Art Basel Expands into Middle East with New Qatar Fair
142May 21, 2025
Swiss art fair operatorArt Baselis set to launch a new fair in Doha this coming February, its first such event in the Middle East. Featuring roughly fifty participating galleries,Art Basel Qatarwill take place at M7, a cultural hub in Doha’s pedestrianized Msheireb district, where the inaugural Design Doha was held earlier this year. Collaborating with Art Basel and its parent company, MCH Group, on the new fair are Qatar Sports Investments and QC+, a Qatar-based cultural organization. The event is the fifth of its kind under the Art Basel umbrella, which additionally encompasses the Swiss flagship fair as well as major fairs in Miami Beach, Hong Kong, and Paris.
“Growing the global artmarket, supporting artists and galleries and developing new collecting audiences is core to Art Basel’s mission,” said Art Basel CEO Noah Horowitz in a statement. “Qatar’s depth of collections, history of building great cultural institutions and unique role as an incubator and supporter of talent position the new Art Basel Qatar for success on the world stage.”
“It makes sense for Art Basel to come to our region. It’s the right time,” Sheikha Al Mayassa Bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the chairperson of Qatar Museums, told the New York Times, noting that the event would give Art Basel dealers the opportunity to connect with new buyers. “Qatar has good contacts with Central Asia, India and Turkey,” she said. “Africa is not so far away. It will give our local talent global visibility.”
The fair is part of Qatar’s Vision 2030 initiative, meant to diversify the conservative Islamic country’s economic streams and elevate its cultural standing on the international stage. A tiny country with a population of about 3 million, only 12 percent of whom are citizens, Qatar is one of the richest countries in the world, with a GDP of $226 billion in 2024 and an adult per-capita income of roughly $120,000. Qatar’s human rights profile remains questionable, with migrants, who make up a large portion of the nation’s population, subject to abuse; LGBTQ populations discriminated against by law; and women subjected to male guardianship laws.