The Bulletin bringing you the latest highlights in the art world

JUNE 2026

Ithra Charts a Global Design Journey Ahead of Design Week 2026

The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) is advancing an international programme of design initiatives culminating in Ithra Design Week, taking place from 16–21 November 2026. The year-long journey has already included presentations at Milan Design Week and Spain’s Concéntrico Festival, where Saudi architect Faris Alosaimi’s installation BAYN explored the relationship between permanence and mobility through architectural forms rooted in the courtyard and the tent. Further collaborations include a cross-cultural design residency with Amman Design Week and participation in Design Doha before the programme concludes in Dhahran. Expanding the legacy of Tanween, Ithra Design Week will bring together exhibitions, installations, talks, workshops and public programmes, reinforcing Saudi Arabia’s growing role in international design discourse.

Al Ain Museum Celebrates 15 Years as a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Al Ain Museum will commemorate the 15th anniversary of Al Ain’s inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List with a special edition of its Museum Talks programme on 27 June. Titled 15 Years of World Heritage, the session brings together experts involved in the original nomination to discuss the significance of the designation and the continued stewardship of the city’s cultural landscape. Moderated by Yaser Saeed Al Neyadi, the panel features urban planner Talal Alsalmani, archaeologist Mohammed Amer Alneyadi and heritage planner Belhassen Kinbi. The event also includes guided tours and family workshops exploring archaeology, conservation and Al Ain’s enduring heritage.

Sharjah Art Foundation brings animation, sci-fi and Arab classics to Sharjah audiences

Sharjah Art Foundation has launched Sunday Cinema Club, a new summer film programme combining free screenings, talks and workshops to encourage shared viewing and community engagement. Running every Sunday from 5 July to 30 August 2026 at the Photography Gallery in Al Manakh, Sharjah, the initiative is organised around three themes: family-friendly animation, pioneering science-fiction cinema and landmark Arab films. Each screening will be accompanied by discussions or practical sessions exploring cinematic techniques, historical contexts and social issues. The programme also serves as a platform to activate the recently opened venue, reinforcing its role as a centre for public learning and cultural exchange.

Tashkeel Launches Flexible Workspace and Events Hub in Dubai

Tashkeel has expanded its Nad Al Sheba campus with the launch of Tashkeel Workspace & Events, introducing flexible workspaces, meeting rooms and event facilities for freelancers, entrepreneurs and creative professionals. Building on its longstanding role as a hub for artists and designers, the new initiative broadens Tashkeel’s support for independent practice by offering dedicated spaces for focused work, collaboration and community gatherings. The facility includes bookable desks, meeting rooms, quiet work pods, an events venue, digital printing services and access to Gerbou restaurant. The expansion forms part of Tashkeel’s wider plans to grow its creative campus and studio programme in the coming years.

DCT Abu Dhabi Publishes New Volume Preserving Sheikh Zayed’s Poetry

The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi has unveiled Treasured Sayings, a new publication dedicated to the poetry of the UAE’s Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Produced in collaboration with Assouline, the volume brings together 118 poems, with 75 available in English translation, offering insight into the values that informed his vision, including unity, generosity, belonging and respect for humanity. Complemented by audio recordings and a glossary of Emirati vocabulary, the publication seeks to make Sheikh Zayed’s literary legacy accessible to wider audiences while reinforcing Abu Dhabi’s ongoing efforts to preserve and promote the UAE’s cultural heritage.

Open Call: Sharjah Art Foundation Invites Applications for Al Hamriyah Studios

Sharjah Art Foundation has opened applications for its Al Hamriyah Studios programme, offering UAE-based artists and creative practitioners the opportunity to lease affordable studio spaces for artistic research, experimentation and production. Located in the coastal town of Al Hamriyah, the studios occupy the site of a former souq, blending contemporary architecture with traces of its historic setting. Participants will have access to individual and shared workspaces, project spaces, a garden and communal facilities that support long- and short-term creative practice. Applicants must submit a portfolio and CV. The application deadline is 11 July 2026.

Open Call: A.R.M. Holding and Art Dubai Launch Public Art Commission

A.R.M. Holding and Art Dubai have opened submissions for We Emerge Stronger — بنظهر أقوى, a major public art commission for the HUNA Sculpture Park at H Residence in Dubai. Inspired by the words of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the open call invites UAE-based, regional and international artists, as well as artist-gallery partnerships, to propose a permanent site-specific sculpture exploring resilience, renewal and public engagement. Applicants must have experience producing large-scale outdoor works. The selected commission will join the HUNA Sculpture Park’s growing collection. Submissions are open until 25 July 2025.

Paula Cooper Gallery Receives Inaugural Art Basel Gallery Legacy Award

Paula Cooper Gallery has been named the first recipient of the Art Basel Gallery Legacy Award, a new distinction recognising galleries whose sustained commitment has shaped artists’ careers and contributed to the wider cultural landscape. Founded in 1968, the gallery was honoured for its longstanding support of pioneering artists, ethical leadership and lasting influence on contemporary art, including its role as the first gallery to establish itself in SoHo. Presented during the 2026 Art Basel Awards in Basel, the prize also includes a mentorship initiative, with Paula Cooper Gallery nominating Chapter NY to receive support for participation at Art Basel 2027.

Dubai Design Week 2026 Opens Applications

Applications are now open for Dubai Design Week 2026, inviting architects, designers and creative practitioners from around the world to contribute to its multidisciplinary programme. Returning to Dubai Design District (d3) from 3–8 November, the festival will feature installations, exhibitions, new commissions, talks, workshops and experimental projects that explore the role of design in contemporary life. Bringing together regional and international voices, Dubai Design Week continues to foster cultural exchange and cross-disciplinary dialogue, creating a platform where ideas, innovation and creative practice intersect while addressing the challenges and possibilities shaping the future.

Qatar Museums Earns 29 Telly Awards for Digital Storytelling Excellence

Qatar Museums has received 29 honours at the 47th Annual Telly Awards, recognising the institution’s growing impact in digital storytelling and creative media. Selected from more than 13,000 international entries, ten films produced between 2024 and 2025 were awarded across categories including museums, documentary, public awareness, gaming and promotional content, securing three Gold, 17 Silver and nine Bronze awards.

Among the top-winning projects were MATHAF and I.M. Pei: A Museum on the Water, alongside King of Dunes: Saeed Al-Hajri. The recognition highlights Qatar Museums’ commitment to communicating cultural narratives through innovative digital formats. Asma Yacoub Al Jefairi, Director of Digital Experience, noted that the achievement reflects the institution’s ambition to make culture accessible, personal and relevant to audiences across the world.

Sharjah Opens Registration and Licensing Service for Private Museums

Sharjah Museums Authority has launched a new registration and licensing service for private museums, creating a streamlined framework for collectors, cultural custodians and non-governmental entities seeking to establish or formalise museum initiatives in the emirate. Available through the Authority’s website, the service supports the documentation, preservation and public presentation of private collections while ensuring compliance with recognised museum standards.

Developed in collaboration with the Sharjah Economic Development Department, the platform enables applicants to complete the registration process online, from submitting museum details to obtaining approvals. The initiative aims to strengthen the role of private museums in preserving cultural memory, supporting heritage tourism and enriching Sharjah’s cultural landscape, while encouraging greater community participation in safeguarding and sharing cultural heritage.

Sharjah Art Foundation Opens Submissions for Corniche 8

Sharjah Art Foundation has opened submissions for the eighth edition of Corniche, its annual comic anthology dedicated to emerging and established illustrators and comic artists from across the GCC. Applicants are invited to propose an original six-page comic in either Arabic or English, with selected participants joining a three-day creative exchange in Sharjah before developing their final works for publication.

Since its inception in 2019, Corniche has grown into a platform for experimentation, collaboration and independent publishing, bringing together diverse narrative forms ranging from biography and art history to science fiction, fantasy and mythology. The deadline for submissions is 30 June 2026, with the anthology set to launch at Focal Point 2026, Sharjah Art Foundation’s annual art book fair.

JD Malat Gallery Announces its Made in The UAE Artists

JD Malat Gallery Dubai has announced the seven artists selected for Made in the UAE, a curatorial initiative launched in late 2025 to champion artists contributing to the country’s contemporary cultural landscape. Chosen from more than 300 submissions received from across the Emirates, the finalists – Ahmed Emad, Anila Ashraf, Camelia Mohebi, Elizaveta Pugacheva, Samo Shalaby, Sasan Nasernia and Yousif Albadi – will present their work in a group exhibition opening on 11 June 2026.

Spanning painting, sculpture and mixed media, their practices engage with themes of identity, memory and cultural exchange. The selection was made by a jury of regional collectors, curators and arts patrons, who expanded the shortlist in recognition of the strength and diversity of submissions.

The Fifth Edition of Art Basel Paris Announces its Exhibitors 

Art Basel Paris is returning to Grand Palais with its fifth edition in October 23 – 25, 2026 with 200 exhibitors from 41 countries – some participating for the first time. Divided into three exhibition sectors; Galleries where exhibitors display their programme – Emergence, where emerging galleries and artists will present their programme; and Premise, dedicated to “highly singular curatorial proposals.” Among the exhibitors, Athr Gallery (KSA), Marfa’ Projects (Lebanon), and Sfeir-Semler Gallery (Lebanon, German) are returning to the fair with much anticipated programmes. The world renowned fair stands as a cultural ecosystem bridging between international institutions in the vibrant French capital.

MAY 2026

Louvre Abu Dhabi Extends Art Here 2026 Open Call for GCC and Indian Artists

Louvre Abu Dhabi has extended the submission deadline for the sixth edition of Art Here 2026 and the Richard Mille Art Prize to 14 June, inviting contemporary artists from across the GCC and India to propose new commissions for one of the region’s leading contemporary art platforms. Curated this year by museum director and curator Kamini Sawhney, the programme’s theme, Confluences, reflects on the interconnected histories, cultures, and ecologies that continue to shape the Gulf and the Indian subcontinent. Expanding to include Indian nationals for the first time, the initiative foregrounds longstanding cross-cultural exchange across the Indian Ocean. Selected artists will present commissioned works at Louvre Abu Dhabi in November 2026, with one recipient awarded the Richard Mille Art Prize of USD 60,000.

Hunna Art Gallery Announces Representation of Bahraini Painter Shooq AlShawi

Hunna Art Gallery now represents Shooq AlShawi, a Bahrain-born, London-based artist whose large-scale abstract paintings explore gesture, movement, and continuity through layered applications of oil paint, oil stick, and pastel. Drawing from the physicality of mark-making, AlShawi approaches abstraction as a meditative and cyclical process shaped by rhythm, breath, and repetition. Her practice reflects influences ranging from Baroque painting’s treatment of light and movement to the structural and spiritual dimensions of Islamic art, particularly concepts of unity and spatial continuity. Recently shortlisted for ArtEvol 2025 at the Saatchi Gallery, AlShawi continues to expand her practice through exhibitions and residency programmes across Bahrain and London.

Open Call: Post Occupancy Architecture Workshop at Jameel Arts Centre

Jameel Arts Centre opens a call for students, architects and creatives from across the UAE and further afield to take part in Post Occupancy Architecture Workshop: Interspecies Futures, scheduled from 6–17 July 2026 at Jameel Arts Centre, Jaddaf Waterfront, Dubai Creek. Developed with the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) and led by Studio Madane, the two-week programme centres on the fading life of the Tarabot pavilion. Participants will work alongside mentors Nader Akoum and Karine Baidoun to examine how architecture endures, adapts and fails once inhabited by both people and other species, producing a full-scale architectural intervention shaped by research, fabrication and ecological inquiry.

Art Basel Qatar Announces 2027 Theme and Artistic Director Appointment

Art Basel has appointed Wassan Al-Khudhairi as Artistic Director of the 2027 edition of Art Basel Qatar, marking the fair’s second edition in Doha following its inaugural launch earlier this year. Scheduled to take place from 28 to 30 January 2027, with preview days on 26 and 27 January, the fair will once again unfold across Msheireb Downtown Doha, including the Doha Design District and M7.

An Iraqi curator whose practice has long engaged with institutions and artistic ecosystems across the MENASA region, Al-Khudhairi previously served as the founding director of Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Qatar, where she oversaw the museum’s opening in 2010. Her appointment follows the inaugural edition shaped by Wael Shawky alongside Vincenzo de Bellis.

The 2027 edition will unfold under the curatorial theme between / بين, a framework that considers the space “between” not as absence or division, but as a site of encounter, movement, and exchange. Rather than seeking fixed definitions, the theme proposes a more fluid condition, one shaped through relation, transition, and proximity across geographies and generations. The fair will continue its curated format of focused solo presentations, while expanding its special projects and public programming throughout the city.

Bonhams Highlights Middle Eastern Modernism in June Sale

Bonhams presents its Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern Art auction on 4 June 2026 at its New Bond Street saleroom in London, bringing together works that trace shifting modernisms across Lebanon, Iran, Syria, and Turkey. The sale is led by Huguette Caland’s Girl Skipping Rope (1998–2000), estimated at £150,000–300,000, a late monumental canvas where autobiography, desire, and memory converge. From Lebanese modernism, Saliba Douaihy is represented by Bay of Akkar and Bsharri, works that mark his passage from landscape observation to abstraction, spanning both his early formative years and later stylistic transition.

Two works by Fahrelnissa Zeid, Cataclysm and Bayezid Mosque, reflect her movement between expressive abstraction and rare architectural figuration, each rooted in distinct phases of her career. Completing the selection, Marwan Kassab-Bachi’s Untitled (No. 105) offers a more intimate register, defined by psychological density and restrained figuration.

Zayed National Museum has been named one of the World’s Most Beautiful

Zayed National Museum has been named one of the World’s Most Beautiful Museums 2026 by Prix Versailles, becoming the only institution from the region on this year’s list. Selected among seven museums worldwide, the recognition places the UAE’s national museum within a global framework of architectural and cultural distinction.

Located in Saadiyat Cultural District, the building is designed by Lord Norman Foster of Foster + Partners. Its five steel towers, rising above 123 metres, evoke the motion of falcon wings, while their form operates as environmental infrastructure, regulating airflow through passive cooling systems. The museum’s mound-like base draws from the UAE’s terrain, integrating landscape and structure into a continuous architectural gesture.

Inside, six galleries trace over 300,000 years of human presence on the land, while surrounding gardens reference traditional irrigation systems and native ecologies. The museum positions architecture, memory, and environment within a single narrative of place and cultural continuity.

Van Cleef & Arpels and Tashkeel Award Joud Malhas and Rachel Antoun The Emergent Designer Prize 

Van Cleef & Arpels, in collaboration with Tashkeel, announces the winners of the 11th Emergent Designer Prize: Joud Malhas and Rachel Antoun. Now in its eleventh edition, the prize continues to support emerging designers across the Gulf, inviting participants from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, and Kuwait to develop functional works responding to an annual theme. This year’s focus, Blooming Poetry, explores design rooted in storytelling, material intelligence, and cultural memory.

The winning duo, Joud Malhas, a Jordanian spatial and experience designer based in Dubai, and Rachel Antoun, a Lebanese interior architect working with new materials and sensory environments, bring together complementary practices rooted in spatial strategy, material sensitivity, and narrative-driven design.

Their winning project, Where There Is Uns, reinterprets Gulf traditions of hospitality through a light-based installation that draws on Bedouin practices of guiding travellers with fire. Cardamom husks are transformed into bioplastic surfaces, layered into a suspended structure that shifts with movement and proximity, creating a responsive field of light. The work reflects sensory design as a language of care, presence, and connection across shared environments.

APRIL 2026

Diriyah Biennale Foundation and Farah Al Qasimi among Art Basel Awards Medalists

Art Basel Awards announces its 2026 medalists: thirty-three figures and bodies tracing new contours for art and culture. Across nine categories, the programme attends not only to makers but to those who scaffold the field. Among the awardees in the Museum and Institution category, the Diriyah Biennale Foundation stands as a steady civic engine, cultivating regional practice with institutional clarity and reach. In the Emerging Artist category, Farah Al Qasimi is recognised for work that moves between image, film, and sound, examining identity, taste, and the residues of empire.

Abbas Akhavan to represent Canada at the 61st International Art Exhibition

Abbas Akhavan will represent Canada at the 61st International Art Exhibition—La Biennale di Venezia. Born in Tehran and working between Montreal and Berlin, his practice considers how histories are embedded in place and shaped by political conditions. Working across installation, drawing, video, sculpture, and performance, he often develops projects in response to specific sites, attending to their architecture and surrounding social structures. Gardens and managed landscapes recur as points of inquiry, framing ideas of proximity and control. Recent installations reconstruct sites altered by conflict, examining how narratives of the past are contested and reconfigured.

Ithra opens registrations for Summer Youth Program

King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) has opened registration for the fifth edition of its Summer Youth Program, an initiative designed to introduce young participants to the cultural and creative industries. Running over four weeks at its Dhahran headquarters, the programme targets youth aged 13 to 16, offering an immersive framework that combines learning with practical engagement. Participants are exposed to a wide range of fields, from museums and film to architecture, design, and performing arts, while developing skills in critical thinking, collaboration, and communication. Through workshops, discussions, and guided encounters with cultural practitioners, the programme provides insight into how cultural institutions operate. It concludes with a collective exhibition, where participants present the outcomes of their work, reflecting a process that privileges exploration, exchange, and creative development.

Alserkal Launches Month-Long Art Programme Across Dubai

Alserkal Avenue has announced the launch of Alserkal Art Month, a five-week programme running from 18 April to 18 May, expanding its annual Art Week into a broader, city-wide initiative. Bringing together artists, collectives, and institutions, the programme unfolds across exhibitions, public commissions, and conversations that foreground collaboration within the UAE’s cultural landscape.

The month opens with 16 gallery exhibitions, alongside the unveiling of Still A Sky We Hold, a new public work by Shilpa Gupta. A central highlight is Déjà vu, a group exhibition at Concrete featuring artists from 18 UAE galleries, accompanied by a talks programme curated by Nadine Khalil. Workshops, performances, and site-specific interventions further activate the district, culminating in a closing week aligned with Art Dubai 2026.

Osman Hamdi Bey Masterpiece Surpasses £3.6 Million at Bonhams

A major painting by Osman Hamdi Bey led the 19th Century Paintings sale at Bonhams in London, achieving over £3.6 million. Cami Kapisinda (At the Mosque Door) significantly exceeded expectations, marking its first appearance at auction since being acquired directly from the artist in the late 19th century. The work, noted for its scale and intricate detail, reflects Hamdi Bey’s engagement with Orientalist themes while offering a more nuanced, insider perspective shaped by his Ottoman background.

Trained in Paris and influenced by European academic painting, Hamdi Bey occupied a unique position between artistic traditions. Beyond painting, he played a central role in cultural institution-building in Istanbul. The strong result underscores continued market interest in historically significant works that bridge cultural and artistic contexts.

Sharjah Film Platform 8 Awards Short Film Production Grants

Sharjah Art Foundation has named the recipients of the Sharjah Film Platform 8 Short Film Production Grant: CounterArchive Collective for We Return in Pieces, Rajan Kathet for Oxygen, and Nadeem Alkarimi for Mila in The Mountains. The selected projects explore questions of memory, identity, and place through distinct cinematic approaches.

Each will receive support through development and production, with completed works set to premiere at a forthcoming edition of Sharjah Film Platform. The grant continues to back independent filmmakers working across genres and geographies.

ATHR Gallery Announces Representation of Abdullah Al Othman

ATHR Gallery has announced the representation of Abdullah Al Othman, reinforcing its commitment to artists shaping contemporary discourse in the region. Working across installation, light, and text, Al Othman’s practice reflects on the transformations of everyday life in Saudi Arabia, drawing from urban landscapes, desert narratives, and visual fragments of the built environment. His works often take the form of subtle spatial interventions, inviting closer attention to overlooked details and shifting perceptions of place. Exhibited locally and internationally, his practice bridges material, language, and environment, offering a nuanced reading of a rapidly evolving cultural context.

Armenia Debuts at Malta Biennale 2026 with Raffi Yedalian Installation

In 2026, Armenia joins the Malta International Art Biennale for the first time, contributing to its second edition under the theme “CLEAN/CLEAR/CUT.” The national pavilion presents The Sound of What Was Never Seen, a sculptural and sonic work by Raffi Yedalian, curated by Sona Hovhannisyan.

The installation reflects on absence, perception, and the tension between what can be sensed and what remains concealed. Positioned within an international context, the pavilion marks a significant step in presenting Armenia’s contemporary artistic voice, while extending its cultural narratives to new audiences.

MARCH 2026

Lina Ghotmeh to Debut First Outdoor Installation in Italy at Milan Design Week

Paris-based, Lebanese-born architect Lina Ghotmeh to design Metamorphosis in Motion, a new installation set to anchor MoscaPartners Variations 2026 at Palazzo Litta from 21 to 26 April 2026. Marking her first site-specific outdoor work in Italy, the project positions architecture as both scenographic device and spatial inquiry.

Conceived for the palace’s central courtyard, the installation draws on Ghotmeh’s concept of an “archaeology of the future,” weaving together memory, landscape, and movement. Responding to the site’s role as a threshold between city and interior, the work frames circulation as a choreographed experience. Presented during Milan Design Week, the intervention extends Palazzo Litta’s evolving role as a platform for experimental design and contemporary spatial practice.

Zayed National Museum Named Among TIME’s World’s Greatest Places 2026

The Zayed National Museum has been recognised as one of TIME’s World’s Greatest Places 2026, joining a global list of 100 standout destinations. Selected by the publication’s international network, the museum stands among a small number of sites from the Middle East and wider MENA region. Located within Saadiyat Cultural District, the institution opened in December 2025 and traces the deep history of the UAE while reflecting on the legacy of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Designed by Norman Foster, the museum combines architectural ambition with a wide-ranging collection, reinforcing its position within the region’s evolving cultural landscape.

Somalia Debuts First National Pavilion at Venice Biennale 2026

For the first time, The Federal Republic of Somalia will participate in the International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia with a dedicated national pavilion. Representing the country are artists Ayan Farah, Asmaa Jama, and Warsan Shire, whose practice engages memory, materiality, and displacement. Curated by Mohamed Mire and Fabio Scrivanti, the presentation unfolds at Palazzo Caboto. Titled SADDEXLEEY, the project draws on a Somali poetic structure based on repetition and relational meaning. Rooted in oral traditions, the exhibition translates this form into a spatial and sensory experience, where sound, language, and material converge, marking a significant moment for Somalia’s presence on an international cultural stage.

FEBRUARY 2026

Armen Agop to Represent Egypt at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia

Egyptian artist Armen Agop has been selected to represent Egypt at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, presenting a new body of work at the National Pavilion of Egypt.

Agop’s practice, shaped over three decades, distils form into meditative sculptures and paintings that privilege stillness, material memory, and duration. Drawing on ancient Egyptian sculptural traditions and a wider Mediterranean inheritance, his work proposes identity as layered and evolving. The pavilion frames art as a space for reflection, offering a measured counterpoint to spectacle through restraint and quiet intensity.

Boghossian Foundation Hosts Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain

From 11 to 19 March, the Boghossian Foundation welcomes Zaventem Ateliers to the Villa Empain for a temporary inhabitation of the historic residence. Founded in 2019 by Lionel Jadot, Zaventem Ateliers brings together around thirty artisans, artists and designers working across disciplines. During the event, participants live and create on site, transforming the Art Deco villa into a functioning domestic and creative environment. Objects are integrated into daily routines rather than displayed as static works, fostering a dialogue between the building’s residential origins and contemporary approaches to design, material experimentation and collective making.

National Museum of Qatar Receives GSAS Platinum for Operations

The National Museum of Qatar has been awarded Platinum certification under the GSAS Operations framework by the Gulf Organisation for Research & Development, marking the first museum globally to achieve this distinction. The upgrade from Gold reflects sustained efforts to embed environmental responsibility into daily operations, reinforcing Qatar Museums’ broader sustainability agenda. Presented on Qatar Environment Day, the recognition builds on the museum’s earlier GSAS 4-Star design and build rating and aligns with the objectives of Qatar National Vision 2030, positioning the institution as a benchmark for sustainable museum practice.

FROMM.Lab Announces 12 Finalists Ahead of Design Doha Biennale 2026

Following its debut at Milan Design Week 2025, FROMM.Lab has announced the 12 finalists of its first international design competition, with selected projects set to advance towards presentation at the Design Doha Biennale 2026. Founded by Alia Rachid, the platform invited designers to reinterpret Arab heritage through contemporary practice. The shortlist includes Abeer Borhan, Areej AlGhonaim, Assaad Feghali, Catalina Martínez Rojo, Cecilia Rinaldi, Daniel Heilig, the duo Galyiah AlMohannadi and Lolwa AlMohannadi, collaborators Ismail Hutet and Blanca Scully, the studio Kuranoie, Marwane Soumer, the collective of Noor Alabdulmalik, Noof Alnaama and Amina Fakhroo, and Xinyi Wang. Their proposals explore intersections of heritage, identity, and contemporary design, often translating personal narratives into objects with broader cultural resonance. The finalists will now enter a mentorship and development phase guided by an international panel, including Giulio Cappellini, Joseph Grima, Aline Asmar d’Amman, and the FROMM.Lab team led by Luca Fois.

The Kingdom of Morocco to participate for the first time at La Biennale di Venezia

The Kingdom of Morocco will participate for the first time with a national pavilion at the Arsenale during the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, marking a significant milestone for the country’s contemporary art presence. Titled Asǝṭṭa, the project is a monumental, site-specific installation by Amina Agueznay, curated by Meriem Berrada, and conceived for the Artiglierie spaces of the Arsenale. Rooted in the symbolism of thresholds and ritual weaving, the work explores transmission, shared memory, and the living knowledge embedded within Moroccan craft traditions. Resonating with In Minor Keys, the theme of this edition curated by Koyo Kouoh, the installation unfolds as an immersive environment shaped by gesture, material, and collective histories. Through scale and spatial rhythm, Asǝṭṭa transforms the pavilion into a sensory passage, foregrounding artisanal practices as active cultural languages rather than static heritage.

Diriyah Art Futures Launches Open Call for Mazra’ah Media Arts Residency 2026

Saudi Museums Commission’s Diriyah Art Futures has announced the second edition of the Mazra’ah Media Arts Residency, a three-month programme centred on the theme Intelligent Matter. Open to established new media artists, researchers and machine learning practitioners, the residency explores AI as a material condition shaped by data, systems and computational processes rather than as a distant abstraction. Participants will work in advanced production environments, including machine learning infrastructure and film, sound, XR and fabrication facilities. Taking place in Diriyah, the programme concludes with a public open studio connecting residents with curators, institutions and wider audiences. Applications close 8 March 2026.

Ramzi Mallat to Open Leighton House Centennial with Arab Hall Commission

In March 21, 2026, Ramzi Mallat will inaugurate the centenary programme at Leighton House with Atlas of An Entangled Gaze, his first UK institutional commission, presented in the historic Arab Hall. Conceived by Frederic Leighton in the late nineteenth century, the interior is set to become the focus of a wider initiative pairing contemporary interventions with research and publication. Mallat’s installation will suspend thousands of luminous blue ceramic forms above the central fountain, drawing on Levantine protective symbols and Islamic craft traditions to explore perception, heritage, and exchange. Through material repetition and architectural alignment, the work aims to establish a dialogue between past and present, positioning the Arab Hall as a site of layered histories rather than static ornament.

Roudhah Al Mazrouei Participates in Reassemblage in London

Abu Dhabi–based artist Roudhah Al Mazrouei is among the three artists featured in Reassemblage, a group exhibition presented by General Assembly in collaboration with Teaspoon Projects, on view in London until 28 February 2026. Curated by Gigi Surel, the exhibition considers materials as carriers of cultural memory. Al Mazrouei’s contribution centres on what she approaches as embodied archives, drawing from Emirati rituals, objects and landscapes connected to Al Ain and the Hajar Mountains. A film set in Qatara Oasis reflects on girlhood and intergenerational care through the preparation of snaah, while sculptural works preserve gestures of adornment in resin. Across her practice, materials hold knowledge shaped by desert ecologies, women’s traditions and the persistence of memory.

Albania Announces Pavilion for Venice Biennale 2026

The National Pavilion of Albania has announced A Place in the Sun, a new moving-image installation by Genti Korini for the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, curated by Małgorzata Ludwisiak. Presented at the Arsenale from 9 May to 22 November 2026, the project combines live action, puppetry, animation and sound within a three-channel film environment. Drawing on experimental language and historical references, the pavilion proposes a speculative reflection on identity, perception and cultural projection. The announcement positions Korini’s installation as a continuation of his ongoing research into Albania’s relationship with modernity and representation.

Qatar Foundation’s BilAraby Highlights Arabic Language in Global Knowledge Debates at Oxford

Qatar Foundation’s BilAraby initiative took part in panel discussions during the second UK Universities Arabic Debating Championship, held at University of Oxford from 7 to 9 February 2026 and organised by QatarDebate Center. The participation focused on the role of Arabic in knowledge production within digital environments, addressing questions of representation, algorithmic bias and epistemic equity. Discussions also explored migration narratives and the contribution of Arab expertise globally. Through its presence, BilAraby reinforced its mission to position Arabic as an active language of research, dialogue and innovation, while expanding international engagement with youth and academic communities across disciplines.

Dubai Collection Nights Returns for 2026 Edition

Dubai Collection Nights 2026 unfolds from 24 February to 8 March, activating multiple venues across the city, with Al Safa Art and Design Library as its central hub. The programme opens on 24 February with the launch of In Attunement. The Dubai Collection is a public initiative built through long-term loans from private patrons, granting wider access to significant modern and contemporary works. Through talks, tours and curated encounters, the programme invites audiences to engage closely with artworks usually kept out of public view, alongside a private visit reserved for invited guests.

Eight Artists Join Sharjah Art Foundation Residency 2025–2026

Sharjah Art Foundation has announced the second cohort of its 2025–2026 Residency Programme, taking place from 2 February to 30 March 2026 across Bait Obaid Al Shamsi in Arts Square and the Kalba Ice Factory. Selected through an open call, the participating artists are Richi Bhatia, Rai, Monya Riachi, Azzah Salwaa, Zenaéca Singh, Joar Songcuya, Gian Spina and Abdullah Tabaza. Working across disciplines that include visual art, writing, performance, music and research, the residents will develop experimental practices while engaging with Sharjah’s cultural landscape. The programme offers time, space and dialogue, supporting process-led work shaped through exchange with local contexts and creative communities.

Make. Act. Play: Spring Arts Camp for Young Creatives by Jameel Arts Centre

This March (16 until 27), Jameel Arts Centre hosts a two-week daytime programme inviting children aged six to twelve into a hands-on exploration of art and performance. Structured around observation, movement and making, the camp introduces participants to different ways of seeing and expressing the world through drawing, theatre-based exercises and collaborative projects. Led by the centre’s learning team, each day combines guided activities with opportunities for experimentation across materials and forms. With meals and supplies included, the programme is designed as an immersive creative environment. Places are limited, with a small group format that supports focused learning and shared discovery.

Lebanese design duo David/Nicolas have been commissioned to design to Equestrian Library and Saddle Workshop for ADREA

Abu Dhabi Royal Equestrian Arts (ADREA) forms part of a wider cultural initiative dedicated to classical horsemanship, grounded in the Arab tradition of Furusiyya. As the first institution of its kind outside Europe, ADREA combines performance, study, and hands-on learning. Design studio David/Nicolas was commissioned to create the Equestrian Library and Saddle Workshop, translating equestrian heritage into spatial form. Drawing on stable environments, craft traditions, and material sensitivity, the interiors emphasise rhythm, proportion, and function. The project bridges design and horsemanship, shaping spaces where knowledge, discipline, and making are experienced as interconnected practices.

AlUla Contemporary Art Museum Moves Closer to Realisation

Announced in early 2026 by Arts AlUla, the AlUla Contemporary Art Museum is emerging as a major platform for contemporary art in north-west Saudi Arabia. While its permanent building is still in development, programming is already underway through exhibitions and festivals across AlUla. Designed by Lina Ghotmeh, the future museum will sit within the oasis landscape, shaped by environmentally responsive architecture informed by the area’s deep history. Its pre-opening exhibition, Arduna, introduced this vision through works exploring human relationships with land and time, establishing a foundation centred on site, dialogue, and long-term cultural exchange.

Record Night for Saudi Art at Sotheby’s Diriyah Auction

At the Diriyah’s amphitheatre, Sotheby’s held its second Saudi auction, Origins II. The auction brought together modern and contemporary works by leading Saudi, regional, and international artists before a full audience. The evening’s defining moment came early, when Safeya Binzagr’s Coffee Shop in Madina Road achieved $2.1 million – over ten times its estimate – setting a new auction record for a Saudi artist. The result ranked among the highest prices for an Arab artist at auction and became the most valuable artwork ever sold at auction in Saudi Arabia.

Qatar–Mexico 2026 Year of Culture Programme Announced

Qatar–Mexico 2026 Year of Culture unfolds as a year-long cultural partnership linking heritage, contemporary practice and public life across both countries. The programme brings Mexican and Qatari artists, designers and chefs into dialogue through exhibitions, residencies and shared platforms, positioning exchange as an ongoing process rather than a single event. Early highlights include culinary collaborations at the Qatar International Food Festival, design residencies bridging craft and innovation, and exhibitions featuring Mexican creatives in Doha’s museums. Public art commissions and mural projects extend the initiative into urban space, while film, education and community programmes foster knowledge exchange. Together, these strands frame culture as a meeting point for lived traditions, creative experimentation and long-term collaboration.

Spain Cultural Days Drew 300,000 Visitors to Ithra

Spain Cultural Days drew close to 300,000 visitors to Ithra in Dhahran this January, as the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture presented a wide-ranging programme under the theme Live Spain. Across plazas, galleries, theatres and gardens, audiences encountered Spanish culture through exhibitions, performance, film, workshops and food. Visual arts explored sport, fashion and regional identity, while stage productions centred flamenco as a living tradition. Interactive sessions introduced rhythm and movement, and cinema screenings expanded the cultural lens. Outdoor culinary events added a sensory dimension. Moving between spaces and disciplines, visitors experienced a connected programme where artistic expression and everyday life met in a shared cultural setting.

JANUARY 2026

Hyejeong Ko Wins Boghossian Foundation International Prize 2025

The Boghossian Foundation International Prize 2025 has been awarded to Korean artist Hyejeong Ko, selected from nearly 130 applicants representing 62 nationalities. This year’s edition focuses on design and crafts, celebrating practices that connect contemporary creation with inherited knowledge, in keeping with the Foundation’s mission to foster dialogue between East and West.

Ko’s work reimagines sterling silver through a language shaped by Asian aesthetics and the natural landscapes of Jeju Island, where she was raised. Her sculptural objects evoke wind, water and stone, transforming metal into tactile, organic forms. The jury recognised the precision, material sensitivity and cross-cultural resonance of her practice.

Fady Jameel Awarded Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters

Fady Mohammed Jameel has been named Chevalier in France’s Order of Arts and Letters, in recognition of his long-standing support for arts and culture internationally. The honour was presented in Paris by the French Minister of Culture, acknowledging his role in advancing cross-cultural exchange and sustained arts patronage. As Chair of Art Jameel, Jameel has overseen initiatives including Jameel Arts Centre in Dubai and Hayy Jameel in Jeddah, alongside wide-ranging programmes in art, film, and learning that reach audiences globally. The distinction also reflects the Jameel family’s decades-long philanthropic engagement and their contribution to strengthening cultural connections between the Middle East and Europe.

Lebanon Mourns the Passing of Rima Amyuni

Rima Amyuni, born in Lebanon in 1954 and trained in Britain and the United States, passed away early this January. Across more than three decades of painting, she developed a singular figurative language rooted in observation yet charged with quiet estrangement. Her work moved between landscapes, portraits, and self-representation, gradually giving rise to painterly figures that hovered between the familiar and the uncanny.

Through dense colour, expressive geometry, and attentive looking, Amyuni reworked the traditions of portraiture and landscape to foreground lives often rendered invisible. Her paintings remain attentive, humane, and deeply alert to presence, difference, and the soft unrest of the everyday.

Ithra Cultural Days Returns to Celebrate Spain

Ithra Cultural Days returns from 12 to 31 January 2026 with a programme dedicated to Spain, activating spaces across the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture in Dhahran. Spanning exhibitions, performances, film screenings, talks, and workshops, the programme invites visitors to encounter Spanish culture through photography, fashion, sport, cuisine, and live arts. Daily performances animate the Theatre, Plaza, and Lush Garden, while cinema and public discussions explore film, literature, and architecture. Designed for all ages, the programme combines hands-on activities, family events, and food experiences, foregrounding cultural exchange through participation and shared discovery.

Zayed National Museum Marks the Launch of Magan Rediscovered

Zayed National Museum will mark the launch of Magan Rediscovered: The Building of a Bronze Age Boat That Sailed the Arabian Gulf with a public weekend programme on 10–11 January 2026. The publication traces the research behind the Magan Boat project, a collaborative initiative that reconstructed a full-scale Bronze Age vessel using archaeological evidence from the region. Across talks, workshops, performances, and a documentary screening, the programme offers insight into the project’s making and its connection to maritime heritage. Bringing together researchers, boatbuilders, and museum specialists, the weekend foregrounds shared knowledge, experimentation, and the enduring relationship between craft, history, and place.

The Third Line to Present Sophia Al-Maria at Art Basel Qatar

The Third Line will present HiLux, a new body of work by Sophia Al-Maria, at the inaugural Art Basel Qatar 2026. The presentation centres on a newly commissioned scroll installation, accompanied by works on paper and a sound piece, unfolding across the booth at M7 in Doha. Drawing on the Toyota Hilux as a recurring motif, Al-Maria repositions the vehicle as a carrier of memory, labour, and survival across Gulf landscapes. Expanding her long-standing engagement with extractive modernity and embodied experience, HiLux revisits Gulf futurism through intimacy, resilience, and relational histories. Sophia Al-Maria is a Qatari-American artist whose multidisciplinary practice spans visual art, film, and writing, engaging with speculative histories and the cultural politics of modernity.

BeMA: Archiving the Legacy of Gebran Tarazi

In line with its mandate to preserve Lebanon’s national collections, BeMA initiated an extensive archiving and digitisation project in 2023, encompassing Tarazi’s full press archive from 1993 to 2023 alongside his complete artistic production. In recent years, the Beirut Museum of Art (BeMA) has played a central role in recognising and safeguarding the legacy of Gebran Tarazi. This long-term effort positions Tarazi’s work within an institutional framework of care, research, and public memory, ensuring its accessibility for future generations and affirming its significance within Lebanon’s cultural heritage.