LONDON.- As Abu Dhabi enters a season marked by major cultural milestones, Christie's announces MAWASIM: 20 Years of Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern Art, a live auction taking place on 1 November 2026 at The Abu Dhabi EDITION. The occasion marks 20 years since Christie's landmark UAE debut in 2006, when it became the first international auction house to hold a sale in the region, and this will be the first auction of fine art to be held by Christie's in Abu Dhabi.
The title MAWASIM, meaning 'seasons' in Arabic, marks a new season for Christie's in the Middle East, while reflecting on the evolution of the category over the past two decades and the vibrant ecosystem of artists, collectors, galleries and institutions that continues to shape the region's artistic future.
Bringing together over 70 works spanning more than six decades, this unique anniversary auction celebrates the richness, diversity and dynamism of art from the Middle East and North Africa. The museum-quality selection traces the evolution of artistic practices across the region, featuring important works from prestigious collections including the Dalloul Collection, Beirut, and Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah. Through their commitment to collecting, preserving and promoting Arab art, these institutions have helped shape the region's art historical narrative and amplified its international resonance. From pioneering modernist movements to contemporary experimentation, the auction encompasses artistic journeys across Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Palestine, Syria, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, highlighting the extraordinary ideas, histories and cultural exchanges that define the region's artistic landscape.
The auction will be accompanied by a programme of previews, talks and educational events, taking place alongside a rich calendar of exhibitions, performances and cultural programming across the emirate. The programme precedes major moments in the season, including Frieze Abu Dhabi (19-22 November) and the opening of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi on 11 December. Together, these milestones bring a remarkable 20-year arc full circle. In 2006, Christie's held its inaugural UAE auction in Dubai as the first plans for Saadiyat Cultural District took shape. Two decades later, Abu Dhabi stands as one of the world's most dynamic cultural destinations, bringing together artists, institutions, collectors and audiences from across the globe.
Dr. Ridha Moumni, Chairman, Christie's Middle East and Africa, comments: “This year's auction comes at a particularly exciting moment for Abu Dhabi, as the city prepares for a major new chapter in its cultural landscape. Taking place ahead of the inaugural Frieze Abu Dhabi and the opening of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, Christie's sale contributes to an especially dynamic period in the region's cultural calendar with a celebration of the artists and artistic practices that have shaped Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern Art. Twenty years after our inaugural auction in the UAE, it is especially meaningful to bring together exceptional works that reflect the depth of scholarship, artistic innovation and cultural exchange that have defined the category, and to welcome collectors to Abu Dhabi for this next chapter.”
Marie-Claire Thijsen, Head of Sale, Specialist, Christie's London and Dubai, added: “This anniversary auction is a celebration of the extraordinary artistic legacy of the Middle East and North Africa, bringing together works of exceptional quality and provenance that speak to the richness and vitality of the region's artistic production. The selection creates a compelling dialogue between artists, generations and geographies, from the pioneering radical abstraction of Mohamed Melehi and Samia Halaby to the deeply personal and expressive figuration of Paul Guiragossian and Marwan. To present these works in Abu Dhabi as the emirate continues to expand its established cultural and artistic ecosystem feels especially significant.”
Meagan Kelly Horsman, Managing Director, Christie's UAE, continued: “This year marks twenty years since Christie's inaugural Modern and Contemporary Art auction in Dubai, a milestone that reflects the enduring relationship we have built with artists, collectors and cultural partners across the region. Since that first sale in 2006, we have had the privilege of witnessing the growing recognition of artists from the Middle East internationally and the evolution of the category itself. As we celebrate this anniversary, it is especially meaningful to bring this year's auction to Abu Dhabi and to mark two decades of Christie's activity in the UAE.”
Highlight Works Include:
• Paul Guiragossian, Noces (Wedding), 1958-1959 (estimate: USD$300,000-500,000): A rare and monumental masterpiece by Paul Guiragossian, from the distinguished Farid Trad Collection, one of the foremost early patrons of modern Lebanese art. The vibrant wedding scene reflects Guiragossian's enduring themes of home, community and human connection; the work was exhibited at his first major exhibition in Lebanon in 1959 and was most recently shown in Farid Trad: Collector and Art Patron at Saleh Barakat Gallery, Beirut, in 2023.
• Samia Halaby, Yesterday, 1978 (estimate: USD$200,000-300,000): An important work from Samia Halaby's celebrated 1970s period, when the Palestinian-American artist forged her distinctive language of geometric abstraction. The painting reflects her pioneering exploration of colour, movement and spatial perception, while capturing a moment of technical experimentation through her use of a squeegee to create subtle variations of depth and space. The work was featured in Lasting Impressions: Samia Halaby at Sharjah Art Museum in 2023–24.
• Mohamed Melehi, A30, 1962 (estimate: USD$100,000-150,000): An exceptional example from Mohamed Melehi's seminal 1960–62 series of 'black works', created during his formative years at the Academia di Belle Arti in Rome. Almost entirely stripped of colour, A30 reflects his experimentation with the bianco e nero technique and his engagement with Zen philosophy and Islamic Sufi traditions.
• Nadia Saikali, Mandala Bleu Nuit (Midnight Blue Mandala), 1982 (estimate: USD$30,000-50,000): Originating from the Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah, this work belongs to an important mature phase of Saikali's, characterised by its meditative and spiritual abstraction. The deep blue and black composition reflects her exploration of colour, light and perception, and was exhibited at Maraya Art Centre, Sharjah, in 2025. Four other works from the Barjeel Art Foundation are also offered in the sale.
• Marwan Kassab-Bachi, Kopf (Head), 1987 (estimate: USD$200,000-300,000): Kopf (Head) marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of Marwan's celebrated portraiture, moving from the horizontally stretched facial landscapes of the 1970s towards the vertical, frontal heads that became a defining motif of his mature practice. Richly layered by a vigorous impasto of earthy ochres, burnt sienna and deep crimson, the painting possesses an extraordinary psychological intensity and was exhibited at Institut du monde arabe in Paris in 1988.
• Inji Efflatoun, Untitled, 1987 (estimate: USD$40,000-60,000): Originating from the prestigious Dalloul Collection in Beirut, this is one of Inji Efflatoun's final works and a compelling example, representing the culmination of the Egyptian modernist's practice, characterised by a lyrical synthesis of nature and the built environment through expressive colour and line. It is one of eight works from the Dalloul Collection offered in the auction.
• Nabil Nahas, Inka Dinka Doo, 2013 (estimate: USD$300,000-400,000): Inka Dinka Doo is part of a group of works that Nahas describes as “fields of energy”, combining fluid forms and vividly coloured paint chips in a richly tactile surface. Shifting between the microscopic and the cosmic, the work evokes both celestial bodies and organic life, reflecting Nahas's enduring interest in perception and the instinctive process of painting. A major figure in contemporary Lebanese art, Nahas is currently representing Lebanon at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, where his immersive installation Don't Get Me Wrong similarly explores the relationship between humans, nature and the cosmos.
