NOMAD Abu Dhabi 2026

NOMAD Abu Dhabi 2026 brings the travelling design fair back to Abu Dhabi for its second edition, once again filling the decommissioned Terminal 1 at the old Abu Dhabi airport with collectible design, contemporary art and craft. After an invitation-only preview on 18 November, it opens to the public from Thursday 19 to Sunday 22 November, and this year it is considerably bigger, with more than 50 exhibitors compared with about 21 galleries and institutions at the 2025 debut.

A design fair inside a 1982 airport terminal

The setting is a large part of the appeal. Terminal 1 opened in 1982 and was designed by the French architect Paul Andreu, and it is known for its tent-like roof, arched walkways and green and blue tiles. The building closed to passengers in 2023, when flights moved to Terminal A at Zayed International Airport, and NOMAD’s first edition in 2025 brought it back into public use.

For 2026, four of the terminal’s private gates become exhibition spaces, each taken by a single gallery: A2Z, Nilufar, Gallery Fumi and Galerie Gastou. The departure hall and corridors also host work, so a visit feels like moving through an airport where the waiting areas have been handed over to designers. NOMAD’s co-founder Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte has said the organisers plan to return over the following years and gradually open more of the building to commissions and performances.

New galleries and regional craft

Several of this year’s highlights look closely at craft from the region and beyond:

• Maison Integre makes its debut with bronze furniture cast in Ouagadougou and tapestries woven in Burkina Faso.
• Mattar, from Bahrain, presents “Woven in Us”, a pearl and textile collection made with Bahraini weavers.
• Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council and the design collective Super Loop show five pieces that combine pearl inlay with talli, the traditional Emirati braiding technique. Irthi also runs workshops on regional crafts during the fair.
• Design Commission Abu Dhabi takes part for the first time.

Commissions, performance and talks

The departure hall is home to an installation by the French-Sudanese designer Abdel El Tayeb, commissioned by Abu Dhabi’s House of Artisans and the Arab World Institute in Paris and made with Emirati master artisans. El Tayeb won the established talent category at the institute’s 2024 design awards.

South African artist Robin Rhode will create a wall drawing and a performance at Terminal 1 during the fair, working with Public Art Abu Dhabi. A separate Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial installation sits at Erth Abu Dhabi, which also hosts talks and runs a pop-up restaurant at the airport.

The talks programme includes the architect Sumayya Vally and the artists Asuncion Molinos Gordo and Vica Pacheco, the latter two also part of the biennial. If you want to hear from them, it is worth keeping an eye on NOMAD’s programme announcements before you choose your day.

Who it suits and how to visit

NOMAD sits somewhere between a gallery show and a fair: pieces are collectible and many are for sale, but the relaxed layout across gates and corridors makes it just as rewarding for anyone who simply enjoys design, architecture and craft. Fans of mid-century and modernist buildings will find the terminal itself worth the trip.

Public opening hours are 1pm to 9pm from Thursday 19 to Saturday 21 November, and 1pm to 8pm on Sunday 22 November. The preview on Wednesday 18 November is by invitation only. Entry is free, with registration through NOMAD’s website. The terminal is on Ad Diyafah Street in Abu Dhabi.

For more exhibitions this season, browse our art and culture events, plan a wider weekend with our guide to things to do in Abu Dhabi, and see everything else on this month in things to do in November.