Dubai’s new art fair grant is taking Emirati art to the world

Al Quoz Arts Festival in Dubai. Antonie Robertson / The National

Last month, Dubai Culture – the emirate's agency that supports the arts and cultural heritage across Dubai – launched a programme to financially assist the emirate's galleries exhibiting in fairs around the world.

The aim of the International Art Fairs Grant is to raise the global profile of Emirati artists and strengthen Dubai’s position as a centre for the creative economy. The grant is open to emerging and established UAE-based artists, with an emphasis on promoting Emirati talent alongside artists who have established a residence in the UAE for no less than three years.

This could, in turn, empower local galleries, create a name for Emirati art and also set in place a sustainable cultural ecosystem in the UAE.

A key component of the grant is the financial assistance mechanism, which covers between a third and 50 per cent of the exhibition costs – which can otherwise be prohibitively expensive – for galleries at international art fairs. The eligibility criteria govern that galleries maintain a full-time presence in Dubai and engage in activities beyond their gallery space, such as presenting work at prestigious institutions, and thus includes participation in international art fairs.

Emirati artists have the opportunity to add their first-hand perspectives to the global art salons

The grant, then, is intended to create opportunities for both artists and galleries in establishing a permanent, active presence in Dubai’s evolving cultural landscape, as well as strengthening connections to the global art market.

Dr Saeed Mubarak bin Kharbash, the chief executive of the Arts and Literature at Dubai Culture said the grant was essential to enhance Dubai’s position in the international art community. Dubai’s cultural hub status, according to Dr Kharbash, also arises from a lively art scene sustained by local galleries.

There are some notable parallels to this initiative with other global efforts. Initiatives like the Australia Council for the Arts’s funding for Australian galleries and artists to exhibit at international art fairs, and the British Council’s international art programmes, provide financial support to local artists to showcase their work overseas.

Both these programmes seek to elevate their countries’ cultural profiles, support local artists and facilitate opportunities for these artists to participate in global dialogue. But what sets the Dubai Culture initiative apart is its emphasis on Emirati artists and the long-term goals of the UAE as a productive force in the creative economy.

Whereas both the Australian and British models appear to offer support to a wide range of artists from different backgrounds, the Dubai Culture grant is very much about prioritising artists who have a direct connection with the country’s cultural capital, therefore helping to forge a distinctive cultural identity on the world stage.

Moreover, this grant seeks to tackle some structural issues that UAE-based galleries and artists face including the high costs of international art fairs as well as the difficulty of trying to establish a permanent presence in global art markets.

The grant's provision of all booth costs through subsidy is a significant relief that consequently lessens the burden on smaller or unknown galleries that might otherwise have challenges finding their way into a global marketplace, especially considering the usually substantial price of entry. That is all the more true of galleries with emerging artists or artists of colour, who don’t have the financial wherewithal to compete on equal terms with the top-tier international players.

But there are points at which the grant could be enhanced further. While the programme's concentration on supporting galleries with a permanent presence in Dubai makes sense, expanding eligibility to accommodate other types of participation – like temporary exhibitions or pop-up galleries – could create opportunities for a broader cross-section of artists and venues.

This would better represent the dynamic, flexible nature of contemporary art markets, in which pop-up events and non-traditional real estate often take prime position in showcasing innovative work. Moreover, given that the art world is inherently global in nature, it would also be helpful to give the opportunity of this grant not just to galleries but also to artists, especially those who are not gallery-affiliated but are still making great contributions to the UAE culture.

In a similar vein, the impact of the International Art Fairs Grant could be magnified through offering some additional services for those receiving it, such as mentorship programmes or networking opportunities for the artists and galleries.

This would accredit the monetary functions of the grant in so far as recipients are provided with the tools that facilitate their international reach and engagement with global collectors, curators and institutions. Such programmes could enable a more holistic approach to making Dubai's art scene even more international, beyond financial assistance, building long-term relationships and collaborations that will pay lasting dividends for the city's cultural economy.

The impact of the grant can be measured not just through the ability to give but also through the ability to open a national conversation about the use of art in activism. International art fairs are prime real estate for artists to be seen by new audiences and connect with other creative people.

Thus, Emirati artists have the opportunity to add their first-hand perspectives to the global art salons, one that could lead to shifts in the understanding of contemporary art on a global scale.

There is no doubt the grant can be a powerful new way to position Dubai on the cultural map. Its support of galleries and artists is a welcome development, but a wider engagement could further its reach and effectiveness. With continued investment in local talent and global connections, Dubai can keep its art scene at the forefront of international exchange.