Dubai — As global art fairs race to embrace digital creativity, Art Dubai remains a pioneering force, having launched the world’s first major dedicated digital section back in 2022. Now in its fourth year, Art Dubai Digital has become a focal point for experimentation and innovation, prompting the art world to question whether digital art will remain siloed or ultimately integrate into the main fair experience.
“The Gulf region has always been forward-looking, and Dubai, in particular, is deeply fascinated by innovation,” said Pablo del Val, Art Dubai’s artistic director. “Technology isn’t something peripheral, it’s built into the DNA of the city.”
This forward-thinking ethos is reflected in Dubai’s expansive investments in emerging technologies, including the Dubai A.I. Campus, the A.I. and Web3 Festival, and the Museum of the Future—an institution designed not to preserve the past, but to anticipate what lies ahead.
Elsewhere in the region, similar ambitions are unfolding. Abu Dhabi this week opened teamLab Phenomena, a sprawling 183,000-square-foot immersive art space from the acclaimed Tokyo-based digital art collective. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia inaugurated Diriyah Art Futures, a digital art institute, and Qatar drew nearly 16 million visitors to its virtual metaverse exhibition Qatar Adventures in just three months.
Yet questions remain over whether this tech-forward surge is translating into sustained collector interest—particularly from traditional buyers.
Digital Art Finds New Audiences
When Art Dubai Digital debuted in 2022, conversations revolved around crypto wallets and currencies, noted Mila Askarova, director of Gazelli Art House, which has championed digital artists for over a decade. “These conversations showed them to be novices,” she recalled. Today, however, frameworks for transacting in digital art have become more mainstream. Auction house Sotheby’s recently accepted crypto payments at its inaugural Saudi Arabia sale.
This year, Gazelli Art House is presenting a landmark 10-year retrospective of its digital platform Gazell.io, featuring contemporary digital innovators like Sougwen Chung, CROSSLUCID, and Zach Lieberman, alongside pioneers of computer art such as Harold Cohen.
“In my mind, it all needs to go under one roof,” Askarova said, advocating for integration rather than separation of digital and traditional mediums. Surprisingly, she found Art Dubai’s broader audience—many of whom are not Web3 insiders—to be “super-engaged and open to new media art.”
Antonia Carver, director of Art Jameel, attributed this openness to demographics. “The new generation of art enthusiasts and collectors are digital natives,” she said. “Places like Dubai have an enhanced awareness of, and penchant for, new technologies.”
Concept Over Form
Curator Gonzalo Herrero Delicado, who helmed this year’s Art Dubai Digital section, emphasized the importance of substance over spectacle. His theme, “After the Technological Sublime,” seeks to explore the emotional and ethical complexities of digital advancement, asking viewers to look beyond medium and toward message.
“In the past, focusing on the medium created distance,” Delicado said. “I wanted to readdress digital art towards the important questions that define our time.”
Others agree that the NFT-era hype cycle has given way to more intentional collecting habits. “Buyers are now focused on artistic quality and conceptual depth,” said Kenza Zouari of Hafez Gallery, which is presenting a projection-mapped immersive installation by Saudi artist Maryam Tariq. “Collectors want experiences that engage multiple senses and invite reflection.”
Market Maturity Still in Question
Despite the optimism, some voices urge caution. Takwa Sabry of Dubai gallery Mondoir, which is showing both traditional and digital works including NFTs by founder Amir Soleymani, praised Art Dubai Digital as a platform for experimentation. But she also flagged concerns.
“There is still hesitation among traditional collectors,” she said. “Many are becoming more aware of the structural issues in digital art—speculation, lack of curation, fleeting hype cycles.” Sabry believes the digital category may need a reputational rehaul before achieving parity with the traditional art market.
Still, she sees value in the fair’s ongoing efforts. “Art Dubai Digital is a testing ground for ideas,” she said. “Even if the market itself isn’t mature yet.”
As the Gulf region cements its position as a global innovation hub, Art Dubai continues to serve not just as a showcase of digital creativity—but as a crucible where the future of art collecting is being quietly, and ambitiously, reshaped.
