Dubai Collection picked 87 artworks to be a part of its initial acquisitions alongside the personal collections of founding patrons His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, marking an important achievement in the development of Dubai’s innovative new institutional art collection.
Launched under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the Dubai Collection aims to build an institutional art collection for the city of Dubai by using a new and innovative format.
Artworks in the Dubai Collection will be accessible for public appreciation across the city of Dubai and education through a dedicated digital museum, launching later in the year. The first physical Dubai Collection exhibition of selected artworks from His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s collection and other key Dubai collections will be unveiled later this year at the Etihad Museum, Dubai.
Commenting on the announcement, the Chairperson of the Dubai Collection Steering Committee, Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority said: “We are at an exceptionally exciting moment in the development of the Dubai Collection initiative as we see the first artworks being accepted into the collection. I believe that our approach in collecting reflects Dubai’s central role as a nucleus for art in the region and look forward to seeing this project become yet another milestone in our work in making Dubai a global cultural and creative hub.”
Included in the acquisitions announced today are works by many leading modern Arab artists from the Arab world, including Baya (Algeria, 1931 – 1998), Fateh Moudarres (Syria, 1922–1999), Chafic Abboud (Lebanon, 1926-2004) and Adam Henein (Egypt, 1929 -2020). An important focus in the acquisitions are works by leading Emirati artists, such as Abdul Qader Al Rais (UAE, 1951) and Shaikha Al Mazrou (UAE, 1988).
Among the accepted artworks, 19 are part of the A.R.M. Holding Art Collection, a new corporate collection launched by the private investment firm and multi-focused economic enabler to embody their support of the city of Dubai and its potential as a nascent global cultural hub. Highlights of the collection include Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim (UAE, 1962), Lamya Gargash (UAE, 1982), Moath Alofi (Saudi Arabia, 1984) and Rathin Barman (India, 1981). The A.R.M. Holding Art Collection is displayed in the offices of A.R.M in Al Safa, Dubai.
The Dubai Collection Steering Committee is chaired by Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and will ensure that the initiative reflects the open, forward-looking and cosmopolitan spirit of Dubai and the UAE. Leading figures from the city’s cultural scene have been selected as members of the Steering Committee, including: His Excellency Mohammed Al-Murr, His Excellency Abdul Rahman Al Owais, Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Abdelmonem Bin Eisa Alserkal, and Muna Easa Al Gurg.