The Fair for Modern and Contemporary British Art

Founded in 1988, British Art Fair is the only fair dedicated to Modern and Contemporary British Art.  

British Art Fair grew out of The 20th Century British Art Fair, as it was then known, of which Gay Hutson was also a co-founder. At that time the market for international modern art was booming and British art was gathering momentum in its slipstream.  An Advisory Committee was formed for a more modern fair, of which Colin Gleadell is the only remaining member, and the first fair took place in September 1988 at The Cumberland Hotel. A handful of this year’s exhibitors showed at that very first fair. In 1991 it moved to the Royal College of Art and then to Saatchi Gallery in 2018. British Art Fair joined the Ramsay Fairs portfolio for the fair in 2022.

Britain’s leading dealers exhibit paintings, drawings, prints and sculptures covering all the important artistic movements of the past 100 years: from the early modernists to the YBAs to contemporary art. Most of the great names of 20th century British art are represented:  David Bomberg, Lucian Freud, Elisabeth Frink, Terry Frost, Barbara Hepworth, David Hockney, L.S. Lowry, Henry Moore, Paul Nash, John Piper, Bridget Riley and Graham Sutherland alongside contemporary names such as Tracey Emin, Banksy and many others of the 21st century.  Much of the work is privately sourced and fresh to the market and dealers keep work back for the fair. The result is a boutique event of the highest quality.

The Fair is elegantly staged throughout three floors of London’s iconic Saatchi Gallery in Chelsea.

The next British Art Fair will be held from 28 September – 1 October 2023.