Middle East

'In solidarity with the Palestinian people', photographers withdraw their works from Prix Pictet show in Israel

Prize-nominated artists Shahidul Alam and Gideon Mendel will not show their works at the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv

Saudi Arabia pushes forward with plans for cultural 'renaissance' with vast light festival full of both local and big-name artists

Agencies seem to be betting that time and increased exposure to the kingdom will wear down Western qualms over its human rights record

'A woman painting women': major show on colourful Algerian painter Baya explores her influence on Modernism

Exhibition of more than 70 of the artist's works at Sharjah Art Museum in the UAE includes rare works from her first ever show in 1947

Street art, social media, visibility: how the Arab Spring has changed art and culture, a decade on

We ask artists, writers and experts on Middle Eastern art about their memories of the revolutionary movements—and what they think the lasting legacies are

Art fairsanalysis

'If you're coming to buy, you have two hours to do it': what it's like at London's real-life 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair

In the absence of the major fairs and auctions, Modern and contemporary African art is in the spotlight in London this week

Virtual photography show reveals modern Lebanon's many layers of tragedy

Lebanon Then and Now: Photography from 2006 to 2020 hosted by Washington, DC's Middle East Institute is both timely and prescient

Saudi Arabia pushes soft power by launching new teamLab digital art museum in Jeddah

The hi-tech Tokyo-based collective will create trademark immersive experiences for the new space

Booksreview

New Orientalists: a thoughtful book on the rise and decline of Western artists in the Middle East

There is plenty to enjoy in this account of a group of travelling painters who were not only accomplished but also determined, brave and hardy

Beirutnews

Emergency fund launched in aid of Beirut's devastated art community

Belgian non-profit Mophradat says that 100% of the money raised will support individual artists and arts organisations

Beirut's art world mourns widespread death and destruction following explosions

With homes, galleries and studios entirely destroyed, Lebanese artists respond in the aftermath of Tuesday’s carnage

Huge explosion in Beirut decimates city and leaves art scene in disarray

Several galleries and museums have been destroyed or severely damaged following the blast and fire that shook the Lebanese capital on Tuesday

Former Louvre curator among five arrested in Paris in antiquities trafficking investigation

Case involves "hundreds of objects worth millions" looted from the Near and Middle East

Facebook and Instagram ban trading of historical artefacts

Heritage group Athar were part of a campaign highlighting the social media giants' “black market in antiquities”

Adam Henein—the Egyptian sculptor who spent a decade restoring the Great Sphinx—has died, aged 91

Rose Issa, curator and friend of the artist, shares the life story of one of the most important sculptors in the Arab world

UAE government promotes existing Art in Embassies acquisition scheme as a coronavirus relief plan

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs suggested its AED 1.5m in purchases were part of a new initiative following the suspension of Art Dubai due to Covid-19

From Modernist nudes to present-day politics: British Museum to reveal its contemporary Middle Eastern art collection

Free exhibition at the London museum in October will show around 150 works that have been collected since the early 1990s

Arab Springanalysis

The ripple effect of the Arab Spring

Political upheaval across the region presents challenges—and opportunities—for artists and collectors

Saudi art organisation acquires vast collection of Middle Eastern art from Dubai's bankrupt Abraaj firm

Works from the Abraaj Group Art Prize will be managed by Art Jameel with some works going on show at the Dubai space Jameel Art Centre

Saudi Arabia's art festival 21,39: tackling climate change in the desert

This year's edition of the art initiative is a call to action on the climate emergency

Trampolining in a Saudi Arabian valley? First look at the interactive art biennial Desert X AlUla

Inaugural edition of the monumental show, opening this Friday, is free to the public

Capturing the streets: the Lebanese revolution through the eyes of an artist

Three months into the uprising we speak to Abed Al Kadiri about popular unity, state brutality and why he is documenting events through Chinese-style ink drawings

Contemporary Istanbul chairman ‘rethinking fair’s governance’ following ‘inappropriate’ comments over Turkey’s military action

Ali Gureli apologises for accusing foreign media of spreading propaganda, but it is not yet clear if he will step down

Huguette Caland—leading artist of the Arab world—has died, aged 88

Lebanese artist and designer who was known for her erotic line drawings and abstract paintings was "clearly ahead of her own time"

Tate's huge 'Guernica of the Arab world' is recreated in tapestry so it can travel the world

Dia al-Azzawi's Sabra and Shatila Massacre has been commissioned by a Lebanese art foundation as an "archive of history"

Middle East think-tank opens art gallery in Washington, DC

New space for Modern and contemporary art from the Arab world will put on five exhibitions a year

Forgotten female artists of Modern Arab art to get their due in Sharjah show

Collector Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi is organising an exhibition with an equal number of male and female masters to redress gender bias

For its centennial, Oriental Institute weds ancient artefacts with contemporary art

Three artists enter a dialogue with Middle Eastern antiquities at the University of Chicago

New museum tells Palestinian stories in the centre of US politics

One-room space in Washington, DC, focuses on art and culture rather than “catastrophe”— but a section is dedicated to the 1948 mass exodus