The 16th edition of Abu Dhabi Art has 102 galleries, the largest number to date. It has five principal sectors:<\/p>\n
Modern & Contemporary<\/strong>: for established galleries (who have been operating for at least seven years) with curatorial framework for booth presentations. This is the main section, with more than 30 galleries showing<\/p>\n Special Projects<\/strong>: solo or dual artist presentations by individual galleries \u2013 we count 28 of these<\/p>\n Emerge<\/strong>: for artworks priced under $3,000 \u2013 nine participants this year<\/p>\n Bidaya<\/strong>: for emerging galleries (operating for less than three years) who are first-time participants. There are two exhibitors<\/p>\n Focus<\/strong>: galleries invited to participate with specific artists chosen by a guest curator. There are Focus sectors for Hong Kong, Latin America, Women Artists and Sustainability (some very interesting selections here, curated by Riccarda Mandrini)<\/p>\n This year there\u2019s also a new regional section called Something Bold, Something New<\/strong>; eight participating galleries \u2013 most of them regular participants in Abu Dhabi Art \u2013 will present works by modernist artists \u201cwhose practices and legacies are long overdue recognition and appreciation\u201d.<\/p>\n Silk Road; Drifting Identities<\/strong> is another new section, this one for artists and galleries from Central Asia and the Caucasus. \u201cThese seem important debuts, because they open long-forgotten discussions around the Silk Road, which has come to represent a journey of self-discovery for travellers, a search for identity, and a time of metamorphosis\u201d.<\/p>\n The Collectors Salon<\/strong> is perhaps the most interesting innovation. It\u2019s described as a response to the Louvre Abu Dhabi\u2019s lead in exploring connections between civilisations and cultures across time; so eight exhibitors will present manuscripts, astrolabes, historical objects, rare books and 19th century Orientalist paintings.<\/p>\n As well as the conventional art fair, Abu Dhabi Art places a lot of emphasis on its public engagement programme \u2013 installations, commissions, exhibitions, talks and events throughout the year. Worth catching are the Beyond Emerging Artists<\/strong><\/a> exhibits at the Manarat (this programme provides three emerging artists in the UAE \u2013 Dina Nazmi Korchid, Simrin Mehra Agarwal, Fatima Al Ali \u2013 with a platform from which to realise ambitious art projects) and installations in Al Ain<\/strong> (site-specific artworks at Al Ain Oasis and Al Jahili Fort)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"