ADITI BELAME KUMAR

I am a writer and arts administrator. I was born in Bangalore, South India and moved with my family to the United Arab Emirates in 1989 after my father, a veterinarian, decided to establish himself professionally in the oasis city of Al Ain. I received my Bachelor of Science degree in Cell and Molecular Biology at Tulane University in the United States and took a job as a research assistant upon graduation. Following that, I earned an MBA in Int’l Healthcare Management from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland.

I was employed in the health care industry for eight years, including at Pfizer. I transitioned to the arts sector in 2019—the switch was facilitated by my first book on camels and the Arab civilisation titled Ḥumr An-Naʿam, Treasure of the Desert (The Dreamwork Collective, 2018). I worked at XVA Gallery Dubai for a year and consulted on a publication by British-Indian artist Mukesh Shah in 2020. I then decided to pursue my studies in art history and took short courses in modern and contemporary art at Central Saint Martins, UAL. More recently, I completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art at SOAS, University of London.

My areas of interest include migration, identity, and gender politics within the artistic discourse; ecology and culture; and art in South Asia. I currently live in Bangalore.