Christie’s first fine-art auction in Abu Dhabi has realised more than $8.9m, with several works fetching six figures and surpassing their original estimates.
The auction, titled Mawasim, was held last week (1 November) at The Abu Dhabi Edition. It marked the 20th anniversary of Christie’s first auction in the United Arab Emirates.
Topping the sale was Variations on the Hexagon (2006) by Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian. The work was estimated between $150,000 and $250,000. It sold for $844,800, after almost seven minutes of bidding.
The mirror mosaic panel was commissioned for the opening of the Jameel Gallery at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
“It is a magnificent work of exceptional historical significance,” said Ridha Moumni, chairman of Christie’s Middle East and Africa.
“Farmanfarmaian is undoubtedly one of the most talented female artists in the region. This particular work, however, is especially spectacular.”
Other works that led the sale included Fahrelnissa Zeid’s Composition (1948-1949), which fetched $524,800. Her Endless Thoughts, painted in the late 1970s, sold for $486,400.
Ali Banisadr’s Homo Deus (2018), meanwhile, sold for $512,000, as did Faisel Laibi Sahi’s Baghdad Café (The Coffee Shop) (2016), which set a record for the artist. The painting, which measures six metres in length, is the largest by the Iraqi painter to go under the hammer.
Mahmoud Saïd’s Portrait de Princesse Fadia (Portrait of Princess Fadia)(1952) was sold for $486,400. Paul Guiragossian’s Noces (Wedding), an oil-on-masonite work created between 1958 and 1959, fetched $486,400. The sale marked a record for the medium for the artist, as did Samia Halaby’s Yesterday (1978), which sold for $358,400. The painting is a prime example of Halaby’s work from the 70s, when she developed her idiosyncratic approach to geometric abstraction.
Overall, Christie’s announced nine auction records, including for Jellal Ben Abdallah, whose Les Musiciennes (The Female Musicians) (1973) sold for $204,800 against an estimate between $100,000 and $150,000. Juliana Seraphim’s Femme Fleur (Flower Woman) (1973) also set a record, selling for $83,200. It had been estimated between $25,000 and $35,000.
Mawasim also marked the auction debut for several artists, including Nabil Kanso, Rami Farook, Fatma Lootah and Afra Al Dhaheri.
Moumni said that the fine-art auction of modern and contemporary works from the Middle East and North Africa was “the strongest results since 2015.
“It sends a very strong signal to the market and underscores the growing demand for art from the [region],” he said. “The results also demonstrate the significant presence of artists of Iranian origin in the market. We witnessed particularly spirited bidding for these artists, which was very exciting to see.”
Works by Emirati artists, such as Najat Makki and Hassan Sharif, have also “performed exceptionally well,” Moumni said.
Makki’s Emirates of Love (2025) sold for $28,160, whereas a painting from Sharif’s celebrated Press Conference series sold for $83,200.
“We were delighted to see works by all these UAE artists supported by both local and international collectors,” Moumni said. “There is still work to be done in further developing their market value, but the results were a truly wonderful surprise and a testament to the vitality of the UAE’s creative art scene.”
The auction, Moumni said, attracted a “healthy mix” of private collectors and institutional buyers. Interestingly, 30 per cent of participants were Generation Z and the millennial generations. There were also several first-time bidders.
“Thirty-seven per cent of participants were new to Christie’s, representing an encouraging expansion of our collector base,” Moumni said.
Sunday’s auction was the climactic conclusion to a week-long exhibition at The Abu Dhabi Edition, which presented the works featured in the Mawasim auction. The works came from private as well as institutional collections, such as from the Dalloul Collection and the Trad family collection in Beirut and the Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah.
Christie’s first auction in the UAE was held in 2006 in Dubai, at a time when the city’s arts scene was at a pivotal moment. New galleries and institutions were opening up and the city was preparing to host the DIFC Gulf Art Fair, which would then be rebranded at Art Dubai.
As a 20th anniversary auction, Mawasim was held in Abu Dhabi during a similar landmark moment. The UAE capital is preparing to host its first Frieze in November and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is meanwhile gearing up for its December opening.
“It was particularly important for us to present this anniversary auction here in Abu Dhabi, a city that is home to some of the region’s most significant museums, with several more important cultural institutions set to open in the coming years.”
