Art Dubai’s celebrated trans-disciplinary conference, the Global Art Forum, returned for its 16th edition and explored the theme “Predicting the Present”.

Commissioned by Shumon Basar, and taking place across two days, the Forum is interested in navigation tools for our uncertain times and how stories, experiments and speculations about culture, innovation and society point towards new sources of optimism.

Christie’s brught its renowned Art+Tech summit to the Middle East for the first time at Art Dubai. The agenda-setting conference explored the areas of AI, digital asset ownership, financial innovation and Blockchain bringing together international creators and collectors across art and technology. Attendees will hear from and interact with innovators at the forefront of building and developing disruptive new products and businesses including from leading regional speakers including Mudassir Sheikha, CEO and Founder of Careem.

Invite only.

Art Dubai presented the first Middle East edition of the Art Business Conference, convening art professionals to discuss the topics that are most relevant in the art world and the key issues in today’s art market. The Dubai edition of the conference focused on the practical measures art organisations can take to become more sustainable.

Ticketed event.

Art Dubai Modern guest curators Mouna Mekouar and Lorenzo Giusti invited speakers to advance a critical reflection on the status of modern art in the territories of North Africa, Middle East and South Asia. These conversations re-appraised art-historical canons and investigated the historiography of mid-20th century abstraction, production and the reception of works. Panelists included Member of the Dubai Collection Curatorial Committee Dr. Nada Shabout, and Director of Sursock Museum, Beirut, Karina El Helou.

Modern Talks are presented in partnership with Dubai Collection.

This series focused on the collectors driving the development of art scenes across the Global South; emerging trends in traditional and digital collecting across the region, and what it means to be an arts patron in a place that is developing and implementing new institutional models. Speakers included Guerlain Master Perfumer Thierry Wasser, Senior Curator at the Pinault Collection Caroline Bourgeois and founder of Teo Yang Studio Teo Yang.

Collector Talks are presented in partnership with Dubai Collection.

Art Dubai's artistic programme in 2023 was complemented by the fair's largest ever thought-leadership programme. A series of talks held across the week led by leading global and UAE cultural based institutions included a talk by artist Manal Aldowayan with Misk Art Institute, artist Timo Nasseri as part of the Etihad Museum programme, and Ruinart Art and Culture Director Fabien Vallerian discussing the Ruinart Prize.