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One of the most anticipated events in the international art calendar, Art Dubai, is back with an enviable and extensive list of exhibitors who will showcase their works at the three-day art fair. Touted as the largest edition till date, Art Dubai 2022 will host 100 exhibitors from 44 countries, amongst which at least a third will showcase their works for the first time. Currently open for preview, the fair will be hosted from 11 March 2022 to 13 March 2022 at Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai. The three day event, held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, will host myriad artworks and installations by renowned artists while also staying in tandem with recent developments by hosting a series of digital artworks.
First held in the year 2007, the Art Dubai fair has since functioned as an esteemed platform where creatives from the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia have showcased their works annually. With a diverse lineup of galleries that feature both established names as well as up and coming ones, the art fair opens an avenue for creative conversations and dialogue between artists and art enthusiasts. “For 15 years, Art Dubai has been a place to discover and celebrate new trends, creating and facilitating conversations, and celebrating the strength of creative output across the Global South. Art Dubai is a truly global art fair, and this is reflected in both the quality and geographic spread of the galleries participating this year,” says Pablo del Val, Art Dubai’s Artistic Director.
The latest edition of the fair will host several contemporary, modern and digital galleries set against the backdrop of the stunning locale which overlooks the pristine, blue waterways, while also dedicating a major section of their space to a robust selection of talk programmes, educational events and panels dedicated to the discussion of crypto economies, NFT platforms and digital artefacts. The four major gallery sections within the fair: Contemporary, Modern, Bawwaba and Art Dubai Digital, will feature a diverse range of works accruing to the respective themes. While the physical counterparts of the fair have dictated the curation of showcases for several years in the past, 2022 marks the debut of Art Dubai Digital, which is a section dedicated to latest digital art creations.
One of the exhibitors, Andres Reisinger, will soon present his phygital artwork titled ‘Sun/Leaf’ at the fair. Commissioned by Gallery COLLECTIONAL, the installation transcends the boundaries of the physical and digital to create a hybrid experience. “The first thing that springs to mind when I think of nature, the main inspiration for this piece, is a tree or any kind of plant with leaves; I think it is one of nature's most iconic symbols because it reflects so many of its aspects,” shares Reisinger.
“That so much of the programme is drawn from the Global South highlights the increased interest in and appetite for collecting non-Western art, the strengthening of the gallery scene beyond the traditional centres of the art world, and the role Art Dubai plays as a platform for regions that are under-represented in international collections,” says Pablo del Val about the showcases curated for the four multifarious sections of the fair.
While the Art Dubai Modern 2022 is curated by Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath and features several solo exhibitions by prominent artists from the 20th century, the Bawwaba section is dedicated towards hosting works created in the past year. Bawwaba means ‘gateway’ in Arabic and this section, curated by Nancy Adajania, will feature ten solo showcases. The largest section of the four, Art Dubai Contemporary will feature 77 galleries from 33 countries, several of which are first-time exhibitors. Lastly, the latest addition to the art fair, Art Dubai Digital, is set to showcase 17 presentations that will include both traditional galleries as well as digital platforms and collectives.
One of the most interesting showcases at the fair, Sand Flow, part of the larger INLAND project by Fernando Garcia-Dory, is a multi-site installation that features as physical manifestations of Dubai’s past, present and future and examines the cultures and communities that co-exist within the city. INLAND is an ongoing mobile project that examines the role of politics, geographies, territories, cultures and identity in the relationship between the city and the country. Fernando Garcia-Dory is also Art Dubai’s commissioned artist for 2022.
Some of the other galleries that will also be showcasing at the fair are AKKA Project, a gallery located in across two locations in Dubai and Venice , Gallery 1957 from Accra and London, Aicon Gallery at New York, USA, SANATORIUM from Istanbul, the ATHR Gallery from Jeddah and P420 from Bologna, Italy.
Visitors are also privy to the extensive talk programmes that will feature as part of the international fair, that include: This is Art Picture, Bybit Talks and Art Dubai Modern Talks, among others…Presented across four days, the This is Art Picture talk sessions will include engaging conversations amongst leading artists, curators and technologists on topics pertaining to digital art, NFTs, crypto gaming and the metaverse. Bybit Talks, also dedicated to discussions around the digital spectra, will include in-depth discussions on cryptocurrency exchange, resulting, thus, in the creation of an educational environment that will inform the audience about the offerings of digital currency. Lastly, Art Dubai Modern Talks, scheduled to be held from 10th to 12th March 2022, is dedicated to the exploration and examination of the lives and works of the 20th century Modern masters from the Middle East and North Africa.
Art Dubai will be held from 11 March 2022 to 13 March 2022 at Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai. Preview on 9 and 10 March 2022.
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