ART DUBAI MODERN TALKS 2026

Art Dubai Modern Talks reaffirm the fair’s long-standing commitment to scholarship and the re-examination of underrepresented art histories. The programme revisits and expands knowledge of Modern Art from the MENA region, amplifying its cultural legacy while engaging local and regional artists in redefining and reframing Modernism within their own contexts.

Bringing together scholars, curators, and artists featured in the Modern section, the Talks foster multidisciplinary dialogue that challenges conventional narratives of modernism. Rather than positioning Arab modernity as peripheral, the programme situates it within a broader global framework, emphasizing its intellectual, political, and aesthetic contributions.

The 2026 edition explores Arab Modernism as a living, evolving field of research, where history, material experimentation, authorship, and contemporary practice intersect. Through interconnected conversations, the programme revisits overlooked narratives, questions systems of attribution and expertise, and traces how modern artistic languages continue to inform today’s creative expressions. By engaging with contemporary artists, the talks reveal a rich continuum between past and present, offering new perspectives on identity, transmission, and the relevance of modern art within today’s global cultural landscape.

Art Dubai Modern Talks are presented in partnership with Dubai Collection, the city’s first institutional art collection.

Art Dubai Modern Talks, an annual series of talks supporting Art Dubai’s commitment to scholarship and unexplored art histories, is a platform for discursive conversations sparked by Art Dubai Modern.

Bringing together scholars, curators, and artists represented in the section, Art Dubai Modern Talks encourages reflection on these intersections, expanding our understanding of modernism and discourse within global contexts.

The 2025 edition of Art Dubai Modern Talks, curated and moderated by Dr. Nada Shabout and Magalí Arriola, explored the cultural affinities and solidarities between West Asia, North Africa and Latin America. The conversations delved into the shared experiences of navigating new national identities to examined how heritage has served as a tool for artists and scholars to address the complexities of contemporary realities.

Art Dubai Modern Talks are presented in partnership with Dubai Collection, the first institutional art collection for the city of Dubai.

PROGRAMME SCHEDULE

17 April

HUNA LOUNGE, ART DUBAI

4:00-4:45pm

REPRESENTING GEOGRAPHICAL AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY IN LARGE-SCALE INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS
Katya García Antón, Curator, Writer, Researcher, Cultural Manager; Alia Swastika, Curator and Writer; Brandee Caoba, Artist, Curator and Visual Activist; and Sabrina Moura De Araujo, Curator and Researcher. Moderated by Magali Arriola, Curator, Art Dubai Modern 2025

Have the politics of representation changed under the recent configurations of the world? This conversation will explore the crafting of new avenues in the international network of contemporary art that makes the large-scale exhibitions and biennials scene.

5:00-5:45pm

NABIL KANSO: WORKS FOR PEACE
Daniel Kanso, Founder, Nabil Kanso Estate; Saleh Barakat, Gallerist; and Mohammad Al Thani, Founding Director and Curator, Institute of Arab and Islamic, New York. Moderated by Nada Shabout, Curator, Art Dubai Modern 2025.

A leading proponent of figurative expressionism, the Lebanese American artist Nabil Kanso was committed to pacifism, human rights, and free expression. Launching his artistic practice in New York in 1968, his work directly engages the viewer to experience harrowing visions of a vast range of historic, mythical, social, political, and literary subjects.

18 April

HUNA LOUNGE, ART DUBAI

4:00-4:30pm

THE LIFE AND WORK OF INJI EFFLATOUN
Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi, Founder, Barjeel Art Foundation. and Suheyla Takesh, Director, Barjeel Art Foundation

The influential Egyptian artist and activist Inji Efflatoun (1924–89) was a pioneer of modern Egyptian art. Commissioned by the Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah, The Life and Work of Inji Efflatoun vividly captures her journey from a privileged upbringing to her courageous activism and imprisonment.

19 April

HUNA LOUNGE, ART DUBAI

4:00-4:45pm

JEWAD SELIM: A NEW LIFE
Hasanain Al-Ibrahimy Founder, Ibrahimi Collection of Iraqi and Arab Fine Art and Nima Sagharchi, Editor, Jewad Selim Catalogue Raisonné. Moderated by Nada Shabout, Curator, Art Dubai Modern 2025.

Jewad Selim is remembered as one of the defining figures of twentieth century Arab visual culture and the key protagonist of Iraqi Modernism. In the 1950s, Selim forged a distinctive movement which sought to express modern Iraqi identity that was local yet engaged with the rest of the world.

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ART DUBAI MODERN TALKS 2026