India Art Fair 2026

Details

India Art Fair, the definitive destination for discovering South Asian, modern and contemporary art, announces its most expansive programme to date, transforming the fairgrounds into a space of dialogue and cross-cultural exchange for leading regional and international tastemakers.

Returning for its landmark 17th edition at the NSIC Exhibition Grounds, New Delhi, from 5 to 8 February 2026, the fair welcomes new commissions and large-scale outdoor projects, led by artists and supported by a wide network of arts organisations, foundations and patrons.

Across the city, New Delhi’s dynamic cultural landscape comes alive through an extensive Parallel Programme featuring exhibitions and activations that extend the fair’s reach into the wider arts ecosystem.

Led in partnership with BMW India, India Art Fair 2026 convenes audiences to explore a record 133 exhibitors, including 94 galleries, presented alongside leading regional and international art institutions.

The fair welcomes 26 new exhibitors, marking its broadest showcase yet, continuing its mission to foreground the most compelling practices and voices from South Asia alongside major contemporary international artists and collectible design, reaffirming its position as the leading site for the discovery of art and culture in the region.

PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS
Supported by JSW and curated by independent researcher and curator Shaleen Wadhwana, the Talks Programme – titled What Makes Art Happen? — Rising to Challenge – examines the conditions in South Asia and globally that make art possible, considering the challenges of our time.

Highlights include the annual BMW Artist Talk; a panel on arts institutions featuring international museum leaders:
Dr. Tristram Hunt, Director, Victoria & Albert Museum
Nora Lawrence, Executive Director, Storm King Art Center (supported by Saat Saath Arts Foundation)
Dr. Alexandra Munroe, Director of Curatorial Affairs, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi
Tasneem Zakaria Mehta, Managing Trustee and Director, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum

The JSW Talk features:
Sangita Jindal, President, Art India and Chairperson, JSW Foundation
Tarini Jindal Handa, Founder, æquō and Creative Director, Hampi Art Labs
Prof. Alberto Cavalli, Executive Director, Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship, Geneva

The fair additionally introduces two new lounges alongside its VIP Lounge and BMW Collectors’ Lounge. Birla Estates hosts a series of panel discussions and private gatherings at the Birla Estates Patrons’ Lounge. Nuvama Private hosts special design-led talks, focused on regional practices and cross-cultural exchange.

PERFORMANCE ART
India Art Fair’s Performance Art Programme for 2026 explores artists’ responses to their natural, social, and emotional environments through live, sonic, and movement-based practices.
Curated by Nikhil Chopra and HH Art Spaces and supported by Soho House, the programme builds on HH’s legacy of gathering, hosting, and collaborative performance-making.

‘THE FUTURE IS BORN OF ART’ COMMISSION
The 2026 commission is awarded to Afrah Shafiq, whose work foregrounds embroidery motifs and practices, alongside often-hidden details in textile and stitching samplers, scaled for public display on the facade. The project illuminates the narratives and traditions that shape women’s lives, from everyday labor to rites of passage, while an interactive AR layer invites visitors to explore the histories and meanings embedded in each motif.

OUTDOOR ART PROJECTS
India Art Fair 2026 features a vibrant display of outdoor projects and commissions, with large-scale works that respond to questions of ecology, gender, technology and material experimentation.
At the forefront is a major commission by Kulpreet Singh, presented by the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art.