Art Salon Zurich: Down with inhibitions!

Paintings, sculptures and works on paper: the works on display here belong to the modern and contemporary art movements and were mostly created after 1945. From 22 to 25 October 2026, the Art Salon Zürich will take place for the fifth time, with around 40 regional and international art galleries and foundations presenting works by over 200 artists.

The art fair was launched in 2022 by Fabian J. Walter and Sven Eisenhut-Hug. Walter has been running a contemporary art gallery in Basel with his wife, Claude Walter-Rossier, for 40 years and is president of the Association of Swiss Galleries (VSG). He therefore has first-hand knowledge of the needs of the Swiss art scene. “The motivation behind founding the Art Salon Zürich was not commercial, but arose from a need”, explains Walter.

There are a number of art fairs in Switzerland. However, according to Walter, German-speaking Switzerland lacked an art fair with a primarily national focus. Art Salon Zürich aims to fill this gap: as a platform for Swiss art that, through the participation of international galleries, also looks beyond the country’s borders.

The fair sees itself as a meeting place for galleries, artists, collectors and an art-loving public. According to Walter, around 8,000 people visit it every year. Only professional gallery owners who are committed to promoting art on an ongoing basis and have a solid gallery programme are admitted, explains Walter. This programme must have a recognisable common thread, be it in terms of content, quality or artistic direction. Furthermore, all the works on display are by professional artists.

This year’s programme also includes three themed tours: a sculpture tour, a ‘premieres’ tour featuring works being shown for the first time, and a tour of artworks priced under 5,000 Swiss francs. The latter is aimed at people who wish to take their first steps as art collectors. “Anyone interested in art but unsure how to approach a gallery will find it easier to get started this way”, says Walter.

A variety of guided tours and several promotional stands for young artists round off the programme. Five years after its founding, Walter gives a positive assessment: there is indeed a need for such a fair, and the concept has been embraced by the art scene. In doing so, Art Salon Zürich expressly aims to appeal to a new audience with no prior knowledge and to break down barriers to entry. “We don’t celebrate elitism; we are the ‘discovery’ fair”, says Fabian J. Walter.

Art Salon Zürich | Hall 622
until 25 October 2026