Ghada Al Mawlawi

Ghada Al Mawlawi is a Qatari photographer whose practice centres on studio still life and product photography. She started taking pictures at the age of 13, photographing the people around her and recording family occasions. She later continued her education in Britain, where she took a series of photography courses. Alongside her studio work she makes documentary pictures of everyday life, using the camera to keep personal and shared memories.

Her project Portals of Belonging, made during the 2025 to 2026 Tasweer Residency, is a personal archive about hospitality as practised by her two grandmothers. She photographs heirloom plates, vessels and table settings, along with the hands that peel fruit or pour tea. One vessel she photographs has been in use for more than forty years. The objects stand in for the women who used them and for the care they gave.

Portals of Belonging is shown in As the Image Unfolds: The Language of Athar at Bayt Al Wakrah in Al Wakrah, from 26 October to 15 December 2026. Earlier, she took part in Extensions, an exhibition that paired her photographs with pieces by the jewellery designer Ghada Al Buainain.