Beyond Emerging: The Abu Dhabi Art Programme To Keep on Your Radar

If you’re even remotely tapped into the regional art scene, you know that Abu Dhabi Art doesn’t just throw a fair but literally builds futures. And their Beyond Emerging Artists (BEA) programme? That’s where the magic starts.

This year’s 2025 line-up hits different. Curated by none other than Issam Kourbaj — Syrian-born, Cambridge-based and globally respected — the programme champions three UAE-based artists whose works are anything but ordinary: Alla Abdunabi, Salmah Almansoori, and Maktoum Marwan Al Maktoum. These aren’t just “ones to watch.” They’re the new visual voices rewriting how we tell stories about identity, memory, land, and legacy.

In a region that’s still navigating how to nurture its underground and emerging art talent, BEA is doing more than handing out exhibition slots. It's offering real mentorship, meaningful global exposure (hello, Hong Kong and London exhibitions), and the kind of institutional support young artists actually need.

The chosen artists’ practices span everything from conceptual installation to storytelling through found objects and sculpture. But what unites them is this: they all mine the past to say something urgent about the now.

The Artists, in a Nutshell

Alla Abdunabi is the artist you call when you want to talk about the ghosts of objects. Her work excavates meaning from materials — not just what they are, but what they’ve seen. With roots in the Libyan diaspora and a global perspective, she’ll make you rethink what’s “real” and what’s remembered.

Salmah Almansoori documents what’s disappearing — her hometown, forgotten landscapes, and those dusty corners of collective memory we often overlook. Whether it’s ceramics, site-specific installations or archival fragments, her work is emotional, grounded, and totally captivating.

Maktoum Marwan Al Maktoum brings a surreal, mind-bending approach to storytelling. Think: psychology meets folklore meets new myth-making. His practice builds entire emotional worlds, shaped by time, belief systems, and the histories we carry in our skin.

What’s Next

Their works will premiere at Abu Dhabi Art 2025 (Nov 19–23) at Manarat Al Saadiyat and let’s just say, it’s not going to be your typical white-cube moment. The 2025 commissions are inspired by Al Ain as both place and metaphor — expect a lot of digging (literally and emotionally).

After that? The spotlight moves global: past BEA cohorts are showing right now at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong, with a stop in London next. This isn’t local art in a bubble. It’s regional brilliance with global reach.

So, whether you’re an art kid, collector, or just here for the vibes, Abu Dhabi Art’s BEA programme is where future icons are made. And you heard it here first.

Visit www.abudhabiart.ae for more on this year’s fair.