Middle East

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

Art in the time of airstrikes: Yemeni artists urge international donors for support

Symposium at the British Museum, part of the Shubbak festival of contemporary Arab culture, will include artists from war-torn Yemen and Syria

A comprehensive survey of geometric forms in Modern and contemporary Middle Eastern art

Twenty-four artists present their own works in new book, including the late Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian

Fake news, contested histories and fluctuating borders: the Sharjah Biennial in pictures

The 14th edition of the international exhibition in the United Arab Emirates includes more than 80 artists with over 60 new commissions

British Museum teams up with Louvre for revamp of Egyptian Museum in Cairo

But the disputed treasure, the Rosetta Stone, will remain in London

eL Seed brings his brand of contemporary calligraphy to London for first UK show

French-Tunisian artist’s 'tabula rasa' paintings at Lazinc will challenge “deep-seated preconceptions” about Arabic script

The women taking charge in the Gulf's rising art scene

With many of the region’s museums, fairs and festivals under female leadership, we talk to three key decision-makers

Protestcomment

Why I made a cemetery for hundreds of banned books in Kuwait

Kuwaiti artist Mohammad Sharaf hopes to provoke the general public as well as the authorities

Two new shows highlight the politics of being apolitical in the powderkeg Middle East

Exhibitions on the history of Syria and on Arab revolutions in the Arab world tread a fine line

Why being a royal artist in the Gulf is a mixed blessing

Rashid Al Khalifa of Bahrain is showing his art in London’s Saatchi Gallery

Iraqi artist Dia Azzawi designs new Lebanese private museum

The Nabu Museum collection combines antiquities with Modern and contemporary art

Abraaj Group liquidators to sell 200 works from art collection at Bonhams

Middle Eastern and South Asian works owned by embattled Dubai-based private equity firm carry much lower estimates than prices paid a decade ago

Beirut Art Fair gives helping hand to embattled Egyptian galleries

Lebanese event cuts 'special offer' to help Egypt's galleries exhibit abroad and invests $100,000 in outreach to encourage collectors from further afield

Embattled private equity firm Abraaj Group fails to renew Art Dubai sponsorship

Plans to lend the Abraaj Group Art Prize collection to the Jameel Art Centre are also on hold

Lawnews

Parviz Tanavoli banned from leaving Iran over legal dispute with former gallery owner

Maryam Goudarzi claims that the artist should return six 1972 sculptures worth $6m to her, but Tanavoli says they were swapped legally for five newer works

Unpaid invoices, vetting issues and bad marketing: dealers call out ‘mismanaged’ Bahrain fair

Despite a group of exhibitors describing Art Bahrain Across Borders as disappointing, royal patron says event will continue

Myrna Ayad steps down as Art Dubai director, while fair plans to move Modern section in 2019

Ayad says decision to leave was "personal" and plans to launch her own art consultancy

New cultural hub set to open in West Bank amid political tension

Omar Al-Qattan, chair of the A.M. Qattan Foundation, explains the many challenges of building an arts space under occupation

UAEnews

British Museum rekindles relationship with Zayed National Museum after loan deal ended last year

Under new partnership, the London museum will lend key objects to the new institution in Abu Dhabi

British Museum show focuses on Assyrian antiquities targeted by Islamic State

Loans likely to come from Iran—but works from the Met would not meet London museum's strict borrowing guidelines

Iran’s art market defies expectations in face of US sanctions with new fair

In a first for Iran, the Teer Art fair is set to open amid a growing but fragile market environment

From Brussels to Bogotá: where will the Pompidou pop up next?

As museum's teaser show opens in the Belgian capital, its president, Serge Lasvignes, tells us about branching out from Paris

Emerging Arab artists to get international shows through new commissioning initiative

Six partner institutions including the Hammer Museum are behind collaborative art production model

Leaderscomment

What we can learn from Saudi art

Suddenly, a lot of money is flowing through the kingdom for the promotion of contemporary art and culture

Exhibitionsinterview

Ai Weiwei: 'I'm impressed Qatar wants my show about refugees'

The dissident Chinese artist on why he's tackling the global refugee crisis in his first exhibition in the Gulf

Against the odds, Louvre exhibition opens in Tehran in historic deal

French museum became first cultural institution to secure ties with Islamic regime after sanctions lifted in 2016

Abraaj Group's partnership with Art Dubai to continue, despite reorganisation

Founder Arif Naqvi's departure from the private equity firm's asset management business in February followed claims the company had misused investor funds

Kuwaiti artists awarded inaugural Art Jameel commission for new Dubai culture complex

Alia Farid and Aseel AlYacoub will create a light-up botanical garden linking both wings of the Jameel Arts Centre

How the Middle Eastern museum and collecting scene have flowered

Anna Somers Cocks, founder-editor of The Art Newspaper, in discussion with Roxane Zand of Sotheby’s at the Asia Society, New York, 1 March