The new format, which is planned to run on the same dates, will feature “events, exhibitions, talks, and strands of the existing Art Dubai program,” according to the official announcement. The statement also shared that the revised program will have the same objectives and aim to bring “commercial, institutional, and critical engagement with Dubai’s art ecosystem— a commitment of support to our local community that we felt an imperative to uphold.”
Further details regarding the program are forthcoming, while specifics about when the postponed fair will actually take place are unknown. The fair’s officials said that in adhering to Dubai’s “strictest medical and hygiene protocols,” they will welcome international visitors in March and urged travelers to follow the protocol of their country of residence.
Art Dubai is the latest art world event to be seriously scaled back, postponed, relocated, or outright canceled due to the global outbreak of the deadly coronavirus. Art Basel decided last month to
cancel this year’s edition of its Hong Kong fair; Sotheby’s
relocated many of its spring Hong Kong auctions to New York; Gallery Weekend Beijing was
postponed; and the
Louvre in Paris as well as institutions in
Italy, Hong Kong,
China,
South Korea, and
Japan have closed in efforts to control the virus’s spread.