{"id":9331,"date":"2026-08-06T12:47:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-06T12:47:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/gbr\/london\/9331\/"},"modified":"2026-08-06T12:47:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-06T12:47:08","slug":"frieze-london-2026-reveals-talks-artist-commissions-ica-programme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/gbr\/london\/9331\/","title":{"rendered":"Frieze London 2026 Reveals Talks, Artist Commissions & ICA Programme"},"content":{"rendered":"

Forget blue-chip sales and VIP previews. The first details of Frieze London<\/a> & Frieze Masters<\/a> 2026 have landed, and the headline commission involves cakes, rims and Dean\u2019s Bottom.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Marcel Duchamp Fountain, 1964 (after 1917 lost original) Porcelain, glaze, and black paint 14 1\/4 \u00d7 24 5\/8 \u00d7 19 inches (36.2 \u00d7 62.5 \u00d7 48.3 cm) Edition 4\/8 + 2 AP + 2 HC \u00a9 Association Marcel Duchamp\/ADAGP, Paris\/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York 2026 Photo: Owen Conway Courtesy Gagosian<\/p>\n

Artist Gray Wielebinski<\/a> has teamed up with Dean\u2019s Bottom<\/a> to create Production (2026), a new site-specific commission that transforms the fair\u2019s toilets with a series of scented sculptures. It\u2019s one of several highlights announced today, alongside a Frieze Masters talks programme featuring Grayson Perry<\/a>, Es Devlin<\/a> and Danh V?<\/a>, a new ICA artists\u2019 film programme and expanded collaborations with some of the UK\u2019s leading non-profit arts organisations.<\/p>\n

Running from 14th\u201318th October in The Regent\u2019s Park, this year\u2019s programme expands beyond the fair booths with artist commissions, talks, film screenings and collaborations with leading UK arts organisations.<\/p>\n

One of the standout commissions is Production (2026), a new site-specific work by Gray Wielebinski produced with Dean\u2019s Bottom. Installed throughout the fair\u2019s lavatories, the project takes the form of scented urinal cakes and toilet rim blocks infused with a bespoke fragrance. Encased in sculptural cages referencing Wielebinski\u2019s ongoing exploration of security, exclusion and public space, the commission transforms one of the fair\u2019s most overlooked spaces into an unexpected sensory experience exploring intimacy, desire and risk.<\/p>\n

The commission also has a sense of Frieze history. In 2016, artist Julie Verhoeven<\/a> transformed the fair\u2019s lavatories with The Toilet Attendant\u2026 Now Wash Your Hands, a live intervention that turned the toilets into a playful yet political artwork examining labour, gender and visibility. A decade on, Wielebinski returns visitors to the loos\u2014this time through scent rather than performance.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"<\/a>Julie Verhoeven\u2019s The Toilet Attendant\u2026 Now Wash Your Hands, 2016<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, Frieze Masters once again partners with dunhill for its annual talks programme, curated for the second consecutive year by Arturo Galansino<\/a>, Director General of the Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi.<\/p>\n

Titled Breaking the Mould, the series brings together leading artists, architects, curators and museum directors to explore how historical art continues to shape contemporary practice. Speakers include Grayson Perry, Es Devlin, Tim Marlow, Danh V?, Paul Pfeiffer, Kulapat Yantrasast, Lina Ghotmeh and Luke Syson. The conversations will be recorded as a podcast and made available on\u00a0frieze.com<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0dunhill.com<\/a>, as well as platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcasts.<\/p>\n

Frieze also continues its partnership with the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA)<\/a>, presenting a new Artists\u2019 Film Programme spotlighting early-career and under-recognised artists. The selected moving-image works will screen throughout Frieze Week at the ICA before becoming available online.<\/p>\n

The fair\u2019s Reading Room once again champions London\u2019s wider cultural ecology, welcoming Nottingham Contemporary, Gasworks, Black Curatorial and Hospital Rooms, while Allied Editions returns with specially commissioned artists\u2019 editions supporting seven of London\u2019s leading not-for-profit galleries.<\/p>\n

Beyond Regent\u2019s Park, London Gallery Moments also returns with dedicated events across Bloomsbury, the East End and the West End, encouraging visitors to explore exhibitions throughout the capital during Frieze Week.<\/p>\n

Eva Langret, Director, Frieze EMEA, said the programme reflects \u201cthe depth of London\u2019s art ecosystem\u201d, highlighting Frieze\u2019s continuing collaborations with artists, public institutions and non-profit organisations.<\/p>\n

Whether visitors arrive for conversations with some of the biggest names in contemporary art, discover new moving-image works at the ICA, support London\u2019s non-profit sector\u2014or simply find themselves unexpectedly lingering in the loos\u2014Frieze London 2026 is already shaping up to be one of the fair\u2019s most wide-ranging editions.<\/p>\n

Frieze London & Frieze Masters 2026
14th to 18th October, The Regent\u2019s Park
@friezeofficial<\/a><\/p>\n

CategoriesTagsAuthor \"\"\"\"<\/p>\n

Mark Westall<\/a><\/p>\n

Mark Westall is the Founder and Editor of FAD magazine –<\/p>\n