These South Asian Artists Shine at Art Basel Qatar 2026

Art Basel Qatar 2026 has become a powerful stage for South Asian contemporary art, and among the most talked-about presentations at the fair are those by Imran Qureshi and Aizah Ahmed. Though working in very different visual languages, both artists explore culture, memory and identity in ways that resonate far beyond the region, drawing collectors, curators and visitors into deeply layered narratives.

Imran Qureshi: Weaving Tradition into Contemporary Dialogue

Pakistani artist Imran Qureshi delivers one of the fair’s most immersive installations by reimagining the traditional charpai—the lightweight woven bed found across the Indian subcontinent—as a vibrant, living artwork. In Opening Word of This New Scripture (2024), the gallery space is transformed with gridded metal frames threaded with bright nylon cords arranged in striking geometric patterns, from stars to chevrons. At the heart of the installation, two weavers sit barefoot on a neon-toned floor, constructing the patterns in real time. What is usually a symbol of domestic life becomes a celebration of shared cultural memory and collective craft. The work bridges everyday tradition and contemporary art, turning a familiar object into a monument of color, process and participation, and highlighting Qureshi’s ongoing engagement with regional histories and living practices.

Aiza Ahmed: Borders, Identity and Performance

Interdisciplinary artist Aizah Ahmed brings a sharply different, yet equally compelling, energy to Art Basel Qatar with a body of work that interrogates identity, migration and spectacle. Working across painting, sculpture, installation and performance, Ahmed draws on personal and political histories, including the theatrical border ceremonies between India and Pakistan, to explore how nationalism, ritual and movement shape human experience. Her presentation blends visual elements such as painted fabrics, sculptural forms and performative gestures, creating a space that feels both staged and deeply personal. Ahmed’s work questions fixed ideas of belonging, using the language of performance and installation to reflect the complexities of living between places, cultures and histories.

Together, Qureshi and Ahmed exemplify the breadth of South Asian contemporary practice at Art Basel Qatar 2026—one rooted in the transformation of tradition through craft and collective memory, the other driven by performance, politics and personal narrative. Their works not only anchor the fair’s regional presence but also underscore how stories from South Asia continue to shape and challenge the global art conversation.