A L U M I N I U M
I S S U E
•
n° 3 0 •
ALU MIN IUM
2 0 2 2
ISS UE - n° 30 - 202 2 - € 10
courtesy the artist and Galleria Continua
[ ART ON BOARD ]
A NEW CAPITAL OF CREATIVITY
by Micaela Zucconi
It may not be London, New York or Paris but Dubai hosts a thriving art scene, set against a background of economic development, futuristic architecture and tourist promotions
Above, Anish Kapoor, Spanish Gold to Magenta satin, 2019. Opposite, top, Loris Cecchini, Aeolian landforms, Khabra, 2021 both Galleria Continua. Right, bottom, Muatasim Alkubaisy, the bronzes Drums of Wars (2016) and Migration (2016), both Ayyam Gallery
124
courtesy the artist and Galleria Continua
T
he art scene in Dubai, a city that recently celebrated the fiftieth
Leila Heller Gallery of New York. It is the region’s largest and offers
anniversary of its foundation, has seen significant growth over
a programme emphasising the dialogue between Western and Middle
the past ten years with a packed calendar of events including
Eastern artists, featuring among many others the Lebanese-Canadian
Art Dubai and the opening of museums like the Louvre Abu Dhabi,
artist Mouna Rebeiz. Another is Frenchman Stéphane Custot’s Custot
the Jameel Arts Center of Dubai and foundations promoting the
Gallery Dubai, opened in 2016 and showcasing a number of high-
spread of artistic culture. The presence of internationally-recognised
profile 20th century and contemporary artists, with a portfolio of
galleries is further proof of the important role played by the arts in
illustrious names like Jean Dubuffet, Enrico Castellani, Fabienne
this Gulf city. Many of these centres are concentrated in the Al Quoz
Verdier and Pablo Reinoso. The Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde was
district, the location of the Arserkal Avenue, a flourishing artistic
one of the first to establish a presence in Dubai, opening in 2006
hub that also hosts trendy bars and nightclubs, cool gyms and a very
and in 2010 on Arserkal Avenue. It is known for encouraging new
popular theatre. One of the galleries is the Dubai location of the
African and Middle-Eastern artists – one of these is Hassan Sharif,
125
[ ART ON BOARD ]
Above left, Zeinab Al Haschemi, Day 1, 2022. Right, Mouna Rebeiz, Hagen de Merak, 2020, plexiglass, both Leila Heller Gallery. To side, Alexander Calder, Highway, 1973, Opera Gallery. Right-hand page: above, the Custot Gallery with the Sun is coming Up exhibition. In the background, The Eye of History (Atlantic Perspective). Points of Continent, 2012, by Marc Quinn. Centre, two more views of the Custot Gallery. Bottom, left, Ana Mazzei, Sleepwalk, installation at the Green Art Gallery. Right, Hassan Sharif, Six Points Angular Lines – Part 4, 2013, Gallery Isabelle Van Den Eynde.
a pioneer of conceptual art in the Gulf region. “The art scene in
emerging Middle Eastern artists alongside well-established figures
Dubai has significant potential, in a context that also embraces the
like the Iranian-American Michael Rakowitz. Just down the way is
neighbouring Emirate of Sharjah, with the Sharjah Art Foundation,
the Ayyam Gallery, originally from Damascus, which since 2006
and Abu Dhabi, where Frank O. Gehry’s new Guggenheim Museum
has been operating on the basis of a collaborative network taking in
is scheduled to open in 2026”, says Ekaterina Plastinina, director
the USA, Europe, Africa and Asia. Also in the art district, the Volte
of the Green Art Gallery. Originally an intimate exhibition space
Art Project gallery shows works by, among others, the Indian artist
in Syria, the gallery was relaunched as a salon d’art in Jumeirah in
K.K. Raghava. The cultural centre of the Gate Village at the Dubai
1995 and then a contemporary art space in Al Quoz. It specialises in
International Financial Center (DIFC) hosts Opera Gallery, with
126
127
@ Pia Torelli
[ ART ON BOARD ]
fourteen locations around the world. “Dubai is constantly evolving, and the arrival of new galleries and Christie’s auction house are a clear sign that the city is open for new developments. Our clients are important Emirates families or Western clients who are not permanent residents of Dubai”, says gallery director Sylvain P. Gaillard. The works on display range from more affordable items to museum pieces. Its roster of best-selling artists includes Lucio Fontana and Spain’s Manolo Valdes, with his iconic bronze Reina Mariana. The sophisticated XVA Gallery in Al Fahidi, Dubai’s old quarter, is a pioneering promoter of contemporary Middle Eastern art. The Italian contribution to this cultural ferment includes the Sconci Gallery, based in two venues, one at the DIFC and the other in the Design District, as well as the Oblong Art Gallery (already present in Forte dei Marmi), opened in 2019 by Paola Marucci and Emanuela Venturini, at Blue Waters Island, opposite Marina Beach. The Galleria Continua opened in Dubai in 2021 with a pop-up space in the Burj Al Arab hosting artists like the superstar Anish Kapoor and Loris Cecchini. It’s just the first step in Dubai for the San Gemignano-based gallery, which has always displayed a flair for opening new galleries in the right places and also has spaces in Paris, Cuba, Rome, Brazil and China.
128
Left, interior of the Opera Gallery, foreground, La Dama India, 2018, by Manolo Valdes. Bottom, Opera Gallery, Enrico Castellani, Superficie bianca, 1992. This page, to side, a print of the 69 NFT works created, based on characters from the painting, 2022. Bottom, Volte Art Project Gallery, the monumental Guernica for the Siri-ocene , 2021, Acrylic on canvas 3.5 x 8 m, from The Guernica Project, by multidisciplinary Indian artist and storyteller Raghava KK. The work is inspired by the original Guernica by Pablo Picasso. A constantly expanding series, the project comprises paintings, digital prints, and a large selection of NFTs.
129