The vibrant art and culture scene in the UAE capital is about to get richer in March. With Bassam Freiha Art Foundation, Saadiyat Island gets a swanky new art space.

The non-profit institution is the first and only private art foundation in the Cultural District on the island, and is founded and curated by His Excellency Bassam Freiha. And the inaugural exhibition to welcome visitors will be Echoes of the Orient.

The foundation is keen to showcase rarely seen works drawn from private collections, locally and internationally. Which means you have the opportunity to discover works which would otherwise not reach the shores of Abu Dhabi.

Down the line, you will also be able to participate in programmes of cultural significance, and sign up for educational initiatives, especially for school kids.

You will discover works from the orientalist movement from His Excellency Bassam Freiha’s private collection.

The works follow the theme of femininity, from candid representations of odalisques (chambermaids) in the harem to depictions of maternal affection.

These works will be juxtaposed with 19th century photography, and those by renowned contemporary and modern Arab artists.

This exhibition at Bassam Freiha Art Foundation aims to shine the spotlight on the complex interplay of reality and fantasy, which has historically defined orientalist art.

With Echoes of the Orient, you can admire the works of the these Western artists: Rudolphe Ernst, Léon Comerre, Paul Leroy, Jan-Baptist Huysmans and Fabio Fabbi.

Arab modernists including Habib Srour, Moustafa Faroukh, Cesar Gemayel, Tawfik Tarek and early works by acclaimed Emirati artist Abdul Qader Al Rais, and 19th-century photography from the Orientalist art movement by Gabriel Lékégian, Jean Pascal Sébah, Tancrede Dumas and Hippolyte Arnoux will also be available for viewing.

His Excellency Bassam Freiha said, “I aim for the Bassam Freiha Art Foundation to become a flagship space inspiring other collectors to share their masterpieces with the public and contribute to the thriving cultural scene in the region.”