The Abu Dhabi Art Fair’s will feature a non-commercial section, ‘Beyond’: Emerging Artists from UAE will be provided with the opportunity to showcase their work at the Venice Biennale, Italy. The Palazzo Franchetti will host the three artists commissioned for this year’s platform: Maitha Abdalla, Hashel Al Lamki, and Christopher Joshua Benton.
Abu Dhabi Art has brought a commissioning strand to the biennale for the first time. It took the Beyond program on a worldwide tour last year, including a stop at Cromwell Place in London.
The Beyond strand was curated by Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath this year. They emphasized mentorship and engagement, working closely with the three UAE artists to construct large projects for each of them, similar to their acclaimed initiative for 21,39 Jeddah Arts in 2017.
Emerging Artists gives a production budget for the work in addition to partnering younger artists in the UAE with veteran curators. Friends of Abu Dhabi Art, the fair’s newly created philanthropic project, is supporting it this year.
Abu Dhabi Art has always been committed to supporting artists, allowing them to develop their practise and offering opportunities to help them advance professionally and reach new audiences “Director of Abu Dhabi Art, Dyala Nusseibeh. “This year in Venice, we are thrilled to bring global attention to the works of Christopher Joshua Benton, Maitha Abdalla, and Hashel Al Lamki.”