Art Basel in Qatar 2026, February 4

Conversations | Becoming as a state of mind

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Wael Shawky,&nbsp;Artistic Director,&nbsp;Art Basel Qatar, Doha Rachel Whiteread,&nbsp;artist, London&nbsp; Moderator: Vincenzo de Bellis, Chief Artistic Officer&nbsp;and&nbsp;Global Director Art Basel Fairs, Basel What can we gain from embracing impermanence? Drawing on ‘Becoming’,&nbsp;the theme of the inaugural Art Basel Qatar,&nbsp;the fair’s artistic&nbsp;director Wael Shawky, together with&nbsp;artist Rachel Whiteread, discussed transformation as an active force in cultural production – one in which histories, narratives, and identities&nbsp;remain&nbsp;unfixed. Set against the Gulf’s layered histories and accelerating&nbsp;present,&nbsp;and&nbsp;moderated by Art Basel’s Chief Artistic Officer Vincenzo de Bellis, the&nbsp;conversation probed how art both registers and produces shifts in belief and systems of meaning, and why cultivating a state of becoming can help navigate today’s global art ecology. Artist&nbsp;Wael Shawky’s work, rooted in extensive research and&nbsp;inquiry, examines national, religious,&nbsp;and artistic identity through film, performance, and storytelling. He is&nbsp;the&nbsp;artistic&nbsp;director&nbsp;of&nbsp;the inaugural edition of Art Basel Qatar&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;artistic&nbsp;director of Fire Station,&nbsp;Doha&nbsp;where he launched the Arts Intensive Study Program – a transformative initiative designed to foster critical thinking, hands-on research, and professional development for emerging Qatari and international artists. Rachel Whiteread (b. 1963, London) is a British sculptor whose practice centers on casting the negative spaces left by architecture and domestic forms. Working in plaster, resin, and concrete, she&nbsp;renders&nbsp;absence tangible and quietly monumental. She won the Turner Prize in 1993 and represented Britain at the Venice Biennale in 1997. Her work is held in major museum collections and includes permanent public commissions, including Water Tower (1988) on the roof of Museum of Modern Art, New York and monuments in Japan, Norway, Austria, and the California desert. Vincenzo de Bellis&nbsp;oversees the leadership teams of Art Basel’s five shows&nbsp;–&nbsp;Basel, Miami Beach, Hong Kong, Paris,&nbsp;and Doha&nbsp;–&nbsp;and spearheads new events and initiatives.&nbsp;He&nbsp;has previously served as the curator and&nbsp;associate&nbsp;director of&nbsp;programs&nbsp;at the Walker Art Center&nbsp;(2016–2022), the artistic&nbsp;director of&nbsp;Miart&nbsp;(2012–2016),&nbsp;and&nbsp;the founding&nbsp;director of&nbsp;Peep-Hole Art Center, Milan (2009–2016).&nbsp;De Bellis&nbsp;has&nbsp;curated major international exhibitions and holds advanced degrees in&nbsp;curatorial studies and&nbsp;museum&nbsp;management. Art Basel Conversations x Qatar Creates Talks

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