Art Basel has announced the first official details of its new fair in Qatar, to be held Feb. 5-7, 2026 at the M7 Creative Center, located in the center of Doha’s Design District. Preview days will be February 3 and 4. The inaugural edition will introduce a novel exhibition format, abandoning the traditional booth model to adopt a conceptually oriented approach driven by a shared curatorial vision.
Conceived as a platform to stimulate a deeper dialogue between galleries and artists, with a focus on the cultural scenes of the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, Art Basel Qatar aims to maintain a strong market relevance while fostering a more immersive experiential enjoyment. The initiative is part of a strategy by the fair to expand its global presence and to enhance new and expanding artistic geographies.
The first edition will be art directed by Wael Shawky, an internationally renowned Egyptian artist known for his interdisciplinary practice spanning video, performance and storytelling. Shawky will work closely with Vincenzo de Bellis, Art Basel’s Artistic Director and Global Exhibition Director, to define the project’s curatorial framework and contribute to the gallery selection process, in coordination with a dedicated committee. His appointment reflects the organization’s desire to root the fair in a regional context, enhancing local artistic sensibilities in dialogue with the international scene.
“It is a privilege to collaborate with Art Basel on this new and innovative format,” said Wael Shawky. “The opportunity to explore artistic practices from across the MENA region and beyond in a context that values research, storytelling and experimentation is extremely meaningful to me. I look forward to collaborating with galleries and artists to help shape a platform that speaks to the complexity and richness of the region while maintaining global relevance.”
“With Art Basel Qatar, we are expanding the boundaries of the art fair model, placing artistic intent at the center while responding to today’s market needs,” said Vincenzo de Bellis. This format allows us to support galleries in presenting artists’ work with greater depth and resonance. Doha is the ideal context for this evolution: it is a place where cultural ambition meets a rich and articulate history, and where experimentation is welcome and supported. For our inaugural edition, we are excited to collaborate with Wael Shawky, who brings with him a rare combination of intellectual precision, visual imagination and local knowledge."
For the 2026 edition, Art Basel Qatar will be presented as an open exhibition, structured around monographic presentations proposed by participating galleries, all designed in response to a central theme: Becoming. The concept, developed by the fair’s curatorial team, proposes a reflection on humanity’s transformative processes and the evolving systems that define the ways through which we live, believe and construct meanings.
The theme lends itself to a layered reading of the Gulf as a living palimpsest, in which oral traditions, digital networks, ancient trade routes and contemporary flows of culture and capital intertwine in a transforming geography. In this context, art takes an active role, becoming a tool for translating systemic changes and participating in the ongoing redefinition of human identity.
The exhibition will take place in two main venues, the M7 Creative Center and the entire Doha Design District, with extensions in selected public spaces in the Msheireb district, recognized as the cultural center of the Qatari capital.
The appointment of Wael Shawky brings additional coherence to the new fair, thanks to his in-depth knowledge of the Middle Eastern scene and his long international career. Currently based in Doha, Shawky recently represented Egypt at the 60th International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale (2024), presenting the video Drama 1882. His works have been exhibited in major international institutions, including Tate Modern (2022), Kunsthaus Bregenz (2016), MoMA PS1 (2015), Mathaf (2015), Serpentine Gallery (2013), and The Hammer Museum (2013). Currently, his work can be seen in the site-specific exhibition I Am Hymns of the New Temples at LUMA Arles and in a solo show at the Talbot Rice Gallery at the University of Edinburgh.
Shawky’s career has also been marked by a strong commitment to art education. In 2010 he founded MASS Alexandria, an independent studio program for young artists, with the goal of promoting critical learning and experimentation. In October 2024 he was appointed artistic director of Fire Station in Doha, an exhibition center and artist residency supported by Qatar Museums. Here he launched the Arts Intensive Study Program (AISP), a training course for a select group of 20 young Qatari and international artists, with an approach based on hands-on learning and professional development.
The selection of participating galleries will be entrusted to a committee composed of leading figures from the international and Middle Eastern art scene: Lorenzo Fiaschi (Galleria Continua, with offices in San Gimignano, Beijing, Havana, Boissy-le-Châtel, Paris, Rome, Dubai, and São Paulo), Shireen Gandhy (Chemould Prescott Road, Mumbai), Daniela Gareh (White Cube, London, Hong Kong, New York, Paris, Seoul), Mohammed Hafiz (Athr Gallery, with locations in Jeddah, Al Ula, and Riyadh), Sunny Rahbar (The Third Line, Dubai), and Gordon VeneKlasen (Michael Werner Gallery, active in New York, Athens, Berlin, Los Angeles, and London). The new fair is the centerpiece of a one-of-a-kind partnership between Art Basel; its parent company MCH Group; Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), a major investor in sports, culture, entertainment and lifestyle; and QC+, a strategic and creative collective specialising in cultural commerce.
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| Art Basel launches new fair in Qatar with novel format and Wael Shawky artistic director |
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