In 2021, Dubai hosted the Expo (Exposition universelle), one of the world’s largest and most historically significant exhibitions. Known also as the birthplace of the Eiffel Tower, the Expo has, since 1851, brought nations and cultures together, shaping, to a large extent, the dominant model of global art culture.

But there is a catch. During most of its history, this global exhibition largely reflected the Western industrial and cultural system: of the first ten Expos, two took place in London and three in Paris, a trend that continued well into the 20th century.

Since 2005, however, this pattern has markedly changed: of the last five Expos, four have taken place in Asia, with one region in particular gaining a special position: the GCC. After Dubai Expo 2020 brought together a record number of 193 participating countries, another Gulf capital, Riyadh, is set to take up the challenge in 2030.

So, how are we to understand this geographical shift? Is it a sign of Europe losing cultural influence, or are we witnessing the emergence of a new multipolar cultural order? And what does this mean for art and its place in today’s world? Two major historical examples can shed light on these questions: the cultural continuity between the ancient Greek and Roman worlds, and the Islamic cultural inheritance of late antiquity.

Greek art: сonquering the сonqueror

There is a well-known saying in the study of European antiquity: Rome may have conquered Greece militarily, but Greece conquered Rome culturally. In fact, this is a paraphrase of perhaps the most celebrated Roman poet, Horace, who once wrote that “Greece, once conquered, herself conquered the artless victor, and planted the banner of civilization in the farmlands of Rome” (Ep. II.i.156).

But the fall of the Greek city-states to Rome did not mark the decline of Greek civilization. Instead, the Roman conquests allowed Greek art and language to consolidate in regions such as Egypt and Syria, and to expand as far as the Maghreb and Britain.