Global Futures: Eight Voices Across the Region

Across generations and cultural contexts, art becomes a language that transcends geography. This November, a carefully curated selection at Frieze Abu Dhabi brings together eight solo presentations by artists whose practices resonate with the histories, materials and experiences that shape both the UAE and the wider region.

Curated by Tarini Malik, the section titled Global Futures invites us to move through the work of these eight artists and discover what emerges when seemingly distinct practices are placed in conversation. What connects them is not style or medium, but rather a shared inquiry into questions that matter across borders: the meaning of place, the layers of identity, the weight of memory.

To stand before work created in response to such questions is to recognise how deeply rooted artistic practice is in the particular circumstances from which it springs. Yet it is equally to discover unexpected kinships, moments of resonance that suggest how local experiences, when explored with rigour and imagination, speak to universal concerns.

Global Futures unfolds at Manarat Al Saadiyat from 19 to 22 November 2026, a moment to encounter art that engages seriously with the region’s artistic heritage whilst opening toward wider conversations. The section is supported by Deutsche Bank and Deutsche Bank Art Programme as global lead partner.

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