Art Dubai: March madness begins

Prestigious performance artist Nikhil Chopra will be showing a series from Rehearsals, 2014 at this year’s Art Dubai. Courtesy of Nikhil Chopra and Chatterjee

Today is the first day of March and the first day of official March madness – the month of craziness that surrounds the annual art fair in Dubai.

It grows every year and now it boasts the largest showcase of Arab artists anywhere in the world and is one of the most global art fairs of the world when looking at the range of art and artists exhibited.

This year, with 500 artists showing from 92 galleries a new website and a new app are among the list of firsts.

Register here for free entry to Design Days Dubai on Friday and to Art Dubai on Saturday and keep it bookmarked as your one-stop-shop to keep abreast of all the art happenings during this jam-packed month.

There are so many highlights to this year’s fair that director Antonia Carver had trouble even summarising a few at the press conference last week.

Many of the contemporary galleries have gone for solo shows or two-person contributions, which Carver says is “a sign of confidence in the fair” and the number of African artists exhibiting seems to be on the rise, not just in the contemporary section but also in Modern (art from the 1940s-1980s), which was a great addition to the fair last year.

The special projects section is constantly expanding, meaning that the fair is not just a commercial platform but something which, as Carver says “attempts to build up the art scene locally all year round” and the results at the fair are evident.

This year there will be large public site specific installations at the fair and in other locations too such as Alserkal Avenue, meaning that anyone interested in art but without the pockets to purchase their own, can experience and interact with it at many locations.

And one of my favourite highlights for the 2015 fair will be when London's Royal College of Arts brings its Secret project to Dubai. Up to 1,000 artworks on postcards – created by some of the world's leading artists and designers along with rising RCA students and alumni – will be available to buy, during the art fair for only Dh500 each. Proceeds will go to the college's Scholarship Fund, helping talented students at formative stages in their careers, and also contribute to establishing and running RCA courses in Dubai, which will in turn nurture emerging local talent. Viewing opens on the first day and sales will be limited to the last day – Saturday.

As well as art there will be a live radio station broadcasting throughout the fair, a robust children’s programme and of course the results of the Abraaj Group Art Prize, curated by Omar Kholeif and featuring winning artist Yto Barrada.

Keep following The Art Blog for more information, interviews and in depth focus on some of the galleries booths as well as my personal highlights of the month as it progresses.

* Art Dubai runs from March 18-21 at Madinat Jumeirah. For more info on the fair visit www.artdubai.ae