Art Dubai to Present Significantly Smaller Event After Iran War Forces Postponement
9April 21, 2026
Art Dubai, which earlier this springannounced its postponementamid the US and Israel’s sustained attack on Iran, has revealed the details of the “special edition” that will take the place of the originally planned twentieth-anniversary event. Whereas that iteration ofArt Dubaihad been set to take place in April with roughly 120 exhibitors representing 35 countries, the newly announced compact edition will feature just fifty exhibitors. The fair will be held May 14–17 at Madinat Jumeirah, its traditional home.
About two-thirds of the participating galleries are from the region or operate branches there, among them Beirut’s Saleh Barakat Gallery; Dubai’s Lawrie Shabibi, Tabari Art Space, and the Third Line; Jeddah’s Hafez Gallery; Kuwait’s Hunna Art Gallery; and Ramallah’s Gallery One. Among the international dealers who stuck it out are Mexico City’s Labor Gallery, Paris’s Galerie Frank Elbaz, Istanbul’s Dirimart, Hong Kong’s Art Fungible, and megagallery Perrotin. Art Dubai will augment its program with exhibitions, performances, screenings, installations, and new commissions organized in partnership with Alserkal Avenue and institutions including Art Jameel, the Dubai Collection, and the Sharjah Art Foundation.
Said Art Dubai Group executive director Benedetta Ghione in a statement, “This special edition will demonstrate the resilience of the UAE’s cultural scene as well as the power of collaboration, bringing together galleries, artists, and institutions at a time when that role of convening feels more important than ever.”
A full list of participating galleries is below.
Ab-Anbar (London)
Agial Art Gallery (Beirut)
Aisha Alabbar Gallery (Dubai)
Art Fungible (Hong Kong)
Athr (Alula, Jeddah, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
Galerie Atiss Dakar (Senegal)
Awl (Girona, Spain)
Ayyam Gallery (Dubai)
Saleh Barakat Gallery (Beirut)
Bluerose (Beirut)
Carbon 12 (Dubai)
Pedro Cera (Lisbon)
Galleria Continua (San Gimignano, Italy)
Dirimart (Istanbul)
Dom Art Projects (Dubai)
Efie Gallery (Dubai)
Galerie Frank Elbaz (Paris)
Foundry (Dubai)
Taymar Grahne Projects (Dubai)
GVCC (Casablanca, Paris)
Mark Hachem (New York, Paris, Beirut)
Hafez Gallery (Jeddah)
Leila Heller Gallery (New York, Dubai)
Hunna Art Gallery (Kuwait)
Iragui (Paris)
Iregular (Montreal)
Iris Projects (Abu Dhabi)
Gallery Isabelle (Dubai)
JD Malat Gallery (London, Dubai)
Labor (Mexico City)
Lawrie Shabibi (Dubai)
John Martin Gallery (London)
Meem Gallery (Dubai)
Nika Project Space (Dubai)
Galleria Franco Noero (Turin)
Gallery One (Latroun and Ramallah, Palestine)
Perrotin (Los Angeles, Las Vegas New York, London, Paris, Dubai, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo)
Pinksummer (Genoa, Italy)
Iyad Qanazea Gallery (Abu Dhabi)
Rarares Gallery (Dubai)
Rizq Art Initiative (Abu Dhabi)
The Rooster Gallery (Vilnius)
Lilia Ben Salah (Paris)
Shankay (Porto, Dubai)
Solo Gallery (Bucharest)
SSK (Ukkel, Belgium)
Tabari Artspace (Dubai)
The Third Line (Dubai)
Waddington Custot (London, Dubai)
Zawyeh Gallery (Ramallah, Dubai)