Stage set for 16th India Art Fair in Feb

At least forty-one artists and artist collectives, twelve institutions and seven galleries will make their debut at the India Art Fair, one of the country's most anticipated commercial art events slated to be held between February 6 and 9 at NSIC Exhibition Grounds in Okhla in south Delhi.

- Dhamini Ratnam

The fair, which has steadily grown since its first iteration in 2008, will host 120 exhibitors (including galleries, museums, collectives, designers and design studios) this year. International participation too will see an uptick with at least thirteen galleries and nine institutions, of whom eighteen are returning to participate in the 16th edition of the fair.

High-value sales are expected from Mumbai and Delhi galleries including Nature Morte, Gallerie ISA, Chemould and Vadehra, as well as galleries like Gallery Ske (Bengaluru) or Experimenter (Kolkata and Mumbai) given their roster of some of the top-selling contemporary artists in the country.

International galleries like David Zwirner, Galleria Continua and Lisson Gallery, too, will aim to sell big - Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei sold two works for over US$750,000 (nearly ₹6.5 crore) last year, as reported by The Indian Express.

However, art works across different price points will be available at the fair. Delhi-based Pichvai Tradition and Beyond will showcase works ranging from ₹10,000 going up to approximately ₹7-8 lakh.