Dubai's thriving art scene attracts top talent

Welsh artist Julian Castaldi and his wife Ellie came to Dubai to cat-sit for a friend nine years ago. They loved the emirate so much, they never left.

One of seven emirates in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Dubai is attracting creative talent to the region with incentives such as Golden Visas approving resident stays for 10 years rather than the standard three years.

“I think the big difference from working in the UK, or working in LA, which I did, is the diversity,” says Julian. “I've created work in Arabic and in Hindi, which wouldn't have happened elsewhere. The art scene in Dubai is awesome, so nine years later, I’m still here.”

Amrita Sethi was a banker in Dubai until she decided to become an artist, inspired by the emirate’s thriving art scene. Recently she was awarded a Golden Visa in recognition of her contribution to Dubai’s digital art movement.

“I always used to love coming to Art Dubai when I was a banker dreaming of my artistic self,” she recalls. “For me, Art Dubai is a really special place.”

Art Dubai is a highlight of the emirate’s cultural calendar, celebrating its 15th edition in 2022. Hosted at Madinat Jumeirah, this year’s fair was the largest to date with more than 100 exhibitors from 44 countries, and a new section dedicated to digital art. Visitors were invited to buy artworks and NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and explore galleries in the metaverse in addition to browsing more traditional wall-mounted displays.

“This is the first time that you can buy art using cryptocurrency at Art Dubai,” says Global Art Forum Commissioner Shumon Basar. “I think that's really interesting. It opens it up to a new audience, a new collector base, new generations even - so I'm very excited about that.

Art Dubai also has a