SUPERMARKET MEETINGS are where the exhibitors meet and discuss specific topics for the artist-run scene. Meetings are an opportunity to exchange ideas, compare experiences, and make new connections. Meetings provide ways to find new collaborative partners and to build networks. Each Meeting lasts approximately an hour and has 5–8 participants. The meeting moderator introduces the topic and ensures that the meeting runs smoothly. Different meetings have different structures, some are discursive while others are a call to action, some offer successful models while others invite blue sky thinking. Meetings are also opportunities to learn from each other and further develop expertise.
We believe that small and focused meetings such as these are core to creating future collaborations. The importance of establishing strong connections between art professionals is fundamental to Supermarket and Meetings have planted the seeds of many new international collaborations. Meetings are only for exhibitors (not the public) and they are therefore a creative space for open discussions amongst peers.
Previous topics have included: curatorial activism, artists in residence, artists vs audiences, sustainability, building networks, (non)funding, social impact, working with institutions, safe space practice, collaborations vs co-operations, diversity, commons, artist-run for who?
Would you like to participate in Meetings or to know more?
Write to us meetings@supermarketartfair.com
Meetings give you, the exhibitor/artist, the opportunity to network with other exhibitors, share experiences, learn from each other, and even to initiate collaborations and projects.
We are delighted to offer a range of Meetings held by artists from Scandinavia, Europe, Britain, and the United States of America. All Meetings will be in English. They are open to all exhibitors and participating artists/guests. Due to the limited number of participants in each Meeting we ask that organisations/projects send only one person to each Meeting – thank you!
Meetings 2026
Thursday 23 April 14:00 – 15:00, 2–3pm
Dreaming Together – Working Together – Tools for better interaction
Saija Koponen, Gallery Huuto, Helsinki, Finland
How to actualise a dream project in a way where everyone is feeling good at the end? We will look at tools for anticipation, expectations, and meeting individual needs while building respect and commitment – Living in the dream. Participants are welcomed to discuss and share their working methods that lead to good results. The topic is addressed with the help of empathy and foresight tools.
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Thursday 23 April, 14:30 – 15:30, 2.30–3.30pm, Meeting will be in the Performance room
The peculiar longing for old houses
Andrea Interschick, EULENGASSE, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Solitary houses in the landscape appear like promises: they evoke calm, belonging, and closeness to nature—yet were rarely idyllic, as many were abandoned when livelihoods disappeared. Stories romanticise a way of life that is long gone. And still, the longing persists – perhaps not for the houses themselves, but for what they represent. This is a starting point for a discussion about artists’ relationships with such buildings and the creative spirit which is needed to create living spaces that are more than just the fulfilment of basic needs.
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Thursday 23 April 15:30 – 16:30, 3.30–4.30pm
Collaborations, exchanges, and exhibitions
Todd Molinari, after / time gallery, Portland, USA
This meeting focuses on building international connections between artist-run projects, with the aim of identifying new collaborators for future exchange activities and programmes. We actively invite artist-run initiatives interested in establishing dialogue with after / time to come together, share their work, and explore potential opportunities. By fostering open conversation we hope to spark meaningful partnerships and support the development of successful collaborations.
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Thursday 23 April 16:00 – 17:00, 4–5pm, Meeting will be in the Performance room
Screenprinters United
Kerstin Lichtblau, EULENGASSE, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
The meeting is conceived as a space for dialogue, networking, and the sharing of knowledge and opportunities, with a particular interest in future collaborations, exchanges, and residencies. The focus lies on studio conditions, funding structures for screenprinting workshops, and experiences with fairs, residencies, and artistic production. Kerstin gives insight into her use of screenprinting in installations, art dolls, and painting, and yes, she’s also very curious about your artistic work!
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Thursday 23 April 17 – 18:00, 5–6pm
Working with collective memory and identity
Elham Khattab and Aya Elfallah, Out Of The Circle, Cairo, Egypt
How can we work with concepts of collective memory and identity to create healing through multi-disciplinary art projects, workshops, and public engagement? Coming from different backgrounds, how can we connect together to develop networks and collaborate around these themes? What role do these projects have in an increasingly fractious world?
This meeting is part of the Supermarket/Iaspis programme supporting and developing links between international and Swedish artist-run initiatives.
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Thursday 23 April 17:30 – 18:30, 5.30–6.30pm, Meeting will be in the Performance room
Reflections on time in an artistic context
Paul Hirsch and Lilo Mangelsdorff, EULENGASSE, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
What if time were not a neutral medium but the invisible substance of our work? The discussion opens up different perspectives, grounded in lived experience, on time – as structure, as experience, and as a compositional element and how duration and perception of an art work has its influence. The aim is to bring artists together to discuss how philosophical perspectives might influence contemporary artistic practice, how concepts of time can be translated into artistic processes, materials, and forms, and to explore future exchanges.
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Thursday 23 April 18:30 – 19:30, 6.30–7.30pm
The Importance of Being Visible
Stuart Mayes, Supermarket art fair in conversation with Juxtapose, Aarhus, Denmark
We are all used to visibility being something that we strive for but what does visibility actually mean, or look like, for the artist-run scene. Who are we being visible for, how do we want to be visible, and what does visibility give us? With these questions in mind we will discuss what kinds of visibility are meaningful to us and how we might achieve these. Let’s share ideas and experiences to imagine visibility that truly reflects our practices and priorities and explore what visibility can look like when it’s defined by us, not by external expectations.
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Friday 24 April 14:00 – 15:00, 2–3pm
Networking Residencies
Sarah-Jane Mason, The Lacuna Studios, Spain
The aim of this meeting is to create the framework for a low-maintenance space where artist-led residencies can ask, share, plan, collaborate, (moan!) and support each other. Everyone running a residency builds up a fantastic bank of knowledge and experience. How can we make these resources available to each other, and how can we make it easier for artists developing and re-imagining residencies – especially those in isolated or rural environments.
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Friday 24 April 15:30 – 16:30, 3.30–4.30pm
Co-operation between artist-run residencies and galleries. How can it work?
Anja Helminen and Henrik Olsson, Ateljé Bredgrind Artists-in-Residency, Sweden
The focus of this meeting is to discuss possibilities of exchanges between artist-run residency and artist-run gallery. What are the most functional concepts and methods to make exchanges – direct exchanges, curated/invited artists on exchanges, exchanges based on shared artistic projects? Come and share your thoughts and experiences, find new co-operation partners and make new connections.
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Friday 24 April, 16:00 –17:00, 4–5pm, meet at the INFO DESK
Topographies Of Concrete And Mirroring
Harald Etzemüller, EULENGASSE, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
This is not a table meeting: Harald invites you for a walk to experience the city through attentive movement. Walking becomes an artistic practice that combines observation, dialogue and experiment. Rather than following predetermined routes, participants allow themselves to drift and discover unexpected encounters and overlooked details. Through this shared exploration the city becomes a space of collective perception and temporary social interaction. Walking distance: 3.5 km
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Friday 24 April 17:00 – 18:00, 5.00–6.00pm
Working with institutions
Steven Wolkoff, Durden and Ray, Los Angeles, and Jet Pascua, Small Projects, Tromsø & Møre og Romsdal Kunstsenter, Molde, Norway
A group discussion looking at potential collaborations between artist-run initiatives and institutions, focusing on actual implementation of programmes and approaches. The session will also explore practical challenges, such as differing organizational priorities. Additionally, participants will share case studies and strategies that have successfully bridged independent and institutional frameworks.
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Friday 24 April 18:30 – 19:30, 6.30–7.30pm
Give and take – international exchange collaborations
Guta Galli, Canteiro, Brazil
In the artist-run scene, ‘exchange’ is more than a simple transaction—it is a dynamic, reciprocal process of offering and receiving opportunities that can sustain creative communities. Through exhibitions, residencies, and collaborative projects across the world, artists and organisers build networks grounded in trust, generosity, and shared curiosity. We will look at ways that exchanges allow our ideas and practices to travel, shift, and grow across different geographic contexts.
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Saturday 25 April, 12:30 – 13:30, 12.30-1.30pm
Basic Income Scheme – critical discussions
Niamh Brown, Ormston House, Limerick, Ireland
Ireland recently made headlines with the introduction of a Basic Income Scheme for Artists. This meeting will explore how the scheme works, while encouraging a broader, critical discussion on the relationship between grant funding and basic income models. Participants are invited to reflect on how such initiatives might reshape the sustainability of artistic practice and the role of public support in nurturing creative communities and artist-run initiatives.
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Saturday 25 April, 14:00 – 15:00, 2–3pm
Meet-up with Al-Studio TBC and Casa Belgrado
Nour Shamma and Bashar Khalaf, Al-Studio TBC, Ramallah, Palestine
Mercedes Lozano, Casa Belgrado, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Come and hear about opportunities for Swedish artist-run initiatives to engage with peers in Palestine and Argentina. This meeting offers a space to share experiences, explore potential for collaborations, and discuss how cross-cultural exchanges can enrich the artist-run scene and offer audiences new perspectives and previously untold stories. Participants are encouraged to bring their ideas, questions, and curiosity as we consider ways to connect across borders and contexts.
This meeting is part of the Supermarket/Iaspis programme supporting and developing links between international and Swedish artist-run initiatives.
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Saturday 25 April 15:30 – 16:30, 3.30–4.30pm
Political Gestures, what is the role of art in addressing the social, political and environmental issues
Ellen Hochberg, Cluster, Seattle, USA
In these challenging times in which we live, what is the role of the artist? Images can be powerful. So how can we use images as a form or resistance? How can art intervene in systems of images and symbols? What types of initiatives have you seen? What has worked? What has not? Let’s put our heads together and think of ways we can make a difference in the communities around us.
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Saturday 25 April 17:00 –18:00, 5–6pm
What the hell just happened?
Ben Coode-Adams, Blackwater Polytechnic, United Kingdom
What the hell just happened? asks how we cope together in the current political **shitstorm** by attempting to sidestep insidious, unspoken and unconscious hierarchies and ‘discriminating taste’ by testing slower, queerer ways of valuing and collaborating that don’t pretend everyone’s playing nicely on a level playing field and by being ‘good’ you will succeed – whatever that looks like.
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Saturday 25 April 18:30 – 19:30, 6.30–7.30pm
Post Party Blues – the feelings and perceptions after the party has ended
Saija Koponen, Gallery Huuto, Helsinki, Finland
After a party, gala, or any large-scale event it’s easy to feel a bit flat and to ask ourselves was it worth it and how did it happen? To counter this we will talk about new ways of working, new friends, dealing with melancholia and how to continue after the day after . Meetings participants are welcomed to share their experiences and listen to tips collected from the Gallery Huuto’s artists (FI).
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Sunday 26 April 15:30 – 16:30, 3.30–4.30pm
’Link Wink Blush’
Chant van Lieshout & De Ijskast, Arnhem/Rotterdam, The Netherlands
How to stay grounded as an artist in an increasingly overwhelming world, while facing pressure and vulnerabilities?
Through interviews and open conversations with artists, curators and art organisations conducted in advance, this programme creates a platform to share experiences, vulnerabilities and practical insight to collectively explore more sustainable and supportive ways of working and connecting.