Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

  • AMMpro
  • AMM Fantasy Collecting Game
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us

Art Dubai Shrugs Off City's Bad Press

December 7, 2009 by Marion Maneker

The fallout from Dubai’s debt moratorium will not effect Art Dubai, the fair director says (but who can trust anything the Emirate says anymore, eh?) to Georgina Adam in the Financial Times:

Despite the current blanket media coverage of Dubai’s debt problems, the organisers of Art Dubai, the art fair which is preparing for its fourth edition next March, insist they are remaining confident. “Since September, Dubai has been improving, property has bottomed out, tourism is up significantly and its gold market is now the biggest in the world,” says the fair’s director, John Martin; “I think the art market will continue to benefit from these factors.”

He does however admit that “the bad press will inevitably have some effect on us.” While the exhibitor list has not yet been finalised, Martin says there will be 80 dealers, up from 68 last year, citing galleries bringing artists from the region – Selma Feriani, Paradise Row and Rossi and Rossi as well as newcomers from the Middle East and Asia, including Assar and Aaran from Tehran, Grey Noise from Pakistan, Ghandara from Hong Kong, Athr from Jeddah.

However, the big-name European and American galleries are still hesitating. “Some have a misguided idea that collectors in the region will start buying at the highest level,” he says, explaining that it will take time to cultivate the market and build relationships. “Whatever your personal wealth, new collectors always take time to stomach million-dollar price tags,” he says.

The Art Market: Trophy Hunters (Financial Times)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Art Dubai Sales ReportArt Dubai Sales Report
  • The Sultan Who Sees His Art as an InvestmentThe Sultan Who Sees His Art as an Investment
  • Art Dubai SalesArt Dubai Sales
  • Art Dubai SalesArt Dubai Sales
  • Art Dubai SalesArt Dubai Sales
  • Dubai v. Abu DhabiDubai v. Abu Dhabi

Filed Under: Art Fairs Tagged With: Art Dubai

About Marion Maneker

LiveArt

Want to get Art Market Monitor‘s posts sent to you in our email? Sign up below by clicking on the Subscribe button.

  • About Us/ Contact
  • Podcast
  • AMMpro
  • Newsletter
  • FAQ

twitterfacebooksoundcloud
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
California Privacy Rights
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Advertise on Art Market Monitor