DUBAI: Long derided as a cultural desert, the Gulf art scene is beginning to blossom.

Wealthy nationals and homesick expatriates are looking to add ‘soul’ to their shopping lists and the world’s major auction houses are upping their presence to meet that demand.From graceful Arabic calligraphy to “Dollar Sign” by American icon Andy Warhol, 190 works of contemporary art went under the hammer at a Christie’s auction held this month in Dubai, the commercial hub better known for its glass skyscrapers and sprawling malls than its arts scene.

Christie’s held the Middle East’s first contemporary art auction in Dubai last year. Its second auction of contemporary Arab, Iranian, Indian and Western art drew collectors from India, the Arab world and beyond, and topped the house's own expectations with $9.4 million in sales.

“There is very much a sense that Dubai is trying to position itself as a third art market in the world after London and New York. As an international brand, Sotheby's wants to be here,” said Roxane Zand, Sotheby’s Middle East and Gulf director.

“When there is a critical mass in an economy, inevitably it grows by-products and the art market is one of them. Art is a form of investment. With so much property going up here, people want to put art in the property.”

With oil prices soaring over the past few years, cash and potential art investors are plentiful in the Gulf. The UAE has world’s sixth largest oil reserves and Dubai is in the midst of a construction boom that has transformed the city.

Christie’s is opening an office in Dubai and Zand’s position was created last year to focus on the growing market — not only for Middle East art, but also for contemporary art in general.

In March, Dubai hosts the Gulf Art Fair, the region’s first major international contemporary art show, with galleries and artists showing up from cities as far-flung as Beirut and Tokyo.

The Russian art market has soared over the past five years with a new super-wealthy class seeking to reverse the flood of valuable art works going to private collections overseas.

Some believe a similar pattern is emerging the Middle East.

Dubai hopes to lure more residents with the promise of tax-free jobs and investment, but a common complaint among existing residents is that the city lacks soul. Patricia and Kenneth Palmer have lived in the Gulf for some 20 years and set up ArtWorks in 2003 — when there were few galleries in Dubai — to bring art to the street instead.—Reuters