Art Dubai (until 5 March) is always a momentous occasion in the local glitterati calendar, and this year is no exception. Returning to the luxury Madinat Jumeirah hotel with an even bigger edition than last year—130 exhibitors compared to 100—there was an upbeat vibe within the swelling crowds. But were they buying or just sipping free Ruinart? Dubai’s business is booming thanks to an influx of foreign—reportedly Russian—money and the dealers at the fair were optimistic that sales would reflect that.
The art fair focuses on art from the Global South—a term broadly denoting Latin America, Africa, Asia and Oceania, and which the fair’s commissioner for the talks programme Global Art Forum, Shumon Basar, points out was not readily accepted when the fair began using it ten years or so ago. This year it has increased participation from leading African and South Asian dealers and an expanded Art Dubai Digital section, which launched last year. “Art Dubai spotlights the Global South in a way that no other fair does,” says Nadine Abdel Ghaffar, the founder of Egyptian art…
