Walter Willems
MFA, Dutch Art Institute, Netherlands
BA, AKI Academy of Art and Design, Netherlands
Bio
Walter Willems is a Dutch artist, curator, and entrepreneur with over two decades of experience in the arts and entertainment industry. His extensive career includes implementing arts and culture programming across Europe, North America, and the UAE. Willems has curated numerous exhibitions, including outdoor and site-specific displays, and has managed the implementation of large-scale interactive public art. Additionally, he co-founded an annual art awards event that recognized excellence in art production, curation, exhibition design, and art criticism.
An early pioneer in leveraging the digital space for contemporary art, Willems co-founded ArtBarrage, a digital media and art consulting company specializing in online contemporary art sales, marketing, residential and corporate art consulting, artist career guidance, grant writing, and the archiving of exhibitions and artworks.
Before his tenure at the College of Arts and Creative Enterprises at Zayed University in the UAE, Willems served as the co-director of a commercial art gallery in Toronto, Canada. In this capacity, he represented established, mid-career, and emerging contemporary artists from Europe, North America, and Asia.
In addition to his academic role, Willems served as the mentor and curator for Spectrum: Cohort One, a photographers' residency program initiated by the Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT) at Manarat Al Saadiyat in Abu Dhabi. He also co-curated the 2023 Sikka Art & Design Festival hosted by the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (DCAA) in the historic Al Fahidi District in Dubai.
As an artist, Willems has exhibited his work internationally and engaged in collaborations with artists and art institutions around the world. His artistic contributions are part of collections in public, private, and corporate spaces across Europe, North America, Australia, and the UAE.
Office
Abu Dhabi - Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi
Phone:
+971 56 656 4815
