Global contemporary art events and news observed from New York City. Suggestion? Email us.

Art Dubai Wraps Up to Strong Sales

Monday, March 25th, 2013

The Art Dubai fair closed its doors yesterday on the most successful fair in its seven year history, with $45 million in fine art exhibited over the course of the four day fair.  Initial reports signal strong sales across the board, and underlines the rising prominence of the city for the global arts market.  “The growth of Art Dubai over the past seven years reflects the rising prominence of the UAE as a centre of art and cultural discourse.” said Fair Director Antonia Carver.  (more…)

Art Dubai Announces 2013 Commission Projects

Thursday, January 31st, 2013

The Art Dubai fair has announced its commissioned projects for 2013, including works by Mary Evans, Mohammed Kazem and Fatima Al-Qadiri.  The works range in scope and size, from a festival wide radio project to a video gallery installed within a narrow stairwell, and reflect the blend of Arabic and global artworks on view at the fair.          (more…)

Monday, March 26th, 2012

Six-year running Art Dubai attracted a record-breaking amount of visitors this year, albeit with some degree of censorship of artwork depicting politically charged Egyptian and ‘Arabian’ gulf conflicts. [AO Newslink]

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AO on Site, Dubai – Art Dubai 2011 Summary

Thursday, March 24th, 2011

Art Dubai (2011). All images John Mollett for Art Observed.
Bringing 75 art galleries from 30 different countries, Art Dubai is arguably the most significant Art Fair in the burgeoning Middle East. One of its main goals, as stated by Director Antonia Carver, was to “aim for Art Dubai to be a fair of discovery- for the international collectors curators, artists, galleries and museum groups that attended the fair to catch up on all that is happening in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.” Despite this, the fair has a reputation for forcing the removal of work seen to be possible violating censorship regulations.  This may explain why, upon attending the fair, it became clear that although a few galleries were using the venue as a forum to expose both conceptual work and work by artists who have yet to develop a reputation in the region, most chose a program that was relatively safe, and which appeased the decorative senses of certain patrons rather than showing work more clearly representative of visionaries in Middle Eastern art.
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AO Onsite Fair Preview – Dubai: Art Dubai’s Fifth Edition Offers Strongest Program To Date

Thursday, March 17th, 2011


Art Dubai 2011 – All photos by Art Observed unless otherwise noted

His Highness Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE, Ruler of Dubai officially opened Art Dubai for its fifth edition.  The region’s best attended art fair, this year’s Art Dubai features a total of 81 galleries from 34 countries in the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia and the United States, making it one of the most diverse and strongest programs to date.  The fair witnessed a robust interest before its official opening to the public today after esteemed guests, royal patrons and international and regional art professionals attended the Jumeirah Patron’s Preview on Tuesday. The fair emphasizes Middle Eastern Art during a time of political upheaval in the region.


Landscape
(2009) by Subodh Gupta

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AO On site – Dubai: Art Dubai Sales Exceed Expectations

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010


View of Art Dubai in the Medinat Jumeirah – All photos by Art Observed unless otherwise noted

On March 17th his Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE, Ruler of Dubai officially opened Art Dubai for its fourth edition.  The Middle East’s best attended contemporary art fair, this year record number of international and regional collectors attended the Jumeirah Patron’s Preview.  This year’s fair exhibited 1500 works from 72 leading International and regional galleries presented 1500 made by around 500 artists.


Visitors at Art Dubai, via Capital D Studio

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