Taipei's Dangdai art fair has announced the cancellation of its planned 2026 event.
The Taipei Dangdai art fair, one of Asia's leading contemporary art events, has announced a hiatus for 2026. This decision comes after a close examination of the model, timing, scale, and format of any future activities, as the organizers aim to reassess the fair's approach and future direction.
The announcement was made following the sixth edition of the fair, which took place in May of this year. The fair, led by Magnus Renfrew, first debuted in January 2019. However, this year's edition saw a significant decrease in participating galleries, with only 54 taking part, compared to over 90 in the first edition. Notably, none of the mega-galleries participated in this year's edition.
The Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA) has also announced it will not hold the 37th edition of The Art Show in October, citing a "strategic pause" as the reason. This decision was made after careful review by the ADAA board. Similarly, the debut edition of Photofairs, organized by Angus Montgomery Arts's division Creo Arts, scheduled for Hong Kong this year, was called off in December. A second edition of Photofairs in New York has also been cancelled for 2024.
The art market has been facing challenging times, and these decisions reflect the impact on various art events. The hiatus of Taipei Dangdai comes amid a prolonged contraction in the art market.
Angus Montgomery Arts, the principal and founding shareholder of all three art fairs, has not yet commented on the matter. However, the fair's website and related social media have removed previous content related to the fair, indicating a shift in focus. UBS, a financial supporter of Taipei Dangdai, has also not made any public statements regarding the hiatus.
The Art Assembly, which oversees three regional art fairs in Asia, including Taipei Dangdai, Art SG in Singapore, and Tokyo Gendai in Yokohama, Japan, has not issued a statement regarding the future of these fairs.
The news of the hiatus was first reported by Artnet. It remains uncertain when or in what format Taipei Dangdai will resume, but the art world eagerly awaits updates on the fair's future.
[1] Source: Artnet News (https://news.artnet.com/market/taipei-dangdai-hiatus-1976361)
- The Taipei Dangdai art fair, a significant contemporary art event in Asia, has announced a pause for 2026, pending a reevaluation of its model and future direction.
- Unlike previous years, only 54 galleries participated in this year's Taipei Dangdai edition, a stark contrast to the over 90 galleries that joined the fair during its debut in 2019.
- In a similar move, the Art Dealers Association of America and Angus Montgomery Arts have also cancelled several art events, including photofairs, citing strategic pauses and contractions in the art market.
- UBS, a financial sponsor of Taipei Dangdai, and Angus Montgomery Arts, the fair's principal organizer, have yet to comment publicly about the hiatus of the art fair.
- Despite the uncertainty surrounding Taipei Dangdai's resumption, there's a growing excitement in the art world about the possible updates on the fair's future.
