{"id":693122,"date":"2026-01-13T12:13:23","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T12:13:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/693122\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T12:13:23","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T12:13:23","slug":"highlights-of-london-art-fair-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/693122\/","title":{"rendered":"Highlights of London Art Fair 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/nd_24_w1_sally_005_Web-scaled-1.jpg.webp.webp\" alt=\"nd_24_w1_sally_005_Web-scaled\" style=\"width:420px;height:auto\" title=\"nd_24_w1_sally_005_Web-scaled\"\/><\/p>\n<p>At the heart of London Art Fair is a commitment to presenting museum-quality Modern British art alongside international and emerging contemporary practice. As Fair Director,\u00a0<strong>Sally Bent<\/strong>\u00a0leads this vision, shaping a platform that brings together over 120 leading galleries each year and connects them with both established and first-time collectors from around the world.<\/p>\n<p>Sally\u2019s career spans a wide range of art and craft events, from major international fairs to more intimate, boutique platforms. Central to her approach is a belief in creating space for emerging voices while fostering meaningful connections between artists, galleries and audiences.<\/p>\n<p>With so much to discover at LAF26, Sally has curated her Director\u2019s Highlights to offer a considered introduction to the Fair\u2019s 38th edition, spotlighting exceptional works and distinctive practices across the galleries.<\/p>\n<p>Secure your tickets today and explore the Director\u2019s top picks below ahead of your visit.<\/p>\n<p>David Hockney\u2019s\u00a0Potted Daffodils\u00a0(1980) dates from a particularly strong period in the artist\u2019s printmaking and captures his mastery of colour and compositional balance. Shown by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/watson-evans-art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>Watson Evans Art<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0in Prints &amp; Editions, the lithograph represents an opportunity to discover a work that distils Hockney\u2019s enduring engagement with the everyday, available at Stand M6.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/watson-evans-art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/David-Hockney-Potted-Daffodils.jpg.webp.webp\" alt=\"David-Hockney-Potted-Daffodils.jpg\" title=\"David-Hockney-Potted-Daffodils.jpg\"\/><\/a>David Hockney, Potted Daffodils, 1980. Lithograph on cream, Rives BFK paper, 44 1\/10 x 29 9\/10 in, 112 x 75.9 cm, Edition of 98 + 18AP. Courtesy of Watson Evans Art<\/p>\n<p>James Johnston\u2019s\u00a0Epona\u00a0(2024) exemplifies the assured restraint that has come to define the artist\u2019s recent work. Drawing on myth without sentimentality, the painting possesses a quiet authority that rewards close looking. Presented by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/siger-gallery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>Siger Gallery<\/strong><\/a>, it is a considered highlight of their selection in Encounters.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/siger-gallery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/D818AA51-E0D2-4A6A-A52B-918E36C127EB.jpeg-1.webp.webp\" alt=\"D818AA51-E0D2-4A6A-A52B-918E36C127EB.jpeg\" title=\"D818AA51-E0D2-4A6A-A52B-918E36C127EB.jpeg\"\/><\/a>James Johnston, Epona, 2024. Acrylic, 76 x 101cm. Courtesy of Siger Gallery<\/p>\n<p>Vanessa Barrag\u00e3o\u2019s\u00a0Clam\u00a0(2025) transforms reclaimed fibres into a sculptural form of striking tactility and presence. Bridging contemporary concerns around sustainability with a refined material language, the work reflects the artist\u2019s international profile and is presented by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/ben-austin-projects\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>Ben Austin Projects<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0in Platform, Stand P10.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/ben-austin-projects\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Clam-copy-e1767898226756.jpg\" alt=\"Clam copy\" title=\"Clam copy\"\/><\/a>Vanessa Barrag\u00e3o, Clam, 2025. Wool and tencel (Upcycled materials), metal Latch hook, crochet and other fiber manipulations, 245 x 30 x 110 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Ben Austin Projects<\/p>\n<p>TAG Fine Arts celebrates its 20th anniversary at LAF26. Having exhibited with the Fair for many years, TAG has been a long-standing and valued part of the London Art Fair community. Visit\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/tag-fine-arts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>TAG Fine Arts<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0on Stand 16 for the launch of Tobias Till\u2019s brand new lino print,\u00a0Shaken or Stirred\u00a0and celebrate 20 years of TAG at London Art Fair 2026.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/tag-fine-arts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/thumbnail_Shaken-or-Stirred-Tobias-Till-C.-the-Artist-and-TAG-Fine-Arts.jpg.webp.webp\" alt=\"thumbnail_Shaken-or-Stirred-Tobias-Till-C.-the-Artist-and-TAG-Fine-Arts\" title=\"thumbnail_Shaken-or-Stirred-Tobias-Till-C.-the-Artist-and-TAG-Fine-Arts\"\/><\/a>Tobias Till, Shaken or Stirred, 2026. Lino print on Somerset White Satin 300gsm paper, 85 x 63 cm, 112 x 76 cm. Edition of 50. Courtesy of TAG Fine Arts<\/p>\n<p>John Robinson\u2019s\u00a0Mother 3\u00a0(2024) is a quietly concentrated oil painting in which intimacy and distance are held in careful balance. Working on a modest scale, Robinson allows the image to unfold through subtle shifts of tone and a restrained handling of paint, lending the composition a sense of psychological weight without overt narrative. Reflecting the artist\u2019s ongoing interest in memory and emotion as they surface through small, closely observed gestures, the work is presented by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/a-modest-show\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>A Modest Show<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0on Stand G32.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/a-modest-show\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/4e9ebb_608a803e543b4bee8caaf31be2ca4415mv2-1.avif\" alt=\"4e9ebb_608a803e543b4bee8caaf31be2ca4415mv2-1\" title=\"4e9ebb_608a803e543b4bee8caaf31be2ca4415mv2-1\"\/><\/a>John Robinson, Mother 3, 2024. Oil on canvas, 16 1\/10 x 19 7\/10 in, 41 x 50 cm.\u00a0Courtesy of A Modest Show<\/p>\n<p>Walter Richard Sickert\u2019s\u00a0Viscere Mie\u00a0(1927) reveals the complexity of the artist\u2019s late approach to tone and structure, rewarding sustained attention.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/james-hyman-gallery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>James Hyman Gallery<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0presents the work within their collection at Stand 8.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/james-hyman-gallery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sickert-2.jpg.webp.webp\" alt=\"Sickert 2\" title=\"Sickert 2\"\/><\/a>Walter Richard Sickert, Viscere Mie, 1927. Oil on canvas, 61.4 x 44 cm. Courtesy of James Hyman Gallery<\/p>\n<p>Jo Chate\u2019s\u00a0Limbo\u00a0(2024) occupies an ambiguous psychological space, where subtle figuration and atmosphere work in tandem.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/zarastro-art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>Zarastro Art<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0features the painting within their presentation at Encounters.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/zarastro-art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/zrastro-Jo-Chate-6.png.webp.webp\" alt=\"zrastro-Jo-Chate-6\" title=\"zrastro-Jo-Chate-6\"\/><\/a>Jo Chate, Limbo, 2024. Oil on linen, 46 x 41cm. Courtesy of Zarastro Art<\/p>\n<p>Gillian Ayres\u2019\u00a0Untitled\u00a0(1981) is defined by the confident interplay of colour and gesture, where broad, assured strokes create a sense of movement across the canvas. The composition balances energy with control, allowing the viewer to follow the rhythm of the marks while appreciating the subtle modulations of tone and texture.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/quad-fine-art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>Quad Fine Art<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0presents the painting as part of their post-war abstraction display on Stand G18b &amp; P4.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/quad-fine-art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Gillian-Ayres-Untitled-1981.-Oil-on-canvas-125x120-cm.-Courtesy-of-Quad-Fine-Art-4-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Gillian-Ayres-Untitled-1981.-Oil-on-canvas-125x120-cm.-Courtesy-of-Quad-Fine-Art-4\" title=\"Gillian-Ayres-Untitled-1981.-Oil-on-canvas-125\u00d7120-cm.-Courtesy-of-Quad-Fine-Art-4\"\/><\/a>Gillian Ayres, Untitled, 1981. Oil on canvas, 125 x 120 cm. Courtesy of Quad Fine Art<\/p>\n<p>Black Swan I\u00a0(2019) by Emily Young is a striking stone sculpture that evokes the elegant, enigmatic presence of its avian namesake while harnessing the ancient, textured material of the earth to bridge natural history and human mythos in a form that feels both timeless and deeply alive. Several scultures by Young will be available via\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/gerrish-fine-art\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\">Gerrish Fine Art<\/a><\/strong>, Stand 7.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-05-at-17.58.381.jpg.jpg.webp.webp\" alt=\"Emily Young, Black Swan I, 2019. Kilkenny Marble, 16x61. Courtesy of&#10;Gerrish Fine Art.\" title=\"Emily Young\"\/>Emily Young, Black Swan I, 2019. Kilkenny Marble, 16\u00d761. Courtesy of Gerrish Fine Art.<\/p>\n<p>Material sensitivity is central to Emily Ponsonby\u2019s\u00a0Buttered Greens\u00a0(2025), where beeswax and oil create a surface that oscillates between still life and abstraction. The painting is included in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.londonartfair.co.uk\/galleries\/gillian-jason-gallery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\"><strong>Gillian Jason Gallery\u2019s<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0presentation at Stand P5.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BUTTERED-GREENS-2.jpg.webp.webp\" alt=\"Emily Ponsonby, Buttered Greens, 2025. Beeswax and oil on panel&#10;160cm x 100cm. Courtesy of Gillian Jason Gallery.\" title=\"BUTTERED-GREENS-2\"\/>Emily Ponsonby, Buttered Greens, 2025. Beeswax and oil on panel 160cm x 100cm. Courtesy of Gillian Jason Gallery.<\/p>\n<p><strong>LONDON ART FAIR 2026<\/strong><br \/><strong>Business Design Centre, Islington, London, N1 0QH<br \/><\/strong>21- 25.01.26<br \/>Preview Evening 20.01.26<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/londonartfair.seetickets.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/londonartfair.seetickets.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t Post Views: 23&#13;\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"At the heart of London Art Fair is a commitment to presenting museum-quality Modern British art alongside international&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":693123,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[748,393,4884,257,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-693122","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-london","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115887735569815435","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/693122","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=693122"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/693122\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/693123"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=693122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=693122"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=693122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}