The Sharjah Art Museum is one of the leading art institutions in the Persian Gulf region. The museum has a collection of modern and contemporary art by artists from the United Arab Emirates and other Middle Eastern countries. It also organises and hosts temporary exhibitions and educational events. Some of the temporary exhibitions are created in collaboration with other prominent museums such as Cobra Museum of Modern Art in Amsterdam, TATE Britain in London, Barjeel Art Foundation in the UAE, and The Gibran Museum in Lebanon.
Sharjah Art Museum
Sharjah Art Museum Building
The new building of the Sharjah Art Museum was established on April 7, 1997, under the patronage of Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, the Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah during the 3rd Sharjah International Arts Biennial. It has a total floor area of 111,000 m² with galleries over two floors and an underground car park beneath it. The building consists of two wings, interconnected by two passageways over an inner street. Sixty-eight halls of various sizes cover the total area. The current building with its wind tower architecture, is one of the main landmarks in Arts Square.
Sharjah Art Museum Building is regularly used as one of the exhibition venues of the Sharjah Biennial, organized by the Sharjah Art Foundation.
Inside Sharjah Art Museum
Exhibits at Sharjah Art Museum
The Barjeel Collection Wing houses contemporary Arab art from the 20th century to the present as well as art from the 18th and 19th century created by both Arab artists and the European artists who focused on the Middle East in their work.
Beyond the welcome hall, the Museum Collection is sorted into themes such as Abstract art, Resistance art, ‘Hurufiyya’ (the art of the letter), Beaux-arts, the Utopian Village, Modernities, Symbolism and Folklore. Beirut born Saloua Raouda Choucair’s masterpiece Poem, a wooden sculpture that dates back to circa 1960 is without doubt one of the highlights of the collection.
Inside Sharjah Art Museum
The Fine Art Library located at Sharjah Art Museum consists of over 4000 titles written in Arabic, English, and other languages, besides an archive of visual and audio materials.
Permanent collections include paintings and sculptures by renowned artists in the Middle East, including: Abdulqader Al Rais, Ahmed Al Ansari, Louay Kayali, Bashir Sinwar, Faiq Hassan, Mohammed Yusuf and Ismail Fatah Al-Turk.
