Culture & education ·
Report dated 19 March 2008.
SourcePress release, March 2008.
Expert on emerging art markets turns spotlight on the Arab world
The launch of a new book on contemporary Arab art at the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi has been greeted with critical acclaim from a worldwide audience.
The book – In The Arab World … Now – is a celebration of artists, galleries, museums, collectors, architects, designers, fashion and lifestyle across the Arab world. It was put together by a team from Enrico Navarra’s Gallery in Paris.
Renowned for his series of Made By books focusing on contemporary art from different worldwide cultures, Navarra has been a catalyst for the global recognition of some of the most significant names in modern art, from Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol and Keith Haring to - more recently - Tang Zhigang and Zhang Xiaogang.
The launch took place in the presence of His Excellency Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, the Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) and the Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC).
“This book marks an important turning point for Arab art. I welcome this initiative and thank Mr Navarra for promoting this emerging market and new Arab talent," said Sheikh Sultan.
Zaki Nusseibeh, Vice Chairman of ADACH, told the assembled guests that to have such a renowned figure from the international art world recognising the emergence of contemporary Arab artists gave him a great sense of pride. “The artists immortalised in these pages are set to become the newest great names in art on a global stage," he said. “The profile of these artists will also be raised across the region and this is immensely valuable both for art lovers and, of course, for the artists themselves," he added.
ADTA Director General Mubarak Hamad Al Muhairi said that he is enthusiastic about what this book will mean to creative young Arabs. “I hope that through this book and the enhanced profile of Arab art that the book will provide on a world stage will encourage more aspiring young Arab artists to embark upon the many and varied career opportunities open to them within our own shores and internationally," he said.
On behalf of TDIC, CEO Lee Tabler said they were proud to have patronised the publication of In The Arab World … Now. “We envisage the emergence of young Arab artists in the global art world to be a phenomenal addition to the pool of contemporary artistic talent, and we strongly support this initiative."
An art critic from America’s Town & Country magazine – Phyllis Tuckman – described the book as stunning. “Its production value is great, and with what’s going on in Abu Dhabi, they are in a strong position to start competing with the Chinese and other markets in auctions and sales," she said.
Alaa Nemah - Chairman Abu Dhabi Theatre - was also very impressed. “It’s the first time someone has collected and compiled such a work on behalf of these artists in such a professional way," he said.
And Paul Kasmin of the Paul Kasmin Gallery in New York described the book as “Incredible; beautifully done and well researched. Some artists are familiar, some less so. However, what’s particularly exciting for me is the architecture. From the juxtaposition of historical Damascus to modern Dubai, it’s the most forward looking in terms of its architecture."
The decision to produce the tome was taken some 18 months ago. But the project took only six months to complete, thanks to a team of between 10 and 15 people working on different aspects of the book, which has a print run of 2,000 copies and is likely to become a collectors’ item in its own right.
Navarra told the guests that the original idea was to have a book about Arab art of around 300 pages. “But as my team researched further into the subject, and with the close collaboration of Abu Dhabi stakeholders and important figures on the Abu Dhabi cultural scene, we soon realised that such a ‘short’ book could not do justice to the subject matter and it grew to its present 1,001 pages.
“We quickly realised that we had stumbled on a phenomenon that goes far beyond the framework of art. Here, as elsewhere in the world, contemporary art has become a society phenomenon, expanding its influence with each passing day. Despite the large number of pages, this is still not an exhaustive work. We could have kept going for months in our efforts to show where things stand in contemporary Arab art today."
“What also interested us was the idea of actually going out there to gain an understanding of what was happening. This may seem like a disproportionate investment but, in my opinion, it is appropriate for what is going on in the Arab world today. In fact, it has already begun: the museums have already been chosen and top-class architects have been assigned to design them."
Design concepts have been created by Jean Nouvel for the Louvre Abu Dhabi, by Frank Gehry for the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, Zaha Hadid for the Performing Arts Centre and Tadao Ando for the Maritime Museum. These architectural masterpieces will be complemented by the Sheikh Zayed National Museum and pavilions to form the largest single cluster of world-class cultural assets in a global cultural centre.
Through the creation of the Cultural District as an international centre of education, the Abu Dhabi Government aims to open up new horizons in art appreciation, expand understanding of the emirate’s own culture along with other cultures from around the world and form a basis for knowledge sharing that will forge new cross-cultural links.