Art Dubai is an international art fair that takes place every March in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates. Founded in 2007, the fair is the leading art fair of the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, presenting a globally diverse lineup of over 90 galleries from around 40 countries, from household names to emerging art spaces. Art Dubai is one of the major events on the international arts calendar, attracting over 27,000 visitors in 2016 – including UAE-based, regional and international collectors, curators, patrons and 95 visiting museums and institutions. Alongside its gallery halls, Art Dubai’s programming includes commissioned artists’ and curators’ projects, residencies, the most extensive non-for-profit educational programme of any international art fair, an annual exhibition of works by winners of the Abraaj Group Art Prize, and the Global Art Forum.
Contents
- Background
- Art Dubai Contemporary
- Art Dubai Modern
- Residencies and Commissions
- Artists in Residency AiR Dubai
- Art Dubai Commissions
- Education
- The Abraaj Group Art Prize
- The Global Art Forum
- Economic Impact
- References
According to its website, Art Dubai is held under the Patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE, Ruler of Dubai. Art Dubai is held in partnership with The Abraaj Group and is sponsored by Julius Baer and Piaget. Madinat Jumeirah is home to the event. The Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (DCAA) is a strategic partner of Art Dubai and, along with Dubai Design District (d3), supports the fair’s year-round non-for-profit education programme.
Background
Art Dubai, originally called the Gulf Art Fair, was founded in 2007 by gallerist John Martin and former financier Benedict Floyd. It is part of the Art Dubai Group FZ LLC, which is part-owned by Middle East Fairs and the Dubai International Finance Center (DIFC). The fair was directed by John Martin from 2007 until 2010, when Bidoun Projects director Antonia Carver succeeded the position as fair director. Carver directed Art Dubai for six years until April 2016. Arts writer, editor and consultant Myrna Ayad was appointed the new fair director of Art Dubai in May 2016 and is currently leading the fair into its eleventh edition, which takes place March 15–18, 2017.
Art Dubai Contemporary
Art Dubai’s gallery halls are split into two main sections: Contemporary and Modern. Art Dubai Contemporary features commercial galleries operating on the primary market that have been established for at least two years. Around 75 galleries are selected every year for Art Dubai Contemporary, from established European galleries to younger art spaces from lesser-known art capitals. Likewise, exhibited artists range from emerging practitioners to industry heavyweights. The works presented at the fair cover painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, video, photography and performance.
In 2016, Art Dubai Contemporary included 76 galleries from 36 countries and the debut of the Atassi Foundation for Art & Culture in the hall’s special projects space.
Art Dubai Contemporary’s Selection Committee includes co-director of Victoria Miro Gallery (London) Glenn Scott Wright, Isabelle van den Eynde (Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde, Dubai), Andrée Sfeir-Semler (Sfeir-Semler Gallery, Hamburg / Beirut) and Ursula Krinzinger (Galerie Krinzinger, Vienna).
Art Dubai Modern
Art Dubai Modern is devoted to modern art from the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. Each exhibitor presents a solo or two-person show, featuring works by modern masters of the twentieth century, with a focus on work produced between the 1940s and 1980s. A maximum of 15 galleries are selected to participate in Art Dubai Modern, according to Art Dubai’s website. In 2016, Art Dubai Modern featured 13 galleries from nine countries, including Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and the United States.
Art Dubai Modern Advisory Committee is made up of industry professionals specialized in modernist practices of the Middle East, Africa and Asia. It includes art historian Savita Apte, associate professor in Cornell University’s Department of History of Art Iftikhar Dadi, curator Catherine David, Beirut-based writer and researcher Kristine Khouri and art historian Nada Shabout.
Residencies and Commissions
Art Dubai’s annual non-for-profit programming includes site-specific commissioned projects and artists’ residencies, aimed at supporting emerging and mid-career artists’ and curators’ practices.
Artists-in-Residency (A.i.R.) Dubai
Since 2011, Art Dubai has partnered with Delfina Foundation, Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) and Tashkeel on Artists-in-Residence (A.i.R) Dubai, an annual residency programme for emerging international and UAE-based artists. Participating artists produce works shown onsite at the fair, and take part in a series of artists’ talks, workshops and open studios during their three-month residency in Dubai. In 2016, the residency programme included Moza Almatrooshi, Jumairy, Areej Kaoud, and Lydia Ourahmane.
Art Dubai Commissions
Art Dubai Commissions offers mid-career artists the opportunity to develop new site-specific works for the grounds of the fair. In 2016, Art Dubai commissioned artists included Doa Aly, Massinissa Selmani, Sreshta Rit Premnath, and the Nile Sunset Annex collective
Education
Art Dubai’s non-for-profit educational programming, the most extensive of any international art fair, providing programmes for children through to post-graduates. Art Dubai’s education initiatives include Campus Art Dubai, a community art school for UAE-based artists, curators, writers, designers and enthusiasts, Forum Fellows, a fellowship that brings together young curators and writers from the Middle East; and The Sheikha Manal Little Artist Program for children aged 5 to 17. The fair also has an internship and volunteer programme.
The Abraaj Group Art Prize
Established by The Abraaj Group to support contemporary artists of the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, the Abraaj Group Art Prize invites artists to apply with a proposal for a new, unrealised work that is revealed in March every year at Art Dubai. One winning artist is awarded a $100,000 prize to create a major new commission and three shortlisted artists are awarded a cash prize of $10,000 to showcase work alongside the winning commission in the Abraaj Group Art Prize exhibition at the fair.
The Abraaj Group Art Prize ranks among the world’s highest art prizes, which include the Whitney Museum’s $100,000 Bucksbaum Award, the Guggenheim Museum’s $100,000 Hugo Boss Prize and the Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation’s $200,000 ArtPrize.
The Global Art Forum
The Global Art Forum is the largest annual arts conference in the Middle East and Asia and takes place every year at Art Dubai. The conference features live talks, panel discussions and performances by regional and international thought leaders, artists, curators and writers. In 2016, the Global Art Forum was co-directed by Amal Khalaf and Uzma Z. Rizvi with Commissioner Shumon Basar and the theme was ‘The Future Was’, exploring the ways in which artists, writers, technologists, historians, musicians and thinkers have imagined and are shaping the future.
Economic Impact
In March 2016, the fairs’ parent company, Art Dubai Fair FZ LLC (The Art Dubai Group), released the results of an independent survey for Art Week 2015 (March 18–25, 2015). The results show that the total economic impact the Art Dubai and Design Days Dubai events have on the local economy and service sector totaled US $35 million across seven days.