Frieze is coming to the Gulf. The inaugural Frieze Abu Dhabi runs from November 19 to 22 at Manarat Al Saadiyat. It marks Frieze‘s first fair in the West Asia, North Africa and South Asia region. It also replaces Abu Dhabi Art, which ran for 17 years. As a result, the capital’s art calendar is entering a new chapter.
From Abu Dhabi Art to Frieze
The fair is organised with the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi. Dyala Nusseibeh directs it. It will take place annually in the Saadiyat Cultural District. Frieze executive director of fairs Kristell Chade says it amplifies voices from the region in an international context. Meanwhile, Frieze’s Eva Langret notes that the fair inherits nearly two decades of community building.
Who Is Taking Part
The fair brings 84 galleries from 63 cities across 36 countries. The main section hosts more than 60 galleries. International names include Gagosian, Pace Gallery, Thaddaeus Ropac, Victoria Miro and Perrotin. In addition, regional galleries include The Third Line, Athr, Saleh Barakat Gallery, Gypsum and Selma Feriani. India also has a strong presence through Experimenter, Jhaveri Contemporary and Nature Morte. Works by women stand out, including pieces by Etel Adnan, Hamra Abbas and Shaikha Al Mazrou.
Three Curated Sections
Three sections shape the fair, and women curate two of them. Focus presents younger galleries with experimental solo or dual shows, supported by Frieze bursaries. Global Futures, led by Tarini Malik, features solo presentations tied to the UAE and wider region. Artists include Ala Younis and Abdullah Al Saadi. Frieze Masters Abu Dhabi, curated by Marika Sardar, looks back from antiquity to the early 20th century. Its first theme is the Indian Ocean and the movement of people and ideas through trade.
Dala Nasser Wins the First Frieze Abu Dhabi Award
Lebanese artist Dala Nasser is the first recipient of the Frieze Abu Dhabi Artist Award. She lives and works between Beirut and London. Curator Nabila Abdel Nabi selected her. Her new installation Qubbat Duris is named after a 13th-century monument in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. Nasser will evoke it with a timber framework in the fair’s atrium. Textile paintings will hang from it, made with ash, raw clay, and terracotta. The work explores how materials carry memory across generations.
In Dialogue: Mohammed Kazem and Alia Zaal
A new annual exhibition, In Dialogue, pairs an established Emirati artist with an emerging one. The first edition, At Another Meeting Point, brings together Mohammed Kazem and Alia Zaal. Kazem works with video, photography and performance. Zaal draws on archives and personal images to explore memory. Abu Dhabi’s Dirwaza Curatorial Lab curates the show.
Sculpture on the Beach and Talks
Frieze Sculpture Abu Dhabi runs at Mamsha Beach from November 16 to December 16. It features four works: Zeinab Alhashemi’s The Nut and Bolt, Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim’s The Form, Imran Qureshi’s Water Bodies, and Kamran Samimi’s Voyagers (Traveling Stones). In addition, talks include “Building the Global Museum” on November 19 and “Curating Across Knowledge Systems” on November 20.
Why It Matters
For the region, the fair brings a global art platform to Abu Dhabi. Furthermore, it places Arab artists such as Nasser and Adnan at the centre. At the same time, an all-female curatorial team shapes two sections. Therefore, the debut may influence how the region’s artists reach international collectors.
