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Perrotin is pleased to participate in the first edition of Art Basel Qatar with a solo presentation by Ali Banisadr. On this occasion, the artist presents Al-Kīmiyā: The Art of Transformation, an exhibition that unfolds across painting, sculpture, and works on paper to examine humanity's enduring drive toward becoming—toward change, mutation, and renewal. The title draws from al-kīmiyā, the Arabic root of alchemy, understood not merely as material transmutation but as a philosophical and spiritual process: a reconfiguration of perception, knowledge, and being.

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ABOUT ARTISTS : Ali Banisadr

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Ali Banisadr lived with his family in Tehran, Iran until the age of 12. Growing up during the Iranian Revolution and the Iran-Iraq War, Banisadr experienced sounds and sights (such as a bomb crater in his schoolyard) that had a lasting impact on his sensory foundations—events that had particular resonance on his aesthetic formation, given his experience of synaesthesia, in which he perceives visual forms as sounds, and vice versa. Although Banisadr studied psychology in college as a means of better understanding his own sensory experience, he later became involved in the Bay Area graffiti scene before attending art school in New York, receiving his BFA from the School of Visual Arts in 2005, and his MFA from the New York Academy of Art in 2007.

Art Basel Qatar is Art Basel's fifth premier event and our newest show, running February 5-7, 2026 in Doha. Anchored in a dynamic long-term partnership with Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) and QC+, Art Basel Qatar will debut as a concisely curated showcase celebrating Qatar’s vibrant cultural landscape and the dynamic arts ecosystem of the MENA region. The inaugural edition of Art Basel Qatar will be held at M7, a creative hub in the heart of Doha, as well as at the Doha Design District in downtown Msheireb.

mpefm QATAR fair art press release