Legendary regional and international artists, collectors, curators and filmmakers unite for Art Dubai's Global Art Forum_3

Launched in March 2007, the Global Art Forum brings together artists, curators, museum directors, and art professionals to discuss pressing issues that affect art today and which will define its future.

John Martin, Co Founder and Director, Art Dubai, said:

"This year's Global Art Forum will have a strong emphasis on the ways in which the Middle East and the international art community interact. Global Art Forum_03 will see a range of speakers, many of which are based in the cultural industries in the Middle East, who are all working toward further developing a viable and vibrant art scene in the region. This Global Art Forum will create conversations that will are both relevant to the current global art scene and essential for the success of the Middle East's arts industry as a whole."

The first day of the Global Art Forum on 16th March will be hosted by the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha and is co-curated by the Arab Museum of Modern Art. With leading museum directors and curators participating, the day will examine the relationship between the public and the museum through topics such as Building the Museum, The Future of the Museum and Creating Spaces: Cultural Development and Art Practices.

From the 18th -20th March the Global Art Forum returns to its home at Art Dubai for three days dedicated to legendary artists, collectors, curators and filmmakers as well as some of the most exciting art projects from around the globe. Day two, the 18th March, is supported by DCAA (Dubai Culture & Arts Authority), begins with Good Morning Russia and discusses the vibrant and unique art scene in Moscow. Is Collecting a Statement or a Cause? More and more collectors are shying away from iconic collections and are working actively hand in hand with artists, curators, institutions and other collectors to help produce works of art, education programmes, and making art accessible to the public. DCAA will also present: Press Announcement 'Opening' by the UAE Pavilion for the 53rd Venice Art Biennale.

Day three, 19th March, is hosted by ADACH (Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture & Heritage). The programme will focus on key issues that are driving the projects of the Authority forward starting with Contemporary Culture and Living Tradition. The mission of ADACH is Cultural Diplomacy from the Perspective of the Arab World as a Constructive Conversation with the West. In the plans of ADACH, the role of The Heritage Museum in a Modern Age is key to the development of its program. As collecting is a fundamental part of museum development, ADACH has recently produced an Arabic translation of the book Owning Art: The Contemporary Art Collector's Handbook by London-based collector Judith Greer and journalist Louisa Buck. The evening will be dedicated to a panel on Art City, Tehran, co-curated by Bidoun which will feature Tehran-based artists, curators and critics.

The fourth day, 20th March, begins with Brave New World: The New Deal in the Art World. In the current economic climate, artists, curators and collectors have to find a new deal in terms of getting significant artworks produced and exhibited. The harmonious alignment of public and private initiatives will be of the essence, and the way they are initiated, managed and communicated will be key in rebuilding trust in the art world. Experts will discuss possible scenarios for change and survival in the years to come.

Full speakers list for the Global Art Forum:

- Abdulla Al-Amri, Director of the Department of Arts and Culture, ADACH, Abu Dhabi
- Mishaal Al Gergawi, Projects & Events Manager Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, Dubai
- Wassan Al-Khudhairi, Collections Curator at the Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha
- Sultan Al-Qassemi,Collector, Sharjah
- Dr. Abdulla Al-Thani, Vice President of Education at Qatar Foundation, Founder of Al Markhiya
Gallery, Qatar
- Manal Ataya, Director General of the Sharjah Museums Department, Sharjah
- Fereydoun Ave, Artist and Curator, 13 Vanak Street,
- Yuri Avvakumov, Architect and Designer, Moscow
- Negar Azimi, Senior Editor, Bidoun magazine, New York.
- Joseph Backstein, Founding Director of the Moscow Biennale, Moscow
- Josh Baer, Writer and Publisher of The Baer Faxt, New York
- Maria Baibakova, Director, Baibakova Art Projects, Moscow
- Shumon Basar, Writer and Critic, London
- Derya Bigali, Manager, Akbank Art Center - Akbank Sanat, Istanbul
- Daniel Birnbaum, Director 53rd Venice Biennale of Visual Arts, Frankfurt
- Samuel Boutruche, Artist, Kolkoz, Le Baron, Paris
- Louisa Buck, Journalist, London
- Bob Colacello, Writer, Columnist, New York
- Paolo Colombo, Curator and Advisor Istanbul Modern, Rome
- Catherine David, Curator, Artistic Director ADACH Platform for Venice, Paris
- Simon de Pury, Chairman Phillips de Pury & Company, London
- Elizabeth Duggal, Associate Director of the Natural History Museum-The Smithsonian Institution,
Washington D.C.
- Dr. Sami El-Masri, Director of Strategic Planning Office ADACH, Abu Dhabi
- Shahab Fotouhi, Artist, Tehran
- Richard Flood, Chief Curator of the New Museum, New York
- Katherine Gass, Curator Jumeirah Essex House, New York
- Amirali Ghasemi, Artist and Curator, Parkingallery and the Roaming Biennial of Tehran, Tehran
- Judith Greer, Collector, London
- Adila Laïdi-Hanieh, Cultural critic, West Bank
- Dr. Lamees Hamdan Commissioner to the Office of the UAE Pavilion
- Maja Hoffmann, Collector, LUMA Foundation, Zurich
- Max Hollein, Director of the Kunsthalle and Staedel Museum, Frankfurt
- Xenia Kalpaktsoglou, Artistic Director of the Athens Biennial, Athens
- Katerina Koskina, President of the Board of Trustees, State Museum of Contemporary Art,
Thessaloniki
- Thomas Krens, Senior Advisor for Intern. Affairs, Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, NY
- Gail Lord, Co-president of Lord Cultural Resources, Toronto
- Roger Mandle, Director of the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha
- Sohrab Mahdavi, Writer and Editor of Tehranavenue.com, Tehran
- Christian Matthiesen of Berlin-based performance group, Jackson Pollack Bar
- Moataz Nasr, Artist and Founder of Darb 1718, Cairo
- Benjamin Moreau, Artist, Kolkoz, Le Baron, Paris
- H.E. Zaki Nusseibeh, Advisor Ministry Presidential Affairs-Deputy Chairman, ADACH, Abu Dhabi
- Hans Ulrich Obrist, Director of International Projects, Serpentine Gallery, London
- Mikhail Petrovsky, Director of the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
- Lekha Poddar, Collector, New Delhi
- Jerome Sans, Chief Curator UCCA, Beijing
- Nasrin Seraji, Architect, Urbanist - Professor of Architecture, Paris
- Ambassador Cynthia P. Schneider PhD, Expert in cultural diplomacy, Saban Center for Middle
East Policy, Professor Diplomacy and Culture at Georgetown University, Washington D.C.
- Dr. Nada Shabout, Associate Professor at the University of North Texas
- Alexandros Stanas, Director of Art Athina, Athens
- Olga Sviblova, Head of House of Photography in Moscow and Acclaimed Art Curator, Moscow
- Andras Szanto, Senior Faculty, Sotheby's Institute of Art, Director NEA Arts Journalism Institute,
Colombia University, New York
- Christine Tohmé, Director of the Lebanese Association for Plastic Arts, Ashkal Alwan, Beirut
- Gilane Tawadros, independent Curator and Writer, former Director of inIVA, London
- Oliver Watson, Chief Curator Museum of Islamic Art, Doha
- Richard West Jr., former Director and founder of the National Museum of the American Indian
and a prominent ICOM member, Washington D.C.
- Marc Olivier Whaler, Director of the Palais de Tokyo, Paris
- Poka-Yio, Artist, Co-curator of the Athens Biennial, Athens
- Tirdad Zolghadr, Curator of the UAE Pavilion, Berlin

The National is the official media partner of the Global Art Forum.