‘We’ve been in Dubai for 10 years now and it’s very exciting,’ says Christie’s specialist Hala Khayat. ‘Some people bet on this market early on and 10 years down the road it’s only just beginning.’
Known for its wealth and innovation, Dubai has been in the spotlight for art market speculators for some time but only now is the Levantine market really crossing borders, says Khayat: ‘We did not create the market, an art movement was there since the 1960s, but it was contained within the local area and it took an auction house to put it on an international platform.’
The last decade has seen these modern and contemporary masters from Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Palestine and Iran become established names in western galleries and institutions, from Paul Guiragossian to Hayv Kahraman. ‘The market and the numbers are proving that it is cross cultural now,’ explains Khayat. ‘It’s no longer Syrian people buying Syrian art; the Swiss, the Americans, the Chinese are all buying in this category. We are so proud. It eliminates borders and shows that art, when it’s really good, speaks to everyone.’
This month’s auctions are taking place in one of the busiest weeks on Dubai’s art scene including Art Dubai (a growing modern and contemporary art fair now in its ninth year), Design Days Dubai and the Sharjah Biennial, all exciting events that demonstrate the continued evolution of this once unknown market. Here, Hala Khayat talks about some of the contemporary talent she’s got her eye on.
Monir Farmanfarmaian
‘Zahra’s Image, made in 2009 by Iranian artist Monir Farmanfarmaian, leads the contemporary art section of the sale. A retrospective of her work was recently on show at the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art in Porto and will be shown at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York this March. To create her three-dimensional panels, Farmanfarmaian worked closely with local craftsmen. The mirror pieces were cut to fit the required shape and geometrical patterns to recreate mirror mosaics that were reminiscent of the aristocratic homes of 17th and 18th century Iran. Interestingly enough, she once worked at a department store on 5th Avenue, where she met the young window dresser Andy Warhol — she gave him a mirror ball that the pop artist famously kept on his desk until his death.’
Hayv Kahraman
‘A feminist artist of Iraqi origin living in the States, in many ways her style is very classical — she studied in Florence and has lived across the globe in Africa, South East Asia and the US — but her subject is the struggle of women in the East. It’s done in a very delicate way to show how these women are looked upon as objects, or bodies — they’re like marionettes with very fine lines moving them. She is standing there for women, opening the eyes of people to expose how society is looking at them. Hayv Kahraman is a sought after contemporary artist in today's global art scene and her work, although it references Middle Eastern traditions and culture, is filled with references to global art history.’
Ramazan Bayrakoglu
‘Ramazan is known for making beautiful collages with various textiles, like jeans and khakis, creating a carpet-like picture. As a painter who is fascinated by photography, he turns paintings to photographs as opposed to the other way around, through a complex technique involving industrial acrylic paint and Plexiglas. If you look at it from afar it’s like one big picture, but upon closer inspection, one discovers a myriad of Plexiglas pieces delicately laser cut like a puzzle. To obtain this effect, he colour codes each piece of his puzzle. It’s a technique which requires hours of devotion, like prayer.’
Mounir Fatmi
‘Mounir Fatmi is international, and especially big in Paris where he works. He makes giant installations with white computer cables depicting intricate calligraphy or an Islamic motif. His work is about the contradiction between the very traditional background and the very modern lives so many are experiencing now in the Middle East. Islam is constantly interpreted wrongly in the media today and this work also explores how the revolution of wires and connectivity show you one thing but underneath there’s a totally different reality.’
Ayman Baalbaki
‘Lebanese artist Ayman Baalbaki is already established; he’s really a star. One of his most significant series is about suicide fighters; they’re iconic images. His work represents the identity of the region; he is seen as the voice of the streets in the Arab world. He doesn’t produce a lot of work so what he has done is very much in demand. This work in our sale is one of his most iconic and rare works, one that alludes to the Tower of Babel that has been reflected upon throughout art history. ‘
Tagreed Darghouth
‘An artist who always does a lot of research into her subject, Tagreed Darghouth is particularly sensitive to the endless conflicts in the Levant and has produced a series about weapons of mass destruction. Many of the bombs used here have unusual names like ‘Blue rabbit’ or ‘Colourful rainbow’, names which are intended to sugar coat the truth. Her response is to paint artillery, or large-scale skulls against a background of wallpaper patterned with blue rabbits or rainbows. She plays on that notion cleverly.’