Art Madrid'26 – ACTION ART, THE NEWEST PROGRAMMING OF ART MADRID

Action art is a varied group of techniques or artistic styles that emphasize the creative act of the artist, the action. The term was created by Allan Kaprow, who pointed out the interrelationship between the artist and the viewer at the moment of the artistic creation.

It can be said that the concept of action art was born in the 1920s with Dadaism and Surrealism, in artistic montages such as collage and assemblage. Among the various forms of expression of action art are happening, performance, environment and installation.

In its most festive edition, this year Art Madrid presents its most innovative commitment with a specific programme dedicated to new media and action art. In this 15th edition we will have a booth at the fair for the realization of presentations and live actions in collaboration with the video art platform PROYECTOR and under the curatorship of its director Mario Gutiérrez Cru.

If you come to Art Madrid, you will be able to enjoy the different parts of the programme throughout the day. From the morning onwards, you will be able to view the best selection of pieces from the most outstanding international video art festivals in the world, with proposals from Portugal, Mexico, Morocco, Colombia, Peru, Argentina, France, Greece and the Netherlands. A selection made by Mario Gutiérrez Cru that will present us with new languages of artistic expression in the field of video creation so that we can compose a general idea of the international artistic paradigm of this area.

Then, every afternoon at 5pm we will attend the presentation and meeting with an outstanding artist to end the day of the fair with a performance at 8pm from Wednesday to Saturday. This program seeks to be an immersive experience in contemporary art and explore new languages linked to technology.

Opening the program on Wednesday 26th we will have Abelardo Gil-Fournier, in the presentation we will be able to contemplate the installation of the work "The Quivering of the Reed" and comment it with its creator in the whole of its trajectory. His work revolves around the hybridization between the real and the sensitive, approached from a perspective in which perception, image and material production are fused in a practice based on research into territorial planning and plant growth. His projects are conceived as material operations proposed for an open space between art, nature and politics.

Art Madrid will host at 8pm the performance of Iván Puñal “RRAND 0-82.” The artist Iván Puñal (a.k.a. The Pleasant View) will explore through a live audiovisual performance the concept of "random" and "chaos". Iván Puñal, works with determinism and freedom in his performances questioning how much belongs to the conscious self and how much is a mirage of illusion. To this end, uncontrolled elements will be introduced into the performance using mathematical algorithms, both to generate visual pictures and improvised sound spaces so that the result is "non-repeatable", "uncontrolled" and "non-voluntary". Atonal music within the territory of "musique concretè" or "noise" will accompany the projections, also framing the concept of "all sound is music".

On Thursday 27th, the public will be enjoy an encounter with Fernando Baena, a multidisciplinary artist who cultivates video, photography, installation and performance as means to reach the spectator with greater strength. His works seek to interact by approaching them through the use of common materials, and the use of direct discourses that demonstrate his communicative intention.

Afterwards, a site-specific participatory action will be carried out for the 'Partidura'. A project by Eunice Artur with the collaboration of Bruno Gonçalves. This project is part of the fascinating and vast panorama of the creation of graphic annotations. The evolution of electronic music requires a new system of notations where, among others, we seek to understand the relationship of new phenomena, such as the relationship between sound and plastic manipulation in performance; unpredictability and error as ways of generating non-linear readings and/or new graphic forms of notation.

On Friday 28th, Mario Santamaría will investigate the phenomenon of the contemporary observer, paying attention to two processes that shape him: the representational practices and the apparatuses of vision and mediation. Mario explores areas such as conflict, memory, virtuality and surveillance through tactics such as appropriation, remake and montage.

Two performers each sing inside the other's mouth. This is how the performance that Arturo Moya and Ruth Abellán will give on Friday 28th begins. The sound resulting from the interaction of the two voices in a single cavity, controls live the water produced by the same performers in a video that is projected during the performance. The same sound also governs the appearance of sounds from water recordings. "Danaides' Barrel", a physical and sound exploration that will leave no one indifferent.

And to finish the program of this edition Art Madrid-PROYECTOR, on Saturday 28th we will have two unmissable activities: on the one hand the meeting with the Argentine artist and curator Maia Navas, Bachelor of Arts and Technology, Bachelor of Psychology and Specialist in Creativity and Innovation, who will explore in a direct conversation with the public all these areas, giving way later to the performance of Olga Diego "The bubble woman show". The girl of plastics. The bubble woman. Outside, the audience interprets the movements of those two pairs of legs under the translucent inflatable. Sharing the air, the emptiness, the fragility…

Art Madrid'20 becomes a space for artistic immersion, involving all those who come and let art flood their lives from February 26 to March 1 in the Crystal Gallery of the Palacio de Cibeles.

We are waiting for you!

The 22nd edition of Art Madrid opens its application period. From 3 to 7 March 2027, the Galería de Cristal del Palacio de Cibeles will once again become the meeting point for national and international contemporary art. Galleries interested in taking part can submit their application until 20 October 2026.



Art Madrid'26 - 21st Contemporary Art Fair. Aerial view.

The Art Madrid contemporary art fair

Art Madrid takes place each year as part of Madrid Art Week, the moment in the Spanish art calendar with the highest concentration of collectors, institutions and specialist press. With 22 years of history, the fair brings together national and international galleries with a programme focused on recently produced contemporary work.


Located at the Galería de Cristal del Palacio de Cibeles, in the cultural heart of the city and steps away from the Triángulo del Arte and the Paseo del Prado, Art Madrid offers participating galleries a distinctive and recognisable setting within the Spanish art fair landscape.


Art Madrid'26 - 21st Contemporary Art Fair. Entrance.

Art Madrid'26 in figures

The previous edition closed with 35 galleries from 7 countries (Spain, Portugal, France, Denmark, Taiwan, South Korea and Cuba), over 200 artists and around 20,000 visitors. 35% of the audience were new collectors, with an age range between 35 and 60 and a gender split of 55% women and 45% men.


The fair welcomed representatives from more than 30 foundations, museums and collections, including Fundación Mapfre, Fundación BBVA, Fundación Telefónica, Fundación Banco Santander, Fundación Bertelsmann, Fundación María Cristina Masaveu Peterson, Fundación Carmen y Lluís Bassat, Fundación Studiolo, Fundació Lluís Coromina, IVAM, MARCO, CAAM, MEIAC and the Museo del Romanticismo. Delegations from Madrid City Council, the Community of Madrid, the Ministry of Culture and ambassadors from several countries also attended.


Art Madrid'26 - 21st Contemporary Art Fair. Fundación Studiolo Acquisition Award.

PROGRAMMES

GALLERIES PROGRAMME

In each edition, Art Madrid brings together a carefully curated selection of around 35 national and international galleries with proposals focused on recently produced contemporary work.


ONE SHOT COLLECTORS PROGRAMME

Sponsored by One Shot Hotels and led by Ana Suárez Gisbert (art advisor specialising in international law and the art trade, art appraiser and court expert), the Collectors Programme connects new and experienced buyers with the participating works and galleries through a personalised advisory service throughout the five days of the fair.


For galleries, it operates as an additional channel for engaging active buyers, running in parallel to their own commercial activity.


PATRONAGE PROGRAMME

Art Madrid partners with institutions, collectors and private companies to directly support artists and galleries through awards and acquisitions. At the 2026 edition:


  • One Shot Hotels Breakthrough Artist Award (€1,000): Joost Vandebrug · KANT Gallery (Copenhagen–Palma)
  • Cervezas Alhambra Emerging Artist Award (€1,000): Iyán Castaño · Galería Arancha Osoro (Oviedo)
  • Colección Studiolo Acquisition: Roger Sanguino · DDR Art Gallery (Madrid)
  • Colección E2IN2 Acquisition: Albert Bonet · Inéditad Gallery (Barcelona)
  • Devesa Law Acquisition: Kim Han Ki · Banditrazos Gallery (Seoul)
  • Colección dn2 Acquisition: Iván Baizán · Galería Arancha Osoro (Oviedo)

Art Madrid'26 - 21st Contemporary Art Fair. Devesa Law Acquisition Award.


PARALLEL PROGRAMME AND ON-SITE ACTIVITIES

Throughout February, Art Madrid runs a Parallel Programme of series, talks and projects that extend the dialogue beyond the fair venue.


During the five days of the fair, alongside the galleries' exhibition programme, on-site activities include the Open Booth, the Performance Series and Readings: Curated Tours.


Art Madrid'26 - 21st Contemporary Art Fair. View of Daniel Barrio's Open Booth.


Communication and reach

The Art Madrid'26 communications campaign reached 17 million people across online and offline media: print press, radio, exclusive catalogue, web, newsletter, social media and virtual 360° tour. Coverage included general and specialist national and international media, with appearances on RTVE, TeleMadrid, Onda Madrid, Onda Cero, COPE, El Mundo, ABC, Vogue, TimeOut and Elle, among others.


All participating galleries and artists feature on the Art Madrid website during and after the fair, with their own profile, images of works and contact details.


Art Madrid'26 - 21st Contemporary Art Fair. Aerial view.


KEY INFORMATION:

Galleries interested in taking part in the 22nd edition of Art Madrid can submit their application through the online registration form available on the website until 20 October 2026.



For any queries, please write to info@art-madrid.com or call +34 91 535 87 11.