Palm before storm: Aldo Comas at COYA Dubai explores life’s duality
- Last updated: May 21, 2025 | 10:33
Muhammad Yusuf, Features Writer
COYA Dubai has launched a new three-month exhibition titled Jungle and Chaos. It has been created exclusively for the venue by Spanish multidisciplinary artist, Aldo Comas.
Unveiled on May 16 and on view till March at COYA Dubai, Four Seasons Resort, Jumeirah, the collection has been crafted to reflect the spirit of the UAE by drawing on desert landscapes, palm trees, and the region’s energy. Comas was present on the opening night, where he met guests and shared personal insights into the works on display.
A sumptuous dinner followed the inaugural, where Latin American cuisine inspired by Peru, completed the cultural journey for those present and initiated it for those yet to come.
In Jungle and Chaos, Comas explores the palm tree as a recurring motif (he describes it as a “poetic flag of identity”), capturing imagined paradises, visual memory, and the poignant nostalgia of fleeting beauty. Rendered in burnt tones and soft pastels, each work invites serious reflection, even as it enhances COYA’s ambience and energy. “Humbled by the great event in @coyadubai,” said Comas. “Thanks to everyone that was part of such an incredible art show. Jungle & Chaos was an absolute success and I’m in love with Dubai vibe and its people. Here is some info on my new collection: Jungle & Chaos is a visceral, untamed journey through the rawest corners of the human psyche and the primal beauty of nature.
“In this collection, Aldo Comas abandons any pretension of control and dives headfirst into the fertile collision between instinct and intellect — between the jungle and the chaos that lives within us all. Each piece pulses with wild emotion, layering textures and symbols in a language that is both ancient and intensely personal. You’ll find animal totems emerging from tangled brushstrokes, mythological figures bleeding into tropical fever dreams, and the echoes of Schopenhauer’s worldview vibrating beneath every gesture. Jungle & Chaos is not a place. It is a state — a space where civilisation collapses and something more truthful rises from the wreckage. These works are not meant to be understood at first glance. They are meant to be felt, fought with, returned to. The chaos is not decoration. It’s confession.”
As with all of Aldo’s work, this series is autobiographical, even in its most symbolic moments. It reflects the inner landscapes of a soul shaped by beauty, violence, memory, and rebellion. From the lush madness of the jungle to the carefully curated disorder of his canvas, Aldo invites us into a world where instinct is sacred, chaos is a form of clarity, and art is the only real map. Comas is a contemporary artist born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. He is a painter, sculptor and conceptual storyteller, whose work navigates the space between the figurative and the neo-expressionist. Drawing inspiration from pop culture, philosophy, visual memory, advertising aesthetics and reinvented memories, his pieces are rooted in emotional exotica and the symbols of freedom, all expressed in confident, jazzy strokes.
A while ago, he decided to focus exclusively on painting - and his work has not ceased to surprise since. His signature is that in each of his paintings, he shows a duality that, according to him, reflects the “modus operandi of life itself”. His work narrates stories of the contradictions of modernity and the nostalgia that accompanies it. Comas has exhibited internationally and brings a deeply personal, ever-evolving artistic vision – one shaped not only by creative exploration, but also by his unique lifestyle as a professional skydiver, with over 8,000 jumps to his credit. Since the COYA exhibition remains on display for three months, it offers guests an extended opportunity to engage with his works, which are also available for purchase.
For COYA Dubai, Comas presents a selection from his palm tree collection – a recurring motif in his work that evokes dreamlike landscapes, imagined paradises and the delicate nostalgia of fleeting beauty. Each palm is a visual statement: a ruin of paradise, a pop icon, or a poetic flag of identity. COYA Dubai, established in 2014 at the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach, strives to transcend the traditional restaurant experience. It offers an immersive voyage through the rich tapestry of Latin American and Peruvian culture, where culinary innovation meets captivating art, and throbbing music.
Known for refreshing its art displays quarterly, COYA Dubai’s ambience seamlessly merges contemporary design with Latin American and Peruvian influences. Stimulating artworks and installations adorn every corner, transforming the space into a living canvas that celebrates the fusion of cultures. Refurbished in 2022, the venue includes unique elements such as Peruvian antique mirrors, gilded hand-carved wooden panels, Inca carvings, wrought iron screening details, and plush Italian fabric wallpapers. The heartbeat of COYA Dubai could be said to be its music, where acoustic melodies and infectious Latin American beats curated by internationally acclaimed artists and DJs of COYA MUSIC create a transformative atmosphere, inviting guests to connect with each rhythm.
With venues in Mayfair, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, London City, Monte Carlo, Marbella, Mykonos, Doha, Riyadh, Muscat and Barcelona, COYA offers an odyssey into the very heart of Latin America. COYA Dubai earned a coveted spot in the 2023 Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants guide. It has transformed its space into an ever-evolving gallery, seamlessly blending immersive hospitality with creative expression, continuing its commitment to cultural immersion in Dubai.