The Middle East's leading international art fair has begun. Art Dubai brings creative minds from around the world together for a week of presentations, galleries and productions, and has been doing so for nine years. To celebrate this amazingly-diverse art anniversary, we're learning more about the hottest galleries on our radar, starting with gallerist Yasmin Atassi.
By Natalie Travis
Was there a defining moment that got you into the art world, or is it something you’ve always wanted to do?
No, I’m a computer science graduate. I studied computer science at McGill [University] in Montreal. Of course, I grew up in the art world; my mother was a gallerist for the better part of my childhood and adult life and so I was always around artists, but I’m not going to lie and say that this was what I wanted. In my early twenties I started getting more and more interested. A defining moment I think was, sadly, the death of my mother and so I had to decide whether we wanted to close [the gallery] as a business and I would move on with my life in computer science or actually really take it on and change it, because at that time it was critical. I actually kept my calling; my calling kept telling me: 'I want to do this. This is what I want to do for the rest of my life.’ It has been a great decision. A tough one. But great nevertheless.
Who or what have been your artistic influences over the years?
I’m very influenced by modernism, by geometric abstraction in that period. I’m also influenced by what happened in the region. I’m more and more interested in what was happening in the region in the fifties and sixties. And how they were influenced by political and social concerns at that time and also the West. I mean a lot of those artists went to study in the West and they came back. So I’m very interested in that and how we got to where we are today.
Which is the piece in the gallery that means the most to you?
Maybe we can talk about the solo exhibition. Zsolt [Bodoni] is from Transylvania, which is a region in between Romania and Hungary. This is a particularly interesting show. It’s a very pure painting show, a traditional painting show with ideas pertaining to both Western and Eastern Europe, but more specifically to Eastern Europe. I’m very interested in Eastern Europe particularly because of its effect on the cultural, intellectual and political scene in the region here.
Who was the first artist you entered the industry with as a curator?
I was so naïve that I remember emailing these big shot artists in London and New York and I was like, ‘I want to represent you’. I didn’t understand that this stuff doesn’t happen like this. I remember, I would never forget it, Kamrooz Aram (he’s still my artist), he’s Iranian-American and he’s an incredible painter and we just did his solo show in March last year. We published his first book. I remember emailing him and saying, ‘I want to represent you’; I’d never met him in my life and he was like, ‘who is this crazy person emailing me?’. But I went to see him in New York and we hit it off and we started to work together in 2009/10. So he was probably one of the first artists that I started working with and I really appreciate his support right from the beginning because he understood my vision and what I wanted the gallery to be.
What is your favourite book about art?
I read a lot about art, I don’t know if there’s one particular book. There’s this book called The $12 Million Stuffed Shark: The Curious Economics of Contemporary Art. I think it’s a very funny book but it really explains the art world of how a market is created for an artist, and how all the players work together, in a very funny way.
What is your favourite international gallery?
There’s a lot. I don’t know about names but I like galleries who don’t go for the trends. I’m not interested in trends. I’m not interested in ‘hot’ artists. I like galleries who have the same sort of ethos, who have certain logic to their programme that is unlike X, Y, Z. So now all the hot things are about white abstract art.
What is the best and worst thing about curating art?
The best thing is you are always inspired. The worst thing is that…you have a Mama head, you have a psychological head, you have literally every single hat. You need to be a mother, a psychologist, tough love, bad love, you name it. So it can get quite tiring. And the art world is a very competitive place – probably just the same as fashion, where you need to always look your best in fashion – it’s that cutthroat environment. It’s almost the same. Maybe not about the way you’re dressed, but you need to be on top of your game all the time otherwise you start falling behind.
Do your artistic tastes inform your personal style at all?
Maybe? I don’t know. One thing about fashion is that I don’t care about trends. I’m not interested in the trendy little stuff. I’ve always, since I was a teenager, had my own style. Maybe it’s not a radical style, I’m not a radical fashion person (as you saw!) but I am not interested in the hottest things on the market. I like a lot of vintage.
What does 2015 hold for you and your gallery?
Crazy things! The first thing is Art Week, which is a really busy time for us. We have two booths in Art Dubai this year, showing in the contemporary section with our younger artists and in the modern section where we’re showing a Syrian modernist. So again, this is our way to bring back historical shows into the programme. And then in April we’re doing two international fairs. One is in Milan in mid-April and another one in Brussels at the end of April. We also have a great show for the Turkish photographer, Nazif Topçuoğlu, who is really (and history will tell I think) ahead of his time. I think that’s quite a lot already!
Is there anything on your personal bucket list for 2015?
In my personal life? I don’t have a personal life! I don’t have time for that! No, I travel a lot anyways. It’s for art but it’s nice to be inspired by new cities. I complain about it but I like it.
If you can't wait for the next insight into some of the UAE's hottest galleries, grab the latest issue of MOJEH Magazine for our all-art special.
