A living laboratory of art on view at the India Art Fair 2026

Experience the transformative India Art Fair 2026, showcasing innovative art and cultural events in a vibrant, year-round ecosystem.

The ongoing India Art Fair 2026(till February8) has stopped trying to be a moment on Delhi’s social calendar and has instead, evolved to become a year-round ecosystem.

Under the direction of fair director Jaya Asokan, IAF has evolved from a four-day art event into a year-round “cultural convening point” that feels more like a living laboratory than a static gallery. This year’s edition — featuring a record 133 exhibitors, including 94 galleries, at the NSIC Exhibition Grounds — is less about what is on the walls and more about what is happening in the spaces between them.

The fair welcomes new commissions and large-scale outdoor projects, led by artists and supported by a wide network of art organisations, foundations and patrons. Across the city, New Delhi’s dynamic cultural landscape has come alive through an extensive Parallel Programme featuring exhibitions and activations that extend the fair’s reach into the wider arts ecosystem. Reflecting on her primary focus, Asokan says she hopes to strengthen the IAF as a definitive destination for discovering South Asian modern and contemporary art. “The aim has also been to build depth, context and continuity around the fair. One of the major things that has been done under my tenure is to have programming through the year. A significant area of attention has also been curatorial clarity, particularly across expanding sections like design, which we launched a few years ago,” she adds.

Ashiesh Shah Svarnbhumi 2025 Cast Brass Dhokra Cubes | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The four days of the fair feature some of India’s most important contemporary galleries, including Archer Art Gallery, Art Exposure, Chawla Art Gallery, DAG, Kumar Gallery, Akara, Chemould Prescott Road, Vadehra Art Gallery, Chatterjee & Lal and Gallery Espace among others. International galleries such as David Zwirner, neugerriemschneider, Galleria Continua and Aicon Contemporary are showcasing works by renowned South Asian and diaspora artists, including Huma Bhabha, Shilpa Gupta, Anish Kapoor and Adeela Suleman respectively.

In the expanded Design section, 14 trailblazing design studios, and two major design galleries are showing their work, while the newly-designed Institutions section has first-time participants including Sabyasachi Art Foundation Gallery, Ardee Foundation, and Mapin Foundation, along with returning institutions like the Australian High Commission, Serendipity Arts, Britto Arts Trust and others.