For those who love art and design, mark your calendars for Abu Dhabi Art—an art fair that takes place every November. This year, the fair is set to be from November 19-23, and its focus will be on community. As the UAE declared 2025 to be the Year of Community, Abu Dhabi Art has conceived multiple ways to channel the theme for its 2025 edition.
Through its Community Projects initiative, the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation (ADMAF) has collaborated with Studio Salasil to conceive this year’s Community Projects. Studio Salasil is a future-focused curatorial studio. With an experimental, multidisciplinary approach, we can expect an out-of-the-box curation between artists and audiences. And this edition, Abu Dhabi Art reaches out to its audience, asking them to reflect on how creativity can spark conversation, foster connections, and shape the future of community life.
Mariam Bader Al Zarooni, Community Projects Lead, commented on the importance of these programmes, saying, “The UAE’s declaration of the Year of Community serves as a timely reminder of the essential role community engagement plays in shaping a more connected and inclusive society. At Abu Dhabi Art, it has renewed our commitment to placing community at the centre, not only through inclusive and accessible programming, but by building meaningful partnerships that unite people through art, culture, and shared creative experiences. We’re thrilled to be joined by like-minded collaborators who share our vision of making art a catalyst for connection, understanding, and unity.”
Continuing with the community focus, this year’s Art + Tech programme will be led by Emirati artist and robotics engineer, Dr Ahmed Al Attar. As the founder of art and technology studio REALIITY, he has collaborated with students across the UAE to develop a kinetic, interactive installation which will be exhibited at Abu Dhabi Art. Drawing inspiration from traditional Sadu patterns, the installation is heritage reimaged into a kinetic projection. It explores pseudo-randomness, cultural symbolism, and technological transformation.
The final piece of community focus comes from the Abu Dhabi Art Pavilion. Established in 2017, this initiative allows university students across the UAE to propose visionary architectural designs. This year’s winners were Sara Alsehhi and Sarvani Pagadala, with their project Awda. Meaning “return” in Arabic, this pavilion draws inspiration from the palm tree, asking those to return to it as a space, a material, and a memory. It spotlights the tree for its cultural significance as well as its ecological significance. Currently conceived as a temporary structure for Abu Dhabi Fair visitors, it serves as a neutral space for community bonding, thus reinforcing the fair’s commitment.
Between this and Dubai Design Week, November is set to be an exciting month for artists and creatives alike.
