Meet the artists creating magic at the World Art Dubai
World Art Dubai is now in full swing with the region’s largest affordable retail art fair welcoming local and international visitors to its eighth edition at Dubai World Trade Centre.
With a 90 per cent increase in artists and 60 per cent increase in galleries exhibiting since last year, 2022’s World Art Dubai is its biggest yet and has witnessed an increase in footfall from those looking to buy art for both corporate and personal usage.
With strong sales seen in the first few hours of the show, Samishka Jawale, the Dubai-based Indian artist from Creative Cubes, the gallery for creative minds welcomed the first sale of the day within just 30 minutes of show opening with their ‘Her Freedom 3’ piece.
“We have been participating in World Art Dubai since 2017 and are very excited to have sold the very first piece at this year’s show – it’s definitely our strongest start yet,” said Jawale. “The piece I sold was all about freedom for women, an important topic which fascinated our buyer.”
Additional artists driving traction to their stands during day one of the show include MSS Arts & Design who are displaying their art pieces complete with Swarovski crystals. “While we do international showcases as well, our concept is so well received in Dubai as we have a really strong, receptive audience, hence we always try to exhibit at World Art Dubai,” said Sarah Moravvej, Artist and Founder – MSS Arts & Design. “We are hopeful for this year’s edition as we are already very pleased with the amount of interest we’ve seen on the first day.”
International galleries making waves include New York based gallery, Tresorie Gallery, and Italian heavyweights TV2 Gallery.
“We’re exhibiting at World Art Dubai for the first time, marking our first visit to Dubai, bringing with us experience from many international art fairs around the world,” said Heba Elbanna, Gallerist – Tresorie Gallery. “Reaction from visitors so far has been positive, people are very friendly and interacting with us about our work. We’re looking forward to meeting even more people over the next few days.”
“This is our second year participating with World Art Dubai, giving eight Italian artists the chance to come and exhibit in Dubai for the first time,” said Sanuj Nair, Deputy Director – TV2. “World Art Dubai is one of the greatest platforms for artists in the Middle East because it’s affordable and really focused on helping artists sell their products across both emerging and established artists to create their own space in the market.”
Debut artist grabbing public attention is Dubai-based photographer Jalal Abuthina, who achieved the highest sales on day one.
“This is my first time exhibiting at World Art Dubai and it’s been pleasantly surprising because I ended up selling nine prints, within three hours of show opening of the series I’m exhibiting,” said Abuthina. “The main reason I wanted to exhibit is because it’s more accessible than many other art fairs in the city and the art which is on sale is more diverse and is priced better for the general population’.
Among the brand-new features drawing interest from crowds is W.A.D Next, the NFT (Non-Fungible Tokens) zone where visitors can learn all about the newest form of art collection, and hear first-hand predictions from the creators about the future of this new medium.
“Dubai is one of the upcoming hubs for NFT’s, so we’re really excited to be here at World Art Dubai for the first time,” said Liz Carvalho, Art Director – Saphira & Ventura Gallery. “We’ve brought a collection of 19 artists from different parts of the world, and we’re pleased to see lots of curious people keen to hear more about NFTs”
The refreshed Urban Art DXB area has also been wowing visitors with its exciting and visual displays and competitions. Led for the first time by Ahmed Al Rashid, the Kuwaiti street artist, the area has expanded beyond the graffiti focus of previous editions, and now incorporates make up faceoffs and vogue dance battles.
“As a person who grew up in the 80s and 90s, I wanted to expand people’s understanding of what urban culture really is – I aimed to bring something new and fresh,” said Ahmed al Rashid. “Urban Art DXB in 2022 is a total mash up of street style – dance, vogue, skating, hip hop, make up and more. Every day we also have four graffiti artists, which we consider to be the main genre of the space, creating artworks across eight hours at the show Fashion is also a huge part of street art and another element we have brought with us is a battle on white mannequins, where our artists aim to design the most creative looks. People have been really intrigued by our area and the reception so far has been incredible – we’re really excited for the rest of the show!”
World Art Dubai will be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre, Halls 1-3 from 16-19 March 2022 between 1-9pm each day, except Saturday which runs until 8pm. Tickets cost AED 20 for adults, AED 10 for children, with family packages also available. Buy online to enjoy 20 per cent off ticket cost.
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Flamingo Room by tashas and Maison Ruinart present an exceptional culinary experience during Art Dubai
Flamingo Room by tashas is delighted to announce its exclusive partnership with Maison Ruinart, the oldest champagne house, for the 15th edition of the region’s leading art fair, Art Dubai. From Monday 7th to Sunday 13th March, diners can visit Flamingo Room to experience a set menu bringing together art and gastronomy, each course paired with a different vintage via a new form of encounter: FOOD FOR ART.
Expanding the art energy beyond the fair, Maison Ruinart is taking over Flamingo Room by tashas, located at the scenic Jumeirah Al Naseem, with artworks by British artist David Shrigley. The Food For Art menu reflects this artistic collaboration with a selection of classic starters, mains and desserts, each dish carefully selected to echo one of the artworks, accentuating a different vintage and creating exceptional flavor contrasts.
David Shrigley’s work will be exhibited at Flamingo Room for the duration of the art fair, showcasing his unique take on his vision of Maison Ruinart across an ensemble of ten artworks. The British creative is a witty artist processing the contemporary world through incomparable irony. His art allows aficionados to rediscover Ruinart with his quirky and uncompromising humour, shining a new light upon the vineyards, the heritage, and the savoir-faire of the Maison.
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Sana Sajan launches Wabi Sabi, a community art space
Art is unquestionably one of the purest and highest elements in human happiness. It trains the mind through the eye, and the eye through the mind. As the sun colours flowers, so does art colour life, keeping this thought alive a new studio was launched this weekend in Dubai which is going to make waves in the art community in the UAE- Wabi Sabi is a community arts space that aims to engage audiences, promote local artists and support the development of Dubai’s art scene through its extensive art programmes, educational initiatives, and community projects.
Through their diverse public programmes, they aim to increase knowledge and appreciation for the arts in the UAE, their objective is to build a bridge between the arts and education, opening cultural dialogue in a non-judgemental environment, and help carry the ideation process into creation. As a means to do so, they host workshops, talks, events and opportunities to bring together a like-minded community.
Wabi Sabi will be housed in the communal art studio Meraki Art studio in Al Quoz, who’s founders Pooja and Kajol, are a powerhouse of talent and are deeply passionate about the arts, and are active supporters of the art scene in Dubai, Kajol, a qualified interior designer, put her skills at work at the studio which is evident in the elegant and abstract interiors of the art space. their studio is a multi-concept space that offers workshops to help their patrons de-stress, a space to build resin furniture, Wabi Sabi – which will be their painters area.
Their studio is open to people of all skill-levels. Anyone interested in painting, candle-making, soap-making, resin art, woodwork or other forms of art and design can come to the venue and practice the art of their liking, the studio has a variety of payment and membership options and has already caught the fancy of art aficionado’s across the city.
“For professional artists who want a regular space to work, they can opt for the monthly membership. For those who want to unwind with a single session of painting after a long day at work, they can do that at nominal charges,” says Pooja co-founder of Meraki Studio.
The space is also a perfect co-working space for artsy peeps to get their thinking caps on, at a convenient location at an affordable price.
Sana Sajan owner of Wabi Sabi was quoted “My collaboration with Meraki is the perfect amalgamation of where I would want to see my passion for art being able to touch the lives of people who are as inclined towards the arts as I am, Wabi Sabi will allow you to give your thoughts an output through the medium of painting”
The art scene in the UAE has seen a radical shift, post the opening of the Louvre in Abu Dhabi, the region has seen a major influx of expat community off late, open immigration policies and an oil-fuelled economic boom have drawn creative minds to the UAE, and collectors and museum professionals have followed, looking to discover art from the region.
The art scene is a massive industry in the UAE and catching onto this early worm are these 3 entrepreneurs, who are going to leave no stone unturned in fuelling the minds of young budding artists and veterans alike.
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Project Art initiative returns to empower both local artists and international women
Project Art, the interactive initiative designed to provide Dubai’s best artists a free space to exhibit their work, will return this month for its first show of 2022 – and as well as empowering Dubai’s creative community, it hopes to empower the emirate’s female artists with a special focus on International Women’s Day.
Hosted at Zabeel House by Jumeirah, The Greens, the popular three-week Project Art residency will start on February 17 and finish on March 11, three days after International Women’s Day on March 8, with Dubai-based French artist Leiana (@art_by_leiana) showcasing a selection of female-inspired artwork from her Les Françaises collection.
“I live by colours, movement, and texture and always seek the wow effect in my pieces,” said Leiana, who moved to Dubai six years ago and started painting as a hobby. “The opportunity to have my work exhibited at Zabeel House is a dream come true and even more so as part of International Women’s Day celebrations. Painting for me is an escape from the stresses of modern life; a simple way to relax. I look forward to sharing that process with visitors.”
Leiana will lead a live painting experience on February 21 at 10am in the hotel’s lobby, where spectators will have the opportunity to get up close and personal with the artist, observe her technique, ask questions, and learn a little more about her journey from France to the funkiest neighbourhood hangout in Dubai. The artist’s completed work will be available for purchase, as will all her other pieces.
“Project Art is all about empowerment, so the opportunity to show our support to the burgeoning art community while also celebrating International Women’s Day feels like the perfect moment to bring back what proved a very popular initiative when we launched last year,” said Marcus Sutton, General Manager at Zabeel House by Jumeirah, The Greens. “Leiana’s work is incredibly inspiring and with Les Françaises focusing on strong, independent women, I’m sure her residency will motivate many others to pursue their passion.”
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Order of Magnitude by artist Jitish Kallat kicks off the 2022 edition of Ishara Art Foundation
Ishara Art Foundation opens 2022 with Order of Magnitude by Jitish Kallat, the artist’s first major solo exhibition in West Asia and the Levant. Running from February 16 to July 1 2022, the exhibition includes new works that include paintings, multimedia installations, drawings and site-specific interventions, the exhibition reflects Jitish Kallat’s profound deliberations on the interrelationship between the cosmic and the terrestrial. Jitish Kallat’s oeuvre sits between fluid speculation, precise measurement and conceptual conjectures producing dynamic forms of image-making. Using abstract, schematic, notational and representational languages, he engages with different modes of address, seamlessly interlacing the immediate and the cosmic, the telescopic and the microscopic, the past and present. In Order of Magnitude, one finds a contemplation of overarching interconnectivity on the individual, universal, planetary and extra-terrestrial dimensions.
The viewer is first confronted with Integer Studies (Drawings from Life), which run through the space resembling both the horizon and the equator. Since the beginning of 2021, Kallat followed a ritual of making one daily drawing as part of a durational study in graphite, aquarelle pencil and gesso stains. Each work comprises diverse forms anchored by the same three sets of numbers: the algorithmically estimated world population, the number of new births, and the death count noted at the particular moment of the work’s creation. Human life and death are abstracted in drawings that are both graphic and painterly, prompting questions of extinction and evolution. Seen alongside these studies is a wall-sized painting titled Postulates from a Restless Radius, whose perimeter takes the form of the conic Albers projection of the Earth. The work begins as an unstable, cross-sectional grid (in aquarelle pencil) that opens up the globe on a flat plane. There is no cartographic intent here; in place of planetary geography it assembles signs and speculations, at once evoking botanical, suboceanic, celestial, and geological formations. Postulates from a Restless Radius is an exploratory abstraction of forms that suggest signatures of growth and entropy.
Jitish Kallat: Order of Magnitude will be accompanied by physical and virtual tours, educational and public programmes, a newly commissioned text by Amal Khalaf and artist conversations over the duration of the exhibit.
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Raffles The Palm Dubai collaborates with Hunna Art to present works by four emerging local artists
Raffles The Palm Dubai collaborates with Hunna Art to host an incredible exhibition by four of its finest emerging local artists starting from January 27, 2022, until March 23, 2022.
Through a finely curated exhibition, the four artists in the spotlight – Alia Zaal, Eman Ali, Alymamah Rashed and Talin Hazbar, will offer a unique insight into the Gulf’s contemporary art scene, a sensorial experience for both, guests staying at the hotel and art enthusiasts who wish to visit.
The resort will host a series of talks at the majestic Blüthner Hall, tailored to attract an audience of curious art connoisseurs. Led by Gallerist Océane Sailly, founder and director of Hunna Art, the inaugural talk will deep dive into the topic of “Women in arts and the GCC – Past, present and future” at 4.30pm on January 27.
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