If your country has no cultural history, can you simply buy one? The ruling family of Dubai certainly thinks so – and has ordered everything under the sun to make the desert bloom.

With exclusive access, Drilling For Art goes behind the scenes of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority which has launched an ambitious plan to create the entire culture of the state from scratch.

It investigates Dubai’s brand-new opera houses, museums and art galleries, and talks to the consultants who are responsible for the flourishing of culture in the wealthiest 4,114 km² of sand in the world. Is this drive for culture purely a drive to become a major financial player in the fast growing global commodity that is art? And will the ripples of the economic downturn reach as far this oil-rich Emirate?