Abu Dhabi’s cultural season just gained a landmark moment
Christie’s is holding its first-ever fine art auction in Abu Dhabi, and it’s a genuine milestone.
Titled MAWASIM: 20 Years of Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern Art, the live sale takes place on 1 November 2026 at The Abu Dhabi EDITION.
The occasion marks two decades since Christie’s became the first international auction house to hold a sale in the region back in 2006.
MAWASIM — Arabic for “seasons” — brings together over 70 works spanning more than six decades of art from the Middle East and North Africa.
The museum-quality selection draws from prestigious collections, including the Dalloul Collection in Beirut and Sharjah’s Barjeel Art Foundation.
Highlights range from Paul Guiragossian’s monumental Noces to Samia Halaby’s geometric abstraction and Marwan’s intensely layered Kopf.
Together they trace artistic journeys across Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and beyond.
A programme of previews, talks and educational events runs alongside the sale, previewing internationally before landing in the capital.
It arrives just ahead of the inaugural Frieze Abu Dhabi and the December opening of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
Twenty years on, the capital’s cultural arc comes full circle and this is where the next chapter begins.
Registration is required to attend, but entry is completely free for the public preview exhibition
For more information, visit press.christies.com
