AN UNEXPECTED PATH

Chinese manufacturing mogul Snow Feinan Li found herself stuck in the UAE during the pandemic— and that led to an unexpected journey of art collecting By Zabrina Lo Photography by Daniel Asater

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There have been few trickier times to be an ambassador at a world expo than during Covid. In the case of Expo 2020 Dubai, which was postponed to 2021, Snow Feinan Li, a board member of the China Everbright New Economy Fund—which backs Terminus Group, the official sponsor for Expo 2020 Dubai—was tasked with representing China.

What should have been a short-term visit became a longtime residence in the Emirates, when Li was stranded due to Covid travel restrictions. However, she saw the opportunities to be gained from her enforced stay: as well as expanding her businesses from China to the UAE, she also delved into Middle Eastern contemporary art. Li had been collecting art since 2005, and the lockdown presented an unexpected chance for her to connect with and buy from local artists, such as the trio of Ramin and Rokni Haerizadeh and Hesam Rahmanian; Hassan Sharif, the father of conceptual art in the Gulf; and Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim, another conceptual artist.

She has since acquired more than 100 new works by artists in the region, many of which are displayed in her Abu Dhabi penthouse. At a time when the UAE has a growing presence in the global art market—as seen by the area's investment in new art infrastructure like the Louvre Abu Dhabi and high-profile art fairs like Art Dubai—Li’s collection boosts the spotlight being shone on Arab artists and their work.