Art Museums Here and Now - For the Future: The Museum in the New Cosmopolis

As Abu Dhabi pursues its ambitious creation of a world class cultural district on Saadiyat Island, the Emirate faces essential questions about the role of art museums in the 21st century. What creative, social, and educational functions do art museums serve in our globalized age? How do they engage local populations while attracting new visitors? Should they shape arts education or work with other institutions to deliver it? Can they serve as models for the development of art and industry today? Art museums—new and old—are grappling with these issues as art from around the world is brought to increasingly complex audiences.

Convened by
Mariët Westermann Provost, NYU Abu Dhabi
and
Philippe de Montebello Fiske Kimball Professor, Institute of Fine Arts, NYU; Director Emeritus, The Metropolitan Museum of Art