has lived there since, with a short interlude in the US to pursue a degree in Business Administration and Marketing. He quit his corporate career in 2006 to take up photography professionally.