"Frieze is the latest art business to expand to the Gulf, revealing today it will launch an Abu Dhabi edition, taking over the existing fair Abu Dhabi Art. The first edition of Frieze Abu Dhabi, held November 2026, is the result of a deal struck between the fair and publishing brand and the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT). A spokesperson for Frieze declines to comment on the financial terms of the partnership."
"News of the Abu Dhabi venture comes the same week as the Hollywood tycoon Ari Emanuel has finalised a major deal, first announced in May, to buy Frieze, along with a number of sporting and live events, from Endeavour, the entertainment company he once led. Emanuel did so via his new holding company, Mari, for which he has raised $2bn in equity. Among the investors in Mari is IMI, an Abu Dhabi-based media group. Notably, the Qatar Investment Authority, the country's sovereign wealth fund, has also invested in Mari."
Frieze will open an Abu Dhabi edition in November 2026 by taking over the existing Abu Dhabi Art fair under a deal with the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism. The Abu Dhabi edition will be Frieze's first Middle East fair and its eighth overall, joining editions in London, Seoul, New York, Los Angeles, the Armory Show and Expo Chicago. Art Basel will launch a Middle East fair in Doha in February, amid earlier rumours about Abu Dhabi. Ari Emanuel finalised a deal to buy Frieze via his holding company Mari, which has investors including IMI and the Qatar Investment Authority.
Read at The Art Newspaper - International art news and events
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