Creative explosion: Art Dubai

Dubai: The creative scene in the city has gained an extra spark with 72 art galleries from Chile to China displaying contemporary works at this year's edition of Art Dubai, the region's biggest art fair.

The event which runs from March 17 to 20 brings together over 500 artists, gallerists, curators and collectors with more than 80 separate exhibitions.

As the world wriggles out of recession, organisers hope the estimated $20 million (Dh73.4 million) worth of art sold in Art Dubai 2009 will be easily surpassed this year.

Corporate and official patronage of art in the region is giving it an extra push.

New phenomenon

"This period in the Middle Eastern art scene mirrors the period of art renaissance in Europe, when art flourished through the patronage of the rich, royal and the church," said curator Jelle Bouwhuis, who is also an art historian from The Netherlands.

"This [patronage of art] in the Middle East is a new phenomenon," said John Martin, Director and co-founder of Art Dubai. Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and Doha are leading the way in their support for art, he said at the opening attended by hundreds of journalists from all over the world.

This year's event also features three winners of the Abraaj Capital Art Prize, the biggest art award in the Arab world.

Egyptian Hala Al Koussy, one of the three winners, is displaying a 48-piece mural - The Myths and Legends Room - which portrays "stories, myths and hopes of Cairo".

The festival also offers art lessons, a graffiti workshop and large-scale collaborative painting for kids through Start, a non-profit initiative that links child development with art education.