Myrna Ayad: You know Doha well, but an art fair is new territory for you. What drew you to this role?

Wassan Al-Khudhairi: I’ve known Vincenzo [de Bellis, Chief Artistic Officer and Global Director of Art Basel Fairs] from his time at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. We had many conversations about this role, and I became excited by the opportunity to work within a new structure and to reengage with Doha, because this feels like one of the many different ways to bring the region together. I’ve always had an interest in how to develop and connect conversations and efforts happening across the arts in the region and beyond. Doha feels like a place to foster and expand these ideas and intentions. While I’m familiar with the context, there is also so much that has changed since I last lived here, and there’s more to learn: this is exciting, and I hope to contribute toward building this edition of Art Basel Qatar as a space for people to have dialogue.

Of course, there’s the market aspect to consider, which is interesting to engage with, since I’ve spent my career in museums and have experience of the market from a different angle. Part of my role has been about bridging this experience. Being a curator in the context of an art fair is a real opportunity to think about new structures and to find ways of doing things differently.

MA: How different is an art fair from the museums and biennials you’re used to working with? 

WK: I have worked closely with galleries throughout my career when organizing exhibitions, commissions, and acquisitions. I’m really enjoying the chance to reconnect with the galleries I know, while engaging with new galleries and learning about their programs and approaches. I am learning so much from people who are connected across Art Basel’s vast and diverse network: people not only with deep institutional knowledge but also practical on-the-ground experience, including the Art Basel team, who have been enormously helpful. 

MA: Could you talk about the theme you chose for Art Basel Qatar’s second edition? Why ‘between / بين’?

WK: I like how this theme is open-ended and allows a lot of room for interpretation. The process of the fair is that a theme is announced, and galleries submit applications in response, and it’s been interesting to see how the theme has resonated with people. The idea of a space between – as something unfixed, liminal, a space for possibility – resonated with me and felt like a way to capture a feeling or moment in time. The theme can be taken more conceptually in that way, but it can also be literal: you can apply it to an artist working across multiple mediums or across time, for instance.

MA: How will we feel your imprint on the fair through this theme?

WK: I’m in the process of inviting collaborators who will work with me to think about how to activate spaces for more experiential opportunities. I am interested in the idea of hosting: of creating moments for people to gather, rest, have a coffee, and experience art or a performance together. Hospitality is core to our culture in the Arab world, and spending time together is an opportunity to share ideas, tell stories, catch up, and imagine new projects. With that in mind, my intention for Art Basel Qatar’s Special Projects program is to create platforms that invite these moments of intimate, collective, and dynamic interaction.

MA: What will distinguish Art Basel Qatar from other regional fairs?

WK: Art Basel has an international standing with networks across the world, and Doha has many kinds of museums, so it’s not just about the art fair. Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi are different in terms of infrastructure, landscape, and culture, and each of the fairs hosted in these cities offer different artistic experiences. In terms of Art Basel Qatar, I particularly like the single-artist booth format, especially when thinking about how I’d like to position works in relation to one another: it gives a lot more focus to the fair and offers audiences the opportunity to understand the depth of an artist’s work.

In general, I think we need to be a lot more engaged with art in many ways, whether in terms of highlighting artistic practices from across the spectrum, creating touchpoints with audiences to discover great art, or supporting the incredible programs organized by galleries and institutions. In doing this work, we’re moving the needle by creating more chances for the public to see and understand art, and for those working in the field to not only share their practices but to grow as practitioners.

MA: Who do you want to bring to the fair?

WK: I would love to see Art Basel Qatar be a place that brings together different people to engage and strike up new relationships or deepen existing ones, so that the event is not just about buying art but is also about feeding the arts ecosystem. Of course, I want the fair to be a place that welcomes emerging collectors and new audiences: people who are interested in supporting art and are curious to learn more. I guess that’s the curator in me!

MA: What do you think Art Basel Qatar can do for the arts in the country?

WK: I believe Art Basel Qatar is one aspect of the larger arts ecosystem in the region. Alongside the art market, what creates a healthy arts ecology are art schools, such as VCUarts Qatar, and museums, which in Qatar operate across scales, with collections and exhibitions of art and culture spanning antiquity to the contemporary. There are also so many artists and designers living and working in Doha, with the Fire Station residency program and the Design Doha initiative both contributing to an expansive and thriving creative field.  

Of course, the arts are not solely defined by visual art, and Doha has programs such as the Doha Film Festival and Fashion Trust Arabia, which foster and support emerging and accomplished filmmakers and fashion designers. Art Basel Qatar adds to this immense cultural landscape, with a considered focus on supporting artistic and creative production from across disciplines and from around the world. 

Art Basel Qatar, presented in partnership with Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) and QC+.

Art Basel Qatar will be held from January 28 to 30, 2027, with Preview Days on January 26 and 27. Art Basel Qatar’s Premium Partner is Qatar Airways. Stay tuned for more on the fair and its upcoming programme.

Myrna Ayad is a Dubai-based editor, writer, and cultural strategist, as well as the former director of Art Dubai (2016–18). In addition to her articles appearing in The New York Times, The Art Newspaper, and The National, she is editor of +971: 50 Emirati Creatives Shaping the UAE (Rizzoli, 2025); the author of Alcove: Intimate Essays on Arab Modernist Artists (Kaph Books, 2024 and 2025), Sheikh Zayed: An Eternal Legacy, Dubai Wonder and Abu DhabiBright (Assouline, 2021 and 2025); and editor of Contemporary Kingdom: The Saudi Art Scene Now (Canvas Central, 2014), among other books. Ayad is also founder and author of ‘Noor’s Heroes’, an illustrated series of children’s books focused on Arab greats (Kaph Kids, 2025).

Caption for header image: Wassan Al-Khudhairi, Artistic Director of Art Basel Qatar. Photograph by Jim Lafferty. Courtesy of Wassan Al-Khudhairi.

Published on September 28, 2026.