Frieze Abu Dhabi unveils inaugural programme led by award winner Dala Nasser

Award-winning Lebanese artist Dala Nasser has been chosen as the inaugural recipient of the Frieze Abu Dhabi Artist Award for 2022. Her artistic installation, Qubbat Duris, will serve as the centerpiece of the fair's inaugural programme at Manarat Al Saadiyat from November 19 to 22. The installation draws inspiration from a 13th-century monument located in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, incorporating fragments of Roman limestone sarcophagi atop eight granite columns sourced from earlier periods.

Nasser's creation will be characterized by a timber framework draped with textiles bearing traces of the surrounding landscape, including charcoal rubbings of ruins and paint made from ash, raw clay, and terracotta. The work aims to explore how materials preserve memory across generations and address questions of collective responsibility towards landscapes threatened by destruction.

In addition to Nasser's installation, Frieze Abu Dhabi will showcase an exhibition featuring Emirati artists Mohammed Kazem and Alia Zaal. This pairing will be presented in the new In Dialogue exhibition, which pairs established artists with emerging UAE artists. Kazem, known for his work in video, photography, and performance, often explores ways to give form to sound and light.

Zaal utilizes painting and photography, drawing upon archives and personal images to examine memory and perception. The exhibition will run from November 16 to December 16 at Mamsha Beach, Saadiyat Island, and was curated by Abu Dhabi’s Dirwaza Curatorial Lab, formed by Munira Al Sayegh, along with Hessa Al Nuaimi and Dania Al Tamimi.

The fair will also host a month-long sculpture display at Mamsha Beach, presented by Aldar, featuring works by four artists who engage with landscape, materials, and the built environment. These artists include Zeinab Alhashemi, Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim, Imran Qureshi, and Kamran Samimi. A talks program will accompany the fair, including sessions on "Building the Global Museum" and "Curating Across Knowledge Systems."

The Frieze Abu Dhabi Artist Award will support Nasser's new work, Qubbat Duris, which will be unveiled during the event.