Art Dubai is the latest fair to be upended by the ongoing conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran. With Iran continuing to stirke the United Arab Emirates, leading to eight dead and 157 injured and damage to Dubai International Airport, the emirate’s leading art fair announced that its upcoming ediiton will not be held as planned in April.
Instead, the fair said in a statement Thursday that it will be moving foward in an “adapted format” on May 14 to May 17 at the resort Madinat Jumeirah, its longtime venue.
“Following our last communication, we have remained in close dialogue with all our stakeholders and across these discussions, there remains a clear sense that maintaining the platform that Art Dubai represents is important for the wider cultural ecosystem,” the statement reads, before announcing the new dates. “This edition will take the form of a more focused and flexible format, bringing together galleries, artists and institutions through a combination of presentations, collaborations and public programming.”
In a separate email attributed to Dunja Gottweiss, and reported on by the Art Newspaper, the fair director said that participating galleries will not be required to pay booth fees for the May event, but will be charged a percentage of their sales, capped at the booth fee equivalent. Per the Art Newspaper, booth fees at Art Dubai run $739 per square feet, with booths ranging from $15,000 to $60,000. However, already accepted galleries who wish to decline participation will still be required to make their booth payment, with their participation “rolled over” to the 2027 edition.
Just as the Gulf region has become critical to the art market—with Art Basel launching a Qatar edition in February and Frieze launching a rebranded Abu Dhabi fair in November—the Middle East has again been plunged into turmoil. On February 28, the US and Israel launched an attack on Iran, kicking off a still-ongoing war with the Islamic Republic. Iran has retaliated by striking US bases and allies in the region, including the UAE.
The attacks have led to temporary closures of the UAE’s airspace, as well as numerous airlines cutting flights to Dubai and the surrounding region, raising questions of how artworks, dealers, and collectors would make it to the region when the fair is set to resume.
The news is no doubt a blow for Art Dubai, as it has seemed to gain traction in recent years as art dealers, museums, and collectors have turned their attention to the Gulf. Art Basel Qatar was able to complete its first edition in early February without much incident, despite the high tensions and saber rattling that precipitated the current war.
