Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

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

Art Dubai Reboots

March 12, 2012 by Marion Maneker

TEFAF opens at the end of the week but it’s not the only important art fair taking place. In the Gulf States, Dubai continues to use some of the opportunity of the economic downturn—lower rents and the city-state’s role as a shopping mecca for wealthy Indians and Pakistanis—to solidify the city’s art market presence. The Financial Times describes what’s going on in the region:

A repackaged Art Dubai is now the central strand of an ambitious umbrella initiative called Art Week, which encompasses a broad programme of cultural events taking place across the Gulf this month. It ranges from lavish new museum projects in Doha, Qatar, to the fifth annual meeting (March 17-19) organised by the Sharjah Art Foundation, an influential annual gathering of artists, art professionals and institutions. The joined-up marketing strategy makes sense, especially as Qatar is now a powerful force in the contemporary and blue-chip modern art worlds.

Other events point to a fairly robust art ecosystem: Art Week includes Sikka, a fair devoted to new commissions from UAE-based artists (March 15-25 in Al Bastakiya). The management team of Art Dubai, keen to tap into new Middle Eastern tastes for limited-edition furniture, has launched a new fair, Design Days Dubai (see below). Crucially, a commissioned projects programme, on a scale not seen at European art fairs, features more than 40 artists who will cheekily explore “the fabric and economy of an art fair”.

 Local Talent, Global Reach (Financial Times)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Why Are the Qataris So Discreet? Ask David FrumWhy Are the Qataris So Discreet? Ask David Frum
  • Hope and Ambition in Dubai’s Art MarketHope and Ambition in Dubai’s Art Market
  • What Does Qatar Want?What Does Qatar Want?
  • Qatari ComplaintsQatari Complaints
  • Qatar Invests in Art to Invest in Its FutureQatar Invests in Art to Invest in Its Future
  • Qatar in ContextQatar in Context

Filed Under: Art Fairs Tagged With: Gulf States

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