Art Director

Salt; Abu Dhabi Emirate; On-site; AED 240,000 - 360,000; Full time

Job summary

Salt is seeking an ambitious Art Director in Abu Dhabi to join a growing creative team. You will shape how the group’s brands look and feel across the region, leading visual concepts from concept to execution across campaigns and platforms.

You will collaborate with cross-functional teams, mentor junior creatives, and stay ahead of design trends. A strong portfolio and multi-channel experience are essential for success.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience in advertising/creative environments.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating art direction and visual design.
• Experience across multiple channels beyond traditional design.
• Excellent presentation and communication skills, with ability to sell ideas.

Responsibilities

• Develop and lead visual concepts across integrated campaigns and platforms.
• Translate briefs into distinctive visual ideas and creative executions.
• Own art direction from concept through final delivery.
• Establish and maintain strong visual identities across brands.
• Create campaign visuals, layouts, moodboards and creative guidelines.
• Direct photography, film, CGI and motion content when required.
• Collaborate with copywriters, strategists and production partners.
• Present concepts clearly to senior stakeholders and teams.
• Mentor junior designers with clear direction and feedback.
• Manage multiple projects, ensuring quality and deadlines.
• Stay ahead of design trends and explore AI in creative processes.
• Contribute to pitches and new business opportunities across the group.

Skills

Art direction

Branding

Typography

Creative concepting

Presenting to stakeholders

Tools

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe InDesign

Motion / After Effects

Job description

We are working with an exciting and rapidly growing holding company in Abu Dhabi that is building out its creative capabilities across a diverse portfolio of brands, businesses and high-profile projects.

This is a fantastic opportunity for an ambitious Art Director to join a growing creative team and play a key role in shaping how the group's brands look, feel and show up across the region.

The Role

As Art Director, you will be responsible for developing bold, visually compelling creative across a wide range of brands, campaigns and platforms. You will take ideas from initial concept through to execution, bringing a strong visual point of view while ensuring every piece of work is creatively ambitious, strategically relevant and beautifully crafted.

This is a hands-on role for someone who loves ideas, design and visual storytelling, but also enjoys working collaboratively with wider creative, marketing, content and production teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and lead visual concepts across integrated campaigns, digital, social, brand, content, events and experiential projects
• Translate creative and strategic briefs into distinctive visual ideas and compelling creative executions
• Own the art direction of projects from initial concept through to final delivery
• Establish and maintain strong visual identities across multiple brands and business areas
• Develop campaign key visuals, layouts, storyboards, moodboards, presentations and creative guidelines
• Art direct photography, film, video, CGI, motion and other content production where required
• Work closely with copywriters, designers, strategists, content teams, marketers and external production partners
• Present creative concepts clearly and confidently to senior stakeholders and internal teams
• Ensure creative work is consistently maintained to a high visual and conceptual standard
• Mentor and support junior designers and creatives, providing clear creative direction and constructive feedback
• Manage multiple projects and briefs simultaneously while maintaining quality, attention to detail and deadlines
• Stay ahead of emerging design, cultural, technology and creative trends and bring fresh thinking into the team
• Explore and utilise AI and emerging creative technologies to enhance ideation, visual development and production
• Contribute to pitches, new business opportunities and wider creative initiatives across the group

What We're Looking For

• 6+ years of experience within an advertising agency, creative agency, integrated agency, in-house creative studio or similar environment
• A strong portfolio demonstrating exceptional art direction, conceptual thinking and visual design
• Experience working across multiple channels rather than purely traditional design
• Strong understanding of branding, typography, composition, layout, photography and visual storytelling
• Experience taking a creative idea from brief through to final execution
• Strong presentation and communication skills, with the ability to confidently sell and explain creative ideas
• Experience working with photographers, videographers, production teams and external creative partners
• Strong Adobe Creative Suite skills, particularly Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign
• Experience with motion, digital, social or experiential creative is highly desirable
• An understanding of AI-powered creative tools and how they can be incorporated into the creative process
• Excellent attention to detail and a genuine passion for producing outstanding creative work
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, ambitious environment with multiple stakeholders and competing priorities
• UAE / GCC experience is advantageous

The Ideal Person

We are looking for someone who is creatively hungry, visually obsessed and excited by the opportunity to build and shape work across a diverse portfolio of brands.

You will be someone who can think conceptually but is also hands‑on, understands what makes great creative and is not afraid to challenge the brief.

Most importantly, you will have a portfolio that shows personality, originality and a strong point of view - not just polished execution.

This is an opportunity to join a business at an exciting stage of growth, work across varied and high‑profile projects, and have genuine influence over the creative direction of the group's brands.

Seniority: Art Director

Industry: Creative / Advertising / Brand / Marketing