Middle Eastern Royalty rules the Art World

CAIRO - 8 August 2017: In the time of the Middle Ages, European monarchs would comission the finest artists in the land to paint or sculpt for them, yet nowadays it s royalty from the Middle East buying some of the world's most expensive art pieces with ease, as if they were groceries.

Qatar's royal family, the Al Thanis, have been engaged in buying art for over 50 years, and in 2008 the Doha Museum of Islamic Art let the world know just how serious (and how rich) the family was about their interest in the art world.

One of the members of the Al Thani family, Sheikha Mayassa Al Thani, has even been named 'the Queen of the art world', managing the Qatar Museums which hosts the country's impressive collection of art, bought from around the world, including works by artists such as Mark Rothko and Andy Warhol. The Qatari Royal Family recently took the art world by storm with their $300 million dollar acquisition of Paul Gauguin's painting 'When will you marry?'

Abu Dhabi's royalty also shows a keen interest in artwork and, most importantly, all the money needed to acquire everything they wish for. They have compiled art by artists such as Édouard Manet , Edgar Degas and Piet Mondarian.

These Gulf state's rulers, powered by the profits they have made from their Oil, have become the art world's most expensive investors, though an issue becomes apparent; Qatar's interest in international art might be good for making their royal family look good internationally, but what of Qatar's local art? While artwork by famous European artists is preserved in Qatar's museums, little attention seems to be paid to Qatar's own locally produced artwork.

In an article written by the New York Times titled 'Qatar's Royal Patronage of the Arts: Glittering but Empty', one local, anonymous for fear of retaliation, tells the New York Times that the royal family "does not care about locals seeing the art shows... All they care about is being seen overseas".