Abu Dhabi has always had a habit of bringing a piece of the world to the Emirates – the Louvre, the Guggenheim (incoming), and the Sorbonne. AD is where you go to see the world through the Arab lens. And as January 2026 signs off, the Emirate is adding another cultural flex to its ever-growing résumé: Craft & Code, the immersive, two-day exhibition that unites analogue Emirati design with next-gen tech.
Taking over ERTH Hotel, Abu Dhabi, Craft & Code is part gala, part exhibition and part working studio. The art here is meant to be tactile and interacted with. Presented by Abu Dhabi Retail, the event sets out to prove one thing: the region’s most exciting ideas are born exactly where heritage and innovation mix.
What to expect
Abu Dhabi’s ERTH is transforming into a fully immersive journey across four distinct zones. When you enter through the Welcome Tunnel, you’ll find yourself in another world as sand artistry, large-scale installations, and an AI-powered immersive tunnel set the tone. When you make your way to the Oasis, home to limited-edition brand exclusives, available first-come, first-served basis. Head over to Maker’s Lane, where you can watch live demonstrations like the Data Loom and CJ Hendry’s Flower Market. And outside, the ERTH Gardens host installations like Khoos and Data Petals, fusing the world of nature and craft and code.
There’s an invitation-only gala to kick things off, followed by family-friendly public days packed with live demos, workshops, and open tours.
These exclusives go hard
You bet the exclusives will live up to the hype. Off-White, curated by IB Kamara, the art director whose name has been echoing the highest echelons in the fashion world, debuts a world-first capsule, including bags, shoes, hoodies, and one-off pieces that are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
CJ Hendry is bringing some colour into the mix. Her cult-favourite Flower Market is making its way to the Middle East for the very first time. Reimagined in collaboration with Emirati artisan Abdalla Almulla, the installation features up to 200,000 fluorescent glowing stems, including native UAE blooms, turning already beautiful florals into collectable art straight out of a sci-fi film.
Amouage premieres a never-before-released fragrance in numbered collector formats, with just 200 units whose packaging comes together as a single, community-built artwork (plus ultra-VIP editions for the true scent obsessives). Meanwhile, Gafla Jewellery offers a contemporary spin on pearl-diving heritage with two bespoke Tatali Bahar bracelets that could be museum showstoppers as easily as they could be heirlooms passed on for generations.
A cultural hard launch
Craft & Code is positioning Abu Dhabi as both a cultural crossroads and a creative engine. “Our ambition is simple: to celebrate, archive, and export Arab creativity to a global audience,” says Marne Schwartz, Managing Director of ITP Media Group. “Abu Dhabi embodies that ambition—modern and progressive, yet proud of its roots”.
Arab art is not for the margins, but for the world to see, feel, and touch. Brb, adding to our calendar rn!