World Art Dubai Opens Today

World Art Dubai, a flagship event of Dubai Art Season & the region’s largest affordable art fair, brings a stunning collection of art to Dubai.

The fourth season of World Art Dubai, the Middle East’s largest affordable art fair, opens today (Wednesday 18^th April) and features its broadest collection of regional and international artworks to date at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC).

Catering to the UAE’s passionate population of dedicated art aficionados, first-time buyers and bulk-buying or commissioning private entities, World Art Dubai goes significantly beyond its core gallery and artist proposition with a series of public-friendly workshops, cultural performances and interactive talks.

The four-day art extravaganza, which ends on Saturday 21^st April, will feature over 4,000 inspirational artworks from 300-plus artists and galleries from 25 countries across five continents.

Having established a standing as the region’s leading affordable art fair and one-stop-shop for the most impressive curation of pictures, paintings, sculptures, digital photography and more, World Art Dubai’s expansive art collection covers a range of a mere USD100, right up to top-end work priced at USD20,000.

Aside from the professionally-curated, price-sensitive platform for emerging artwork, World Art Dubai boasts a wealth of family-themed cultural highlights including hands-on workshops where visitors can unleash their inner creative spirit, exclusive talks and panel discussions with industry experts, and numerous outdoor activations in the Art Attack chill-out area.

Hailing from the UK, Peru, Denmark, Germany, India and Japan – to name a few – confirmed artists include Jeff Murray (UK), Leila Kanso (Lebanon), Shazia Imran (Australia), Martin Lima (Sweden) and Mika Yajima (Japan). Particularly of note is New York-based award-wining artist Shreya Mehta who will be debuting her new Liquid Tapestries collection, while Fu Wenjun from China is blurring the lines of photography and paintings with his brand-new art style, Digital Pictorial Photography.

Among the must-see regional galleries are The Art Cocoon Gallery, Art Plus Gallery, Noon Art Gallery and WhiteSpace Gallery, while elsewhere, Jackson Events (France), Studio 3 Art Gallery (India), Mihyo Art Gallery (Korea) and Boogie Gallery (Russia) will also be catering to the region’s culture vultures. Art investor savvy visitors would be wise to look out for Dubai-based artist Kristel Bechara, whose limited-edition curation of 25 works of art range between just USD500-USD1,000.

Returning for a fourth consecutive year, the Art For Every Wall section features variety of original artworks with prices up to AED3,000 that are perfect for first-time buyers. There will also be a series of free and informative talks at the fair,exploring everything from art and empowerment to the role of culture in CSR.

New to this year’s bill are four panel discussions focusing on topics including ‘Art and Impact, What Does It Really Mean?’, ‘Waste Shouldn’t be Wasted’ and ‘Art, Travel and Photography.’ For those looking to really get involved, several interactive workshops cover sessions centered around learning how to make dreamcatchers, creating Mandala Art and learning about Islamic Geometry with local artist Jaber Alhaddad. Fashion lovers should also pay a visit to Pipo MoMa, who will be leading a workshop around the bespoke customisation of bags and shoes.

Flying for flag for Japanese culture, artists and galleries from the Far East country are headlining a Japanese Cultural Evening on Friday. The event will explore Japanese calligraphy, ink painting and origami. Another highlight is artist Alex Raspberry’s Order, Chaos & Lightinstallation, a full assault on the senses which immerses the audience in light, darkness, colour and sound.

Outdoor in Art Attack, visitors will have the opportunity to paint with everyday items as part of a bigger World Art Dubai installation, while The Ripe Craft Market is back with dozens of small local businesses selling everything from quirky lifestyle gifts and authentic crafts, to kitsch finds for the home and office.

The Doodle Marathon will commemorate World Autism Day, World Creativity and Innovation Day, with one artist challenged to paint 2m x 2m each throughout the day for four days, with all funds going towards Dubai Autism Centre and The AJALA Project.

The Details.

Entry to World Art Dubai is AED25 for a daily pass when purchased on site. Show timings are 2pm to 9pm from Wednesday 18^th April to Saturday 21^st April.