With over 90 galleries making their way to Art Dubai for the 11th edition of the fair taking place from March 15-18, visitors can expect a globally diverse selection of Modern and Contemporary art presented through tightly curated exhibitions and presenting a wide range of mediums and styles.

Perhaps more strikingly, Art Dubai remains the only platform through which visitors can explore a truly international artistic dialogue, viewing art in conversation between galleries coming from 44 countries, from Iran through to Brazil. The 2017 line-up of galleries features solo, duo and multi-artist shows. Here, we’ll delve into those booths showcasing several artists sharing a space with one another.

Hassan Sharif, Rope, 2016, Courtesy Estate of Hassan Sharif.

Locally, 12 galleries fly the flag for the UAE , presenting well-thought and tailored presentations that reflect both the local and international art scenes. Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde presents a seminal artwork by the late Hassan Sharif, a pioneer of contemporary art in the UAE, who produced this piece specifically for Art Dubai. In dialogue, the Belgian gallerist also presents works by Mohamed Kazem, a friend and student of Sharif’s; Green Art Gallery unites artists from across the region including Nazgol Ansarinia, Chaouki Choukini, Seher Shah and Kamrooz Aram – who is the subject of a major exhibition at the Museum; Carbon 12 Gallery selects a diverse range of artists from their international roster including Bernhard Buhmann, Gil Heitor Cortesão, Monika Grabuschnigg, and Amba Sayal-Bennett.

Bernhard Buhmann, OK Computer, 2017, Courtesy of the artist and Carbon 12.

Twenty-eight galleries from across the Middle East and North Africa participate at Art Dubai’s 11th edition, reflecting on the art practices of their respective nations –  from Algeria, Tunis and Egypt to Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine and more, visitors will be able to explore the rich and nuanced work that continues to come out from these regions. Tunis’s Selma Feriani, highlights works by Pascal Hachem and Yazid Oulab, once again presenting a minimalist feel to her space; Beirut’s Agial Art Gallery brings in a mix of artists from its predominantly Lebanese roster, including painters Oussama Baalbaki and Hala Schoukair as well as the installations and sculptures of Abdulrahman Katanani.

Hala Schoukair, Untitled, 2016, Acrylic on canva, the artist and Agial Art Gallery.

Art Dubai welcomes a large contingent of galleries from Iran – Art Dubai’s highest number of participating Tehran galleries. Spaces such as Dastan’s Basement (Tehran) portray the vibrant art scene of the Iranian capital. The gallery will present a ‘booth within a booth’, transforming their presentation into an installation curated by Iranian artist Fereydoun Ave, showcasing artefacts and objects from the artist’s private collection alongside those by gallery artists Sadra Baniasadi, Habib Farajabadi, and Nariman Farokhi. Fellow Tehran spaces include newcomer Ab/Anbar, which showcases new sculptures by Reza Aramesh juxtaposed against delicate drawings by Sirak Melkonian; while fellow Freshman participants Aria Gallery and Shahrivar Gallery present the works of renowned modernists in Art Dubai Modern, contributing to the dialogue on modernity in the region.

Abolghassem Saidi, Untitled, 1958, Courtesy of the artist and the gallery. 

Hailing from South Asia, Kolkata-based Experimenter Gallery will showcase a variety of works by artists including Rathin Barman, Adip Dutta, Nadia Kaabi-Linke, Krishna Reddy, Julien Segard and Ayesha Sultana. India’s Chatterjee and Lal (Mumbai) present the work of contemporary duo Thukral & Tagra, while Jhaveri Contemporary (Mumbai) showcases rarely seen works from the estates of Zahoor ul Akhlaq and Anwar Jalal Shemza, the latter is the subject of a major monograph that will be launched at Art Dubai.

This year, the fair presents a large gathering of both, Latin American galleries but also Latin American artists showing through international spaces. Lima’s Revolver will exhibit works by Elena Damiani and Andrea Galvani; Piero Atchugarry (Pueblo Garzón) will showcase works by Pablo Atchugarry, Artur Lescher and Yuken Teruya; and D21 Proyectos de Arte (Santiago de Chile) will present works by Claudia Hidalgo and Manuela Ovalle.

Pablo Atchugarry, Untitled, 2014, Courtesy of Piero Atchugarry gallery.

Renowned galleries such as Victoria Miro (London), Galerie Lelong (Paris/New York), Krinzinger (Vienna), Daniel Templon (Paris/Brussels), Sfeir-Semler (Hamburg/ Beirut) and Franco Noero (Turin) return to Art Dubai once more, bringing with them the energies of their respective cities, but also of their diverse rosters. Among the most anticipated elements of the fair is the dialogue that each gallery creates between the selected works on show. New York’s Marianne Boesky explores a dialogue through generations, exhibiting works by Frank Stella alongside Donald Mofett and Syrian-born New York-based Diana Al-Hadid; elsewhere, sculptures by Tarik Kiswanson and Iman Issa show through Carlier | Gebauer (Berlin). A monumental painting by Mario Merz takes centre stage at at Turin’s Giorgio Persano, alongside works by Nicola De Maria and young Lebanese artist, Zena El Khalil, altogether serving as a nod to Arte Povera, Transvanguaria and the Middle East.

Mario Merz, Untitled, 1987, Courtesy of the artist and the gallery.

This and much more encompasses Art Dubai’s 11th edition: a global hub for cross-cultural dialogue and multiculturalism, but also a platform for discoveries.

For more information on exhibiting galleries visit: https://www.artdubai.ae/galleries/