It must have been a curious sight at first - a lone figure methodically raking sand on Dubai's public beach for hours on stretch. 

"Some people think I'm looking for gold. Others think I'm cleaning the beach," Dubai-based artist Nathaniel Alapide tells Gulf News #Pinoy with a guffaw.

But what he really does is a job no one else in the UAE has: he's a sand artist.

Alapide has been using Dubai's beachfronts as a giant canvas for his unique art for several years now. He’s also made his mark in Muscat in Oman, and in the islands of Siargao and Boracay in the Philippines. 

Where can he be spotted in sand art mode in Dubai? “The Black Palace beach close to the Palm, Sunset Beach close to Jumeirah Beach Hotel, and Kite Beach,” he said. 

His unique artwork has drawn a lot of attention, allowing the Filipino to also get commissioned works for his more traditional art. He has worked with shops for modern art on interiors, exteriors and furniture and has been invited to several art shows, the most recent of which is the Showcase Gallery opening in Al Serkal on May 9 where he is the only Filipino in a group of 11 UAE-based artist showcasing their unique art forms.

The tree that started in all

He stumbled into sand art almost by accident, he told #Pinoy. His grandmother died in 2014 and he wanted to give her a tribute. “She pretty much raised me,” he said. So he grabbed a rake and headed to the public beach in Jumeirah and started sketching on the sand.

"I made a big drawing of a tree," he said, saying it was very symbolic of his grandmother's giving nature. “While I was creating that, I found it very meditative,” he said, adding that it took him three hours to complete the sand art. The result surprised him.

"It started from there," he said.

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