The 15th edition of the Abu Dhabi Art Fair took place from 22 to 26 November at Manarat Al Saadiyat.
As the most extensive edition yet, the event hosted more than 90 galleries from over 30 countries, 15 talks by more than 50 speakers, and a variety of daily performances by international and local artists. There were a host of exhibitions, commissions, talks, performances, workshops, tours and culinary experiences.
The fair expands beyond the notion of a traditional art fair, placing a strong emphasis on a diverse public engagement programme, including art installations and exhibitions, talks, and events that take place in different locations throughout the year. The culmination of this year-long programme is the annual Abu Dhabi Art Fair in November, which provides an important sales platform for participating galleries whilst also offering these galleries an opportunity to showcase ambitious installations and site-specific works by their artists to a wide audience.
Highlights included several talks by commissioned artists and curators who were joined by guest speakers and panellists discussing global art histories and joining the wider conversation on Sustainability in the lead-up to COP28. Some of the notable discussions included talks on Arab Women Artists, as well as Social Contributions in Art and culture conversations.
An exclusive exhibition curated by Radicants is titled ‘Frozen Forest’ and features Michelin Star restaurant Nouri by Chef Ivan Brehm. The exhibition cum dining destination explored themes of capitalism, humanity, and Sustainability. Through the curatorial platform Radicants, Nicolas Bourriaud presented a live exhibition facilitated by a 7-hour video highlighting the artistic portrayals of 12 gallery artists, provoking ideas about the extinction of nature through the hands of human desire for industrialisation and capitalism. The exhibition explored the arrest and manipulation of edible landscapes, questioning humanity’s collective disassociation from the natural world that is used for sustenance but neglected in terms of environmental care. Meanwhile, Nouri at the Frozen Forest was a unique dining experience that explored the concepts of human collaboration and the notion of scarcity as parallels, further discovering the contradictions that exist between modern societies and the natural world that enables them.
Other highlights included two captivating film screenings centred around climate change. Debuting at The Theatres, “1.5 Stay Alive” follows popular Caribbean musicians as they express their experiences with rising seas by composing and performing songs about climate change and their visions of how to confront it. While ‘Siege on my Land’, is a United Nations Development Program (UNDP) short film showcasing Guyana’s battle with climate change.
The fair also hosted hands-on art activities for visitors of all ages to unleash their creativity and showcase their artistic potential to artists.
