After nine years and 16 seasons, Christie’s Dubai’s sales of modern and contemporary art from the region have established themselves on the international auction calendar. They attract buyers from the Middle East and beyond who are keen to invest in a market that seems finally to be coming of age.
“Even if it is labelled as Arab or Middle Eastern art, art is universal and it is starting to be appreciated by the same audiences as European and western art from the same period,” says Hala Khayat, Christie’s Dubai’s director and head of sale.
While Khayat has seen her market grow from a relatively small pool of specialist collectors with connections to the Middle East to include an increasingly international audience, the auctioneer points to recent events outside the sale room as evidence of a more profound shift in public appreciation, perceptions and taste.
“The more international initiatives that take place, the easier it becomes for us to reach out to people,” she says. “Firstly we looked at the region as a first step, then we started to attract a lot of Christie’s clients who are based in Europe, the United States and Asia and now we are attracting people beyond the region.
“But the fact that we have a huge show, such as the Armory in New York, dedicating itself this year to the art of the Middle East means that there is a real connection with this art now and a collector group who are starting to ask for this sort of thing.”
Khayat cites the ongoing exhibition at London’s Whitechapel Gallery, which features works from Sheikh Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi’s Barjeel Art Foundation Collection, as further proof of a wider change in attitudes.
“The number of people who are from Middle Eastern backgrounds who have been to see the show is unbelievable and I’m receiving emails and photographs every day from people who have said: ‘We saw this and thought of you.’ I think this is the ultimate blessing of what we have been trying to create for the past 10 years.”
Christie’s latest sale features works from across the Middle East including rare works by artists whose reputations are already established, such as the Lebanese painters Paul Guiragossian and Elie Kanaan, internationally recognised masters such as the Egyptian artist Mahmoud Said, who holds the world record for the sale price achieved by an Arab artist at auction, and lesser known artists, such as the Lebanese Bibi Zogbé, who until now have been known more as the subject of art rather than as serious creators in their own right.
Tonight’s event, Khayat says, is an opportunity even for art lovers who have no intention of taking part in the auction.
“These auctions are public events and, in the absence of established museums in the region at the moment, having 120 works of this calibre on display is really like hosting a temporary gallery or museum,” she says, welcoming everyone to come and see the lots while they are on public display in the Godolphin Ballroom at the Jumeirah Emirates Tower Hotel.
“After these pieces are sold, they will go into private museums or collections and they might not be seen ever again.”
Dubai: Modern and Contemporary Art is at 7pm (lots 1-121) at Godolphin Ballroom in Jumeirah Emirates Towers hotel
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Scores in brief:
Boost Defenders 205-5 in 20 overs
(Colin Ingram 84 not out, Cameron Delport 36, William Somerville 2-28)
bt Auckland Aces 170 for 5 in 20 overs
(Rob O’Donnell 67 not out, Kyle Abbott 3-21).
NO OTHER LAND
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The biog
Favourite book: Animal Farm by George Orwell
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Hobbies: Reading and writing
Match info
Karnataka Tuskers 110-3
J Charles 35, M Pretorius 1-19, Z Khan 0-16
Deccan Gladiators 111-5 in 8.3 overs
K Pollard 45*, S Zadran 2-18
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m; Winner: Gurm, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Al Nafece, Al Muatasm Al Balushi, Mohammed Ramadan
6pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Adrie de Vries, Ibrahim Aseel
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7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Ganbaru, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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Specs
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Moonfall
Director: Rolan Emmerich
Stars: Patrick Wilson, Halle Berry
Rating: 3/5
The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
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Favourite food: A Sunday roast
SPECS
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
