Sotheby’s to hold first International Fine Art auction in Abu Dhabi
Collectors’ Week returns to Abu Dhabi in December with six auctions across art and luxury
Sotheby’s will return to Abu Dhabi this December for the second edition of Collectors’ Week, introducing its first international fine art auction in the emirate alongside sales of luxury watches, jewellery, handbags, collectible cars and high-performance bicycles.
The public exhibitions will open on December 4 at the Saadiyat Grove Experience Centre on Saadiyat Island. Five luxury auctions will take place on December 9, followed by the fine art auction, titled Breaking Ground, on December 10.
The programme will bring together international artists, established names from the Middle Eastern art scene and works connected to the UAE’s cultural history.
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Art from international and regional artists
The Breaking Ground auction will feature works by internationally recognised artists, including Andy Warhol and Claude Monet, alongside artists who have shaped the development of contemporary art in the UAE.
One of the highlighted lots is Warhol’s Ads portfolio from 1985. Created two years before his death, the series reflects the artist’s long-standing interest in advertising, fashion, film and celebrity culture.
The sale will also feature works by Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim and Hassan Sharif, two pioneering figures in the UAE’s contemporary art movement.
Another work with a direct connection to the region is a drawing by Christo relating to the Abu Dhabi Mastaba, a proposed monumental public artwork planned for the Liwa desert by Christo and Jeanne-Claude. The project was intended to become the artists’ final major work.
Women artists will have a significant presence in the auction, with works by Huguette Caland, Jadé Fadojutimi, Inji Efflatoun, Fahrelnissa Zeid, Najat Makki, Mona Saudi, Gazbia Sirry, Zarina and Etel Adnan.
Sotheby’s will also introduce Emirati artist Nujoom Al-Ghanem and artist Nasser Al-Yousif to auction for the first time, working with the artists and their estates.
Other artists represented in the sale include S.H. Raza, Fernando Botero, Salvo, Bernard Buffet, Paul Guiragossian, Farid Belkahia and Aref El Rayess.
Yasmeen Gailani, Sotheby’s specialist and head of sale for Breaking Ground, said the selection combines internationally known artists with regional names, while introducing works that may be less familiar to collectors in the UAE.
Cartier watches and collectible Ferraris
The luxury auctions on December 9 will cover handbags, watches, jewellery, bicycles and cars.
The Shapes of Cartier watch auction will feature around 50 watches from a single-owner collection. Among them is a rare Twin Strap watch dating to approximately 1970-1971. The collection previously attracted attention at Sotheby’s auctions in Hong Kong and Geneva earlier in 2026, according to the auction house.
The car sale will include several Ferrari models spanning different periods of the marque’s modern history.
Highlights include a 2009 Ferrari Scuderia Spider 16M presented in its launch colours, a Swiss-delivered 2004 Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale, a 2006 Ferrari 612 Scaglietti F1 HGTC in Gris Violet and a 2010 Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano in Ivory Cream.
The jewellery selection will include a rectangular brilliant-cut fancy brown-orange diamond weighing more than 40 carats, a necklace featuring rubies and diamonds, and a crescent-shaped emerald and diamond pendant featuring a 10.51-carat emerald.
The programme will also include dedicated sales for handbags and high-performance bicycles.
Exhibitions and events on Saadiyat Island
The auction previews will open to the public on December 4, ahead of the sales the following week. Sotheby’s also plans to hold events, panel discussions and masterclasses featuring specialists, cultural figures and other guests.
The venue, Saadiyat Grove Experience Centre, is located within Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island cultural district, near Louvre Abu Dhabi and the sites of other major cultural institutions, including the Zayed National Museum, the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
The second edition follows Sotheby’s inaugural Collectors’ Week in Abu Dhabi in December 2025, which featured auctions of luxury items. This year’s programme expands into fine art, with Breaking Ground marking the auction house’s first international fine art sale in the emirate.
Dates, location and auction programme
Collectors’ Week will take place in Abu Dhabi from December 4 to 10, 2026, with public exhibitions opening on December 4 at the Saadiyat Grove Experience Centre on Saadiyat Island.
The auction programme is scheduled across two days:
- December 9: Icons of Elegance (handbags), Shapes of Cartier (watches), Colour & Splendour (jewellery), The Statement (bicycles) and Driven by Design (cars).
- December 10: Breaking Ground, Sotheby’s first international fine art auction in Abu Dhabi.
The exhibitions will give visitors an opportunity to view selected works and luxury items ahead of the sales. The accompanying programme will also include events, panel discussions and masterclasses.
Saadiyat Grove Experience Centre is close to Louvre Abu Dhabi and other cultural institutions on Saadiyat Island. Further information about the auction lots is expected to be released in November.
For details about the sales and exhibition programme, readers can visit Sotheby’s official website.
