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Organized by Meta Media, the Fair foregrounds a wide spectrum of lens-based practices, from historical masterpieces to experimental moving images, installations, and cross-media works, engaging with the creative language of Gen Z "Digital Natives."

Through themed sections and special projects, it offers a platform for artists, curators, and collectors to engage with current questions shaping the photographic medium.

As a key cultural event in the first half of 2026, PHOTOFAIRS Shanghai will also lead the Shanghai International Contemporary Photo Festival (SICPF), connecting nearly 40 institutions and venues across the city into an expanded visual network.

Main Sector: Prestigious Global Works and Emerging Forces

The Main sector presents a broad overview of the global ecosystem of image-based art, bringing together galleries from Paris, Düsseldorf, Kyoto, Singapore, Beijing, and Shanghai. The lineup includes major international galleries such as Gladstone Gallery, Perrotin, Galleria Continua, ShanghART Gallery, Benrido, and others, alongside leading domestic spaces including Three Shadows +3, Matthew Liu Fine Arts, Bonian Space, White Space, and others. Emerging galleries—ThisThat Gallery, Chapter 6, Nan Ke Gallery, Project Wútopia, and others—create a dialogue between avant-garde practices and classical imagery.

International highlights include a major solo presentation of Robert Mapplethorpe at Gladstone Gallery, Michel Sima at Boogie Woogie Photography, and a project by JR with Perrotin. Benrido bridges photographic history with artists such as Daido Moriyama, Takuma Nakahira, Saul Leiter, Ho Fan, Rinko Kawauchi, and others.

Domestic presentations feature Three Shadows +3 with RongRong & inri, Zhang Kechun, Koo Bohnchang, and Hiroshi Hara; Matthew Liu Fine Arts with Olivo Barbieri, Vik Muniz, Valery Katsuba, Candida Höfer, and Zhou Qiang; and ShanghART Gallery’s "Beyond the Image" with Liang Shaoji, Tang Yiyao, Yin Yunya, Zhang Ding, and Zhao Yang. Additional projects include X Contemporary Art with Xie Zilong and Peng Yueyang, and Artox Group / Bonian Space with Nobuyoshi Araki and Li Yu-shi. Emerging spaces such as Project Wútopia, HART Gallery, Photism, and Ruipin Gallery present artists including Tam Stockton, Wang Yuchen, Zhu Gaocanyue, Chen Jianfei, Zeng Han, Yu Songtao, Huan Dao, Wei Wei, Yu Shao-yan, Lu Yuanmin, Gu Zheng, and Xu Haifeng.

The SOLO sector focuses on individual practices, featuring Luis Casadevall, Gu Zhongsheng, Wang Pan, Gai Shaohua, Duan Yueheng, and Li Chenchi. The SIGMA FOUNDATION presents its inaugural project with Sølve Sundsbø, Julia Hetta, Bernard Faucon, and Théo Delors.

Program Sectors: Insights Spotlights 50 Years of the Düsseldorf School

The Insights sector marks the 50th anniversary of the Düsseldorf School of Photography through the exhibition "art <=> photography," curated by Valeria Liebermann. It features works by Bernd & Hilla Becher, Andreas Gursky, Candida Höfer, Thomas Ruff, alongside next-generation artists Sebastian Riemer, Juergen Staack, Hedda Roman, and Alex Grein, as well as Chinese artists Yang Di, Shi Yangkun, Gao Yutao, and Liu Shiyuan, reflecting on perception, representation, and the evolution of the photographic image.

The Perspective sector brings together video and cross-media works by Hu Weiyi, He Hezhou, Luo Xi, Xu Ting, Mai Yutian, Wang Yuqi, and Mustafa Boğa, addressing themes of ecology, identity, and AI. The Performance sector focuses on performative practices with works by Wang Peng, Cang Xin, Mo Yi, Xin Tana, Sim Chi Yin, Aki Sasamoto, and Kenneth Tam.

Additional initiatives include the launch of the PHOTOFAIRS Shanghai Patrons Club supporting Liu Shiyuan, and digital projects by Meta Eye with artists Bian Yunxiang, Dong Bingqing, Fang Yang, and Hua Shan. Sun Ruixiang presents a calotype photography salon. The Conversations program, presented with Standard Chartered, features dialogues with international experts on photographic practice and the art market.

SPECTRUM Sector: Expanding the Boundaries of Visual Culture

The SPECTRUM sector brings together international institutions including Maison Européenne de la Photographie, DECK Photography Art Centre, Digital Art Week Asia, Straight Photography, and others, presenting projects by artists such as Ilanit Illouz, Tan Pin Pin, Shi Yangkun, Wang Bing, Liu Chengxiang, Vivian Maier, and Javier Riera, exploring the intersections of photography with history, memory, and digital culture.

Beyond the fair, the Shanghai International Contemporary Image Festival (SICPF) unfolds across districts including Xuhui, Jing’an, Huangpu, and the Bund, as well as cities such as Nanjing, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Guangzhou, and Changsha. An Image Art Map connects key cultural sites and exhibitions.

As a city partner, HKRI Taikoo Hui hosts the "Wonderland" exhibition by Jeff Wu, presenting 110 works dedicated to wildlife and nature. Through these initiatives, PHOTOFAIRS Shanghai continues to expand an open platform connecting artists, institutions, and audiences.

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