You’ll have been living under a rock if you don’t know what Saadiyat Island means to this region. The area’s development as a leading cultural hub is well documented, drawing praise and criticism from the world’s artistic community in equal measure. One school of thought is that Saadiyat is a top-down project; that the grassroots scene here, such as it is, will be ignored in favour of the big names that the Guggenheim and Louvre will attract.
Not so, says Salwa Zeidan, the well-known Lebanese gallery owner who first exhibited in Abu Dhabi 21 years ago. The gallery that shares her name opened here in 2009. By comparison, David Helderle is a relative newcomer. Only here since 2009, David is the cultural manager at the Alliance Française, where he uses the centre’s wall space to give much-needed exposure to local artists. Time Out was keen to hear their views on how the local art scene is developing, and whether grassroots artists can integrate with the big hitters on Saadiyat Island.
Don’t you think art often grows from a ground level, rather than from money?
SZ: In this case it’s different, and let’s accept the change. If we bring in people to this country to teach them, they’re bound to understand and to flourish, to grow and improve. So the rulers are putting all this effort to make it happen, and it will happen eventually, I’m sure.
How would a young Emirati artist go from a position of obscurity to getting into the Louvre? It must seem like a world away, even though it’s in the same city.
SZ: It’s not going to happen in one day. Children will be around these museums; they’re going to live with it and eventually learn so much from this. If you look at the young generation now, all over the world, you see them lost. In my country, Lebanon, we’ve been fighting to have a museum of contemporary art for over 20 years now. Nobody gives an ear. It really reflects on the art scene. Here, people have hope – whether they’re local or coming to the city. I’ve had my gallery here now for less than two years and I’ve been approached by thousands of artists from all over the world.
DH: I see it every month. I exhibited an artist one month ago from Russia. She has an art gallery in Canada, and she has heard about the project on Saadiyat. She rushed to Abu Dhabi to be a part of this. A lot of artists here are not looking to enter the Louvre or the Guggenheim, of course. They want to be in Abu Dhabi to enter [smaller] art galleries as well.
Do you see enough local interest in the grassroots scene for it to blossom?
DH: I remember once I had a guided tour with Salwa at the Abu Dhabi International Sculpture Symposium and I met an Italian sculptor, and he said, ‘At last! Visitors! We’ve been working so hard and no one is coming to see us!’ I told him, ‘This is the first time [this event has taken place]. People are not used to this, but we have to start somewhere.’ If you don’t try, nothing will happen. But if you try, and the politics are supportive, it will work.
SZ: One very important thing I’ve noticed is that all the big national offices in the city have a need for original art, and this is going to make a new market; new collectors. When you live with real art, it’s different to when you live with just a poster on the wall. When you start living with real, vibrating, energetic art, you can’t live without it anymore.
Are there any young Emirati artists you particularly like?
SZ: When I first opened my gallery I met this young artist, Fatema Al Mazrouie. She was just a fresh graduate from Zayed University. I saw potential, so I took her in and now she’s one of my artists. We received an invitation today from Sotheby’s for her to participate, so she’s going to be in London at the next auction. Do you know what this means for these people? It means that it’ll encourage every local artist to give more to their talent.
For more on Alliance Française, head to www.af-aboudabi.net. For more on Salwa Zeidan and her gallery, click on salwazeidangallery.com
