NEW DELHI.- India Art Fair (formerly India Art Summit) announces its 4th edition from 26-29 January 2012 in a new location at the NSIC Exhibition Grounds in New Delhi. Founded in 2008, India Art Fair is the country's premier art fair and a pioneering platform for modern and contemporary art in India. It has attracted more than 170,000 people over its first three editions, making it among the world’s most attended art fairs. The upcoming edition will feature 91 exhibitors from 20 countries presenting 1000 of the most exciting modern and contemporary artists across a 12,000 square metre custom built space created for the art fair. Neha Kirpal, Founding Director of India Art Fair, says “the art fair has seen tremendous growth over a short period of time, and much of its success can be attributed to its focus on providing a relevant and transparent platform for the Indian art scene. It has received unprecedented interest from international museums and private collectors, and cultivated a whole breed of new collectors and art enthusiasts within India. This edition has exceptional gallery presentations of both Indian and international art, and a wide reaching public programme”.

Earlier this year, Neha Kirpal divested a 49% stake of India Art Fair to two of the co-founders of Art Hong Kong – the Hong Kong International Art Fair – Sandy Angus (Chairman of leading global exhibitions company Montgomery Worldwide) and Will Ramsay (Founder of the Affordable Art Fair and Pulse Art Fair) thereby becoming a part of the largest network of art fairs in the world.

Exceptional Presentations by Indian and International Exhibitors
The 4th edition presents the strongest and most diverse contingent of galleries seen at the fair to date. About 57% of galleries are from Asia (including Indian galleries, which make up about half of the exhibitors overall), while 26% are from Europe, and the remaining 14% from North and South America, the Middle East, Africa and Australia. Blue-chip international galleries participating for the first time include Hauser and Wirth (UK /Switzerland), Galleria Continua (Italy) and White Cube (UK), while Lisson Gallery (UK) will be exhibiting at the fair for the third time. Significant presentations of European modern art will include Marc Chagall, Salvador Dali, Jean Miro and Pablo Picasso. World renowned contemporary artists being showcased include Marina Abramovic,

Antony Gormley, Mona Hatoum, Damien Hirst, Anish Kapoor, and many more. Other new exhibitors from around the world include Arndt (Germany), Everard Read (South Africa), Frida Fine Arts (Russia), Kalfayan Galleries (Greece), Salwa Zeidan Gallery (UAE), and Paul Kasmin Gallery (USA). Amongst the 48 leading galleries participating from India, about 75% come from Delhi and Mumbai, while 25% represent 7 other cities around the country. All visitors can find great hotel and accommodation prices via Expedia when planning a future trip to India.

Prestigious Speakers’ Forum - Free Entry for the Public
The flagship Speakers’ Forum programme features 54 influential speakers, including renowned international speakers such as Mark Quinn (Artist), RoseLee Goldberg (Art Historian, Critic and Curator), Budi Tek (Indonesian Entrepreneur and Art Philanthropist), Melissa Chiu (Director, Asia Society Museum New York, and Vice President of the Society’s Global Arts Programming) , Sophie Duplaix (Curator, Centre Pompidou, Paris), Suzanne Cotter (Curator, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi Project, Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation), Claire Hsu (Co-founder and Executive Director, Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong), Jan Dalley ( Financial Times Arts Editor, UK) and Jack Persekian (Director of Anadiel Gallery, the Al-Ma’mal Foundation for Contemporary Art, Jerusalem) among others. The whole range of Speakers’ Forum sessions will be free of charge, encouraging wider participation and access. The academic partners for this edition are Asia Art Archive, Jawaharlal Nehru University and Asia Society, while the Speakers’ Forum is supported by the Goethe Institut and AVID.

Exciting Collateral Events and VIP Programme
As always, the India Art Fair Collateral Events Programme offers exciting exhibitions, parties, and other public events at galleries, museums and cultural institutions around the city. The VIP Programme includes the Preview on 25th January, private views, artist studio visits, cocktail receptions, VIP Lounge talks and curated walks led by well known curators. Also taking place the week before the art fair is the Jaipur Literature Festival, which adds to the diverse cultural experience on offer for visitors from overseas and other parts of India.

New Custom Built Space
The 4th edition of the fair will be located in the NSIC Exhibition Grounds, a prime exhibition space in the heart of South Delhi from which the city’s major historical sites and cultural attractions are easily accessible. Built up over 12,000 square meters in state-of-the art German tents under the guidance of UK based production consultants 20:20 Events (who also work on Frieze Art Fair in London), the art fair venue space design is being done by the renowned Indian set designer Sumant Jayakrishnan. Alongside the art fair, the space will also have Art Projects, a Video Lounge, an Art Bookstore, cafes and an open air amphitheatre.