ASTANA – Astana Art Fair, an international contemporary art exhibition, opened on Oct. 24 at the Congress Center in Astana, presenting more than 200 works under the Future Roots theme. The three-day fair will run through Oct. 26 and feature artists and galleries from Central Asia, Russia, and China.
Astana Art Fair 2025. Photo credit: urpaq.org
This year’s theme explores cultural origins as sources of new creative impulses and visions of the future, positioning Astana as a hub for both local and international artistic dialogue.
Supported by the Astana akimat (city administration) and organized by the Urpaq association, the fair is presented as a long-term cultural initiative to strengthen the creative economy, expand the regional art market, and engage youth in global artistic exchange.
“We hope Astana Art Fair will become a platform where collectors, galleries, and both emerging and established artists can meet, present their work internationally, and build professional connections. For the wider public, it will be a new point of attraction – a place to engage with contemporary art, discover new names, and purchase works,” the association said in a statement.
Exhibitors from Kazakhstan include Futuristan Lab, TSE Art Destination, Occupy Steppe, Qazart.com, Keremet Art, and Altyn Gasyr, as well as the Parsifal video art project.
International participants include Bonum Factum and Andakulova Gallery from Uzbekistan, the Bishkek School of Contemporary Art from the Kyrgyz Republic, and Russia’s Vysota, Sistema Gallery, and ES Gallery. The exhibition also features an Independent Voices: Future Roots section, created through an open call for artists and showcasing new names in the contemporary art scene.
The fair’s public program features lectures by art experts Valeria Ibraeva, Nelli Shivrina, Yuliya Sorokina, Assel Akhmetzhanova, Christianna Bonin, and Normurod Negmatov. Workshops include an experimental watercolor painting workshop led by Galina Kobzeva of the British Higher School of Art and Design, and a session on zines as a form of self-expression by the Bishkek School of Contemporary Art.
The event will also feature public talks with artists and curators, including Anvar Musrepov, Ardak Mukanova, Mansur Smagambetov, Natalia Andakulova, Valentina Kuzina, Anastasia Volkova, and Albina Zakirullina.
According to organizers, the fair is designed to be accessible to all visitors, including those with limited mobility and hearing or visual impairments.
Tickets are available for 7,000 tenge (US$13) for morning entry from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 9,000 tenge (US$17) for evening entry from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tickets for children, students, and pensioners are 5,000 tenge (US$9). Entry is free for children under 10.
