What to Expect at Art Jakarta 2026

The annual fair returns with new galleries, cross-disciplinary collaborations, and a growing regional focus. 

Words Jewel Chuaunsu
Photos courtesy of Art Jakarta
September 30, 2026

This October, Jakarta becomes a meeting point for the region’s contemporary art scene once again. From 2–4 October, Art Jakarta will take over JIExpo Kemayoran, bringing together 75 galleries in total. More than half of this year’s galleries are Indonesian, while 33 are international galleries. Nineteen are making their first appearance, introducing new names and perspectives to the fair.

This year also marks a new chapter for Art Jakarta as it expands its calendar to three distinct annual fairs: Art Jakarta Papers, Art Jakarta Gardens, and the Art Jakarta International Art Fair. Each is intended to occupy a different space within the visual arts ecosystem, with the October fair continuing to serve as its largest international gathering.

For Artistic Director Enin Supriyanto, “Art Jakarta must continue to serve as a space where visual arts stakeholders in the region can meet, exchange information and knowledge, build networks, and collaborate. This is Art Jakarta’s primary role, with the international art fair taking place in early October at JIExpo Kemayoran. Our hope is that, by continuing to fulfil this role and function effectively, the art market ecosystem in Indonesia and across the region will likewise remain dynamic and continue to grow.” 

Lead Partners

A significant part of this year’s fair includes special presentations developed with Art Jakarta’s Lead Partners. 

Julius Baer returns for its fifth year of support, coinciding with the wealth management group’s 20th anniversary in Asia. Its VIP Lounge will feature Indonesian artist Handiwirman Saputra, whose practice frequently begins with commonplace materials before turning them into unexpected forms. Works from his Penampang Taut Berpilin series will be shown alongside new paintings and a participatory project titled Kuasa Alam (The Might of Nature), centered on people’s individual relationships with the natural world. Visitors will be able to create their own art print as part of the experience.

Elsewhere, Bibit and Stockbit have commissioned Yogyakarta artist Endry Pragusta to create Lost at Sea. Built around the image of a raft, the installation considers flexibility and adaptation in relation to education and the changing paths people take through their financial lives. Visitors can add to the project through writing and origami activities.

Gold is the starting point for Treasury’s collaboration with Etza Meisyara, winner of this year’s Treasury Art Prize. In Gravity of the Unheld, the artist examines how gold can operate simultaneously as a physical substance and as an idea—something associated with value, preciousness, and nobility even when it is no longer being considered purely as a material. Selected elements of the installation will be transformed into pieces that visitors can take away with them.

BCA takes a different approach with myBCA District One, combining an introduction to its digital banking services with special offers available throughout the fair.

Main Partners

Art Jakarta’s Main Partners bring another group of artist collaborations to the program.

For iForte and Protelindo Group, artist Agnes Hansella turns discarded cables into the raw material for Hutan Kabel. The installation gives a material usually associated with infrastructure and technology a new physical and visual life.

TACO, returning as a Main Partner, presents The Curiosity Engine by Aji Fajar/Palette Studio. Inspired by the company’s New Horizon campaign and its sunrise-based color palette, the work plays with familiar mechanisms and repositions them to explore curiosity, possibility, and the impulse to discover what lies beyond the obvious.

SUPERMUSIC’s contribution comes through ART MEETS MUSIC, its competition exploring the relationship between visual art and music culture. The participating artists are not asked to simply illustrate music or portray musicians. Instead, the brief looks towards the energy, attitude, and lifestyle surrounding music.

New partner MR.D.I.Y. will present the seven Indonesian winners of its 2026 art competition, Strength & Resilience, alongside six artists recognized in the competition’s Malaysian and Thai editions.

Art and brand collaborations at Art Jakarta extend into the worlds of fashion, automotive design, beauty, and lifestyle.

Japanese painter Mai Yokoyama has worked with ALCHEMIST on the design of its booth and product packaging. Indonesian artist Darbotz, meanwhile, joins Djournal for a project that stretches across a custom visual identity, merchandise, three coffee creations, a specially designed booth, and a sculpture.

MINI brings its collaboration with Paul Smith to the fair, using the brand’s presentation to consider the different meanings attached to the idea of a “destination.”

New partnerships are introduced as Main Partners this year. AIA will present The Living Legacy, created with batik artist Iwan Tirta. EDISII, following its earlier involvement with Art Jakarta Papers, will bring together art prints by artists including Ugo Untoro, Sunaryo, and Agus Suwage. Aesop will introduce the Aesop Women’s Library, while The Solitaire makes its first appearance as an Art Jakarta partner.

Sections

The Gallery section is only one part of the experience. Art Jakarta’s dedicated sections provide different formats for artists, collectives, institutions, and art communities to engage with.

SPOT gives galleries room to break away from conventional booth presentations. The emphasis is on experimentation with scale, spatial arrangements, and the relationship between artworks and their surroundings. This year’s participants include Nguyễn Phương Linh with Ara Contemporary, Henryette Louise with ArtSociates, Albertho Wanma and Budi Santoso with ROH, and Angki Purbandono with SAL Project.

SCENE shifts attention from individual galleries to collective practice. Now comprising 39 participants, the section brings together artist collectives and collaborative initiatives from cities and communities across Indonesia, highlighting the networks that underpin much of the country’s contemporary art activity.

AJX focuses on institutional and cultural partnerships. Its 2026 program includes the return of Korea Focus, now in its second year, developed with the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Arts Management Service. Fourteen South Korean galleries will participate. The section will also feature Natta-Cita Art Space (N-CAS) from ISI Bali, presenting contemporary Balinese artist-academics and providing another regional perspective.

Then there is SCOPE, a new addition to Art Jakarta. Supported by National Talent Management for Arts and Culture (MTN Seni Budaya), developed by Indonesia’s Ministry of Culture, the section is designed to create a platform for emerging art fairs and local art communities outside the country’s established art centers.

SCOPE presents MTN Market, which brings six initiatives to Jakarta: Mini Art Malang, Artists Art Fair from Pekanbaru, ART HEY from Banyumas, Maa Ledungga from Gorontalo, Hello Goodbye Photo Market from Bekasi, and Watercolor Art Fair from Yogyakarta.

Taken together, the 2026 edition points to an Art Jakarta that is becoming less defined by the traditional art-fair model. Alongside galleries and collectors, the fair brings in artist collectives, institutions, emerging art communities, brands, cultural organizations, and audiences through a range of different formats. The result is a program that moves between established names and younger practices, Indonesian artists and international participants, commercial presentations and more experimental projects.

Tickets are available for purchase starting from 17 September 2026, exclusively at artjakarta.com.