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Arts & Communication The rise and fall of global art worlds

internationally. The Yuz Foundation and the new Yuz Museum. This arrangement allows art associations and
Museum are now managed by Budi Tek’s daughter, Justine foundations that do not have permanent exhibition spaces
Alexandria Tek, who is determined to continue her father’s in Sharjah to utilize some of the museum’s galleries. Barjeel
legacy while ensuring the project’s ongoing financial is responsible for temporary displays and rotates/updates
sustainability. Furthermore, she is keen to develop cross- exhibition programs accordingly. As a government-run
cultural exchanges, co-curate traveling exhibitions across institution, such agreements are centrally approved by the
the three institutions, and leverage LACMA’s vast expertise Sharjah Museums Authority.
in curatorial, collection, and museum practices to benefit Al Qassemi recognizes the importance of staging
the Yuz Museum. 34
temporary exhibitions, lending works, and forming
3.3. Global art networks: Barjeel Art Foundation, strategic collaborations with art galleries and universities,
United Arab Emirates along with their art museums in the United States, the
United Kingdom, and Europe. This allowed him to tell the
Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi is intent on changing the “Arab story” at a time when few spaces were exhibiting
narrative and established perceptions of the Arab world modern and contemporary Arab art. Although it may
and the Middle East by making Barjeel Art Foundation’s not always be possible to control the interpretation and
(Barjeel) holdings freely accessible to new audiences. reception of works of art tied to a particular geographic
Openly sharing knowledge and educating the public
about the historical, social, and political developments in region when they leave their original context, the
Arab art is key to Al Qassemi’s cultural ambitions. The exhibition “Imperfect Chronology: Arab Art from the
emphasis on exhibitions, publications that support the Modern to the Contemporary” at the Whitechapel Gallery
collection, and collaborations with museum and university (September 2015 to January 2017) was a significant
partners informs the basis of the Foundation’s raison milestone for the Foundation, shedding new light on Arab
th
d’être. To better appreciate Al Qassemi’s broader vision, art. This is because the artistic practices of the 19 and
th
one needs to consider why he established the Barjeel in 20 centuries in the Arab region often escaped the
2010, his motivation to collect art from the Arab world, attention of scholars in both the Arab and Western worlds.
and his decision to make his private art collection publicly The Barjeel Foundation seeks to fill these historical gaps
accessible. His holdings include artists from the Middle by ensuring that Arab art is not forgotten and that it is
East, North Africa, and South Asia regions, artists from accurately documented by scholars and practitioners
different ethnic groups within the Arab world, and Arab working in and within the region.
diaspora artists. More recently, Al Qassemi has partnered with Christie’s
In 2008, the government of Sharjah acknowledged Al London and Lempertz Berlin auction houses to further
Qassemi’s formal request for an exhibition space, making expand their mission. In 2023, we can observe a move
the 470 square-meter gallery (Maraya Art Center) within into the commercial art sector as Barjeel’s collection
the newly renovated building in the Al Qasba district was exhibited at both Christie’s London and Lempertz
of Sharjah available (rent-free, but not “cost-free” as Al Berlin. The exhibition “The Jewels of my Career: Works
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Qassemi notes) to the Foundation. Again, we can see by Marwon” presented paintings by renowned Syrian-
how governments and independent art organizations work born artist Marwan Kassab-Bachi (1934 – 2016) and was
together to build an expanding cultural ecosystem. In one organized in collaboration with Lempertz Berlin (June 2 –
decade, the Barjeel Art Foundation curated a total of 29 30, 2023). The exhibition was promoted as the “Masterpieces
exhibitions: 16 were hosted at the Maraya Art Center, of Marwan Kassab-Bachi from the collection of Barjeel
11 were in collaboration with international and regional Art Foundation,” highlighting significant works in their
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institutions, and the remaining 2 exhibitions were held at holdings. We can thus observe the language adopted
the Sharjah Art Museum and Emirates Palace in the UAE. by auction houses when praising collectors and publicly
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The Maraya Art Center was home to the Foundation’s endorsing their holdings with terms such as “The Jewels
art collection and robust curatorial program until 2018. of my Career” and “Masterpieces,” even when the artworks
Although the closure of the Maraya Art Center signaled are not offered for sale. Although it is unusual for private
a shift in the Barjeel’s trajectory and cultural plans, it also collections to be exhibited in auction houses when the
led to a partnership and long-term loan arrangement works are not for sale, the art market and auction houses
with the Sharjah Art Museum (2019 – 2023), which was are increasingly adopting museum practices by curating
renewed in September 2023. Private organizations such as loan exhibitions and employing museum curators and
the Barjeel can access the space for exhibitions that they scholars, thereby merging what is traditionally understood
curate and organize independently of the Sharjah Art as a museum and auction house.

Volume 3 Issue 2 (2025) 7 doi: 10.36922/ac.2880