SINGAPORE – The Singapore Art Book Fair 2026 on April 9 withdrew an open call for a new Walking Exhibitors option at the fair following public backlash that greeted the announcement.

The initiative, announced on the fair’s social media on April 6, would have seen new art bookmakers display their publications for sale on a portable 51cm long, 32cm wide and 10cm tall display case, according to the now-closed application form.

In a statement posted on Instagram on April 9, the event’s organiser said it chose a briefcase because they “appreciate its technology”, but also “understand now that it was inappropriate”.

Its statement explained the idea was intended to allow creators “the flexibility to choose where and when to sell their books”.

It added: “Taking all your feedback, we will close the open call while we take some time to workshop through the mechanics of the fair.”

In its post announcing the option on April 6, the fair said that the option was a way to “soften spatial hierarchies and extend book-based interactions beyond the tabletop”. This would “make the fare less of a marketplace and more a field of encounter”, it added.

An illustration accompanying the application form shows a figure holding what looks like an opened briefcase hung around the neck. The initiative was open to local and international exhibitors, and priced at $150.

It received mainly negative sentiments, and was shared widely on social media platforms and online forums.

The Aug 28-30 event will be one-third the size in 2025, when it had more than 120 exhibitors and 5,000 visitors, as it is held at a smaller venue, event space T:> Works in Mohamed Sultan Road. The 2025 edition was held at the New Art Museum Singapore in Keppel Road.

The fair’s organiser said in their statement on April 9 that the 2025 edition was “an overwhelming experience for visitors and exhibitors” and that a smaller fair this time round...