Sotheby’s has announced that Abdulrahman Al Zayani, a prominent collector of modern and contemporary Middle Eastern art based in Bahrain and London, will be selling over 80 pieces from his personal collection.
The collection includes paintings, drawings, sculptures, and multimedia works by artists from various countries in the region, such as Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, North Africa, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the UAE, with a range of styles from figurative to abstract to experimental.
The auction will take place at Sotheby’s London on April 25, but 12 highlights from the collection are currently on display at Sotheby’s Dubai until March 3. Zayani has been amassing this collection for the past 20 years.
“Single owner collections of modern and contemporary Middle Eastern arts are very rare,” Alexandra Roy, Sotheby’s head of sale for modern and contemporary Middle Eastern art, told the National. “Al Zayani is buying across the board. You are getting Egyptian, Turkish, Moroccan, Iranian artists. You’re getting modern masters and contemporary work too.”