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Iraqi curator Wassan Al-Khudhairi has been appointed as artistic director of Art Basel Qatar 2027, which returns for its second iteration from January 28 to 30.
Al-Khudhairi succeeds Egyptian artist Wael Shawky, who was the creative mind behind the inaugural edition.
The next staging, to be held at Doha Design District and M7, will run under the theme “between”, which examines what the fair describes as “relationships across generations, geographies and perspectives”.
The appointment also marks Al-Khudhairi’s return to Qatar, where she was founding director of Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art and helped bring important exhibitions to the museum, including Cai Guo-Qiang’s Saraab, a major retrospective by the Chinese artist.
“It is an honour to take on the role of artistic director for Art Basel Qatar 2027. Qatar has played a meaningful role in shaping both my career and my curatorial practice, and I look forward to bringing that deep connection to this important project,” Al-Khudhairi said.
Further details will be announced closer to the fair, but Art Basel Qatar confirmed it will keep the solo presentation format introduced in its first year, with galleries presenting focused showcases in response to the theme.
Special Projects, another feature of the fair, will be expanded with more site-specific works. Gallery applications for the 2027 fair are now open.
Held in February 2026, the inaugural edition brought together 87 galleries from 31 countries, with solo presentations by 84 artists across Msheireb Downtown Doha.
More than half of the artists presented were from the Gulf, including Mona Hatoum, Simone Fattal, Ali Cherri, Meriem Bennani, Hassan Sharif and Iman Issa.
The fair also featured installations by Palestinian artist Khalil Rabah, South African architect Sumayya Vally, Lebanese artist Rayyane Tabet and Libyan artist Nour Jaouda.
Art Basel’s chief artistic officer and global director of fairs, Vincenzo de Bellis, said Al-Khudhairi’s work across the region and internationally made her well suited to lead the second staging of the Doha fair.
“Wassan’s long-standing engagement with artists, institutions and audiences across the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, and beyond, positions her exceptionally well to shape the next chapter of the fair,” he said.
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