Highlights from Abu Dhabi Art 2018
By Paul Laster
Featuring 43 modern and contemporary art galleries from 17 countries, Abu Dhabi Art returned to Manarat Al Saadiyat in Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Cultural District for its tenth edition, which runs through November 17, 2018. Attracting fewer high-profile, international galleries than it did in earlier years, the fair has become more of a regional showcase, and this year’s booths reflected that outlook.
The 2018 edition featured three gallery sections: Modern and Contemporary, for established galleries; Special Projects, for curated solo or two-artist booths; and Focus: Icons, highlighting important artists who have shaped and influenced contemporary art over the past 50 years and continue to inspire young artists today. The Omar Kholeif-curated Focus: Icons section, one of the strongest presentations in the exhibition hall, presented figurative paintings by Huguette Caland at Galerie Janine Rubeiz, Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian’s iconic mirror mosaics at The Third Line, Emirati multidisciplinary artist Mohammed Kazem’s paintings and works on paper at Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde, and abstract sculptures by Mona Saudi at Lawrie Shabibi.
