Sharjah’s Maraya Art Centre, Baghdad-based Ruya Foundation and Anima Gallery from Doha are among the regional participants in this year’s Art16, which opens in London next week.
The Maraya Centre, taking part for the second time, will bring a solo exhibition of works by Palestinian artist Walid Al Wawi. Al Wawi will exhibit his video installation Iteration, and a performance Flood System where he meticulously assigns new meanings to words in the English language via a formula he has developed.
The Ruya Foundation will display work by leading contemporary Iraqi artists such as Jamal Penjweny who exhibited in the Iraq Pavilion at the 55th Venice Biennale and Anima is one of several galleries taking part from all over the world.
The fair, now in its fourth edition is showing 100 galleries from over 30 countries, which will collectively present more than 1,000 artworks.
Fair Director Nathan Clements-Gillespie said: “This year’s programme will focus on exciting and innovative contemporary practice from established, emerging and rediscovered artists across all visual art forms. Previous years have taught us that our collectors want to make fresh discoveries, often of artists working outside the western canon, and our London First and Emerge sections in particular will be the perfect place to unearth new talent.”
* Art16 runs from May 19-22 in London’s Olympia. More details can be found here: www.artfairslondon.com