The Bund hosts art book fair from 12 to 15 November

The Bund, the English name for Shanghai’s historic waterfront, is hosting the Shanghai International Art Book Fair from 12 to 15 November 2026. The fair is taking place at Bund City Hall Plaza, bringing contemporary art publishing into one of the city’s protected historic areas.

The event is already under way in Shanghai as the fourth edition of the Shanghai International Art Book Fair. Its dates and venue are listed by the Shanghai Municipal Government.

Shanghai art book fair runs through 15 November

The four-day fair brings together 43 exhibitors and nearly 140 brands from 21 cities across eight countries. The programme includes more than 1,000 original-language art books and publications, with major new releases forming part of the presentation.

The fair’s focus reaches across art, photography, design, architecture and fashion publishing. Public activity during the event includes forums, talks, new-book presentations and discussions involving artists, curators, heritage specialists and publishing professionals.

For travellers, the useful distinction is location: the event is not a citywide art-week listing but a fixed programme at Bund City Hall Plaza. That places the book displays and related talks inside the historic waterfront area during the period ending on 15 November 2026.

The Bund places publishing inside a protected historic district

The Bund is a 1.5-kilometre waterfront area and protected historical district in central Shanghai. The Huangpu River lies to its east, while 52 Gothic and Baroque-style buildings line the western side, according to the city’s official landmark guide.

The building row once housed financial institutions and trading companies and is now described by the city as an outdoor museum of international architecture. The book fair adds a temporary publishing programme to that permanent architectural setting, linking current art production with a district shaped by Shanghai’s commercial and cultural history.

Bund City Hall gives the event a particularly direct connection to the area’s built heritage. The fair’s paper-based subject matter sits within a district where the surrounding facades, riverfront and long pedestrian route remain central parts of the visitor experience.

Why this fair matters for a Bund visit

The programme offers more than shelves of publications. The announced talks and presentations extend the visit into conversations about contemporary art, curatorial practice, cultural heritage and traditional skills.

That combination makes the event relevant to visitors who already plan to walk the waterfront. A visit can join the temporary fair at Bund City Hall Plaza with the permanent architectural sequence outside, without confusing the book fair with the wider city programme of Shanghai Art Week.

The international range is also part of the event’s defined content. More than 20 overseas art publishers are represented among the participating organisations, while the fair presents titles in their original languages alongside Chinese and international publishing activity.

Visiting The Bund: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• The Shanghai International Art Book Fair runs from 12 to 15 November 2026 at Bund City Hall Plaza in Huangpu district.
• The event combines art book displays with forums, talks, new-book presentations and other public programme items during the four-day run.
• The Bund lies beside the Huangpu River in central Shanghai, with the historic waterfront promenade and building row forming the surrounding setting.
• The district is a long riverside walking area, and the 52 historic buildings stand west of the river along the route.
• Mandarin is the official language of China, and the currency is the renminbi.
• Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.

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Frequently asked questions about The Bund

When does the Shanghai International Art Book Fair take place at The Bund?

The fair runs from 12 to 15 November 2026 at Bund City Hall Plaza.

What is The Bund?

The Bund is a 1.5-kilometre waterfront area and protected historical district in central Shanghai, with 52 historic buildings beside the Huangpu River.

Where is The Bund and how do you get there?

The Bund is in central Shanghai along the western bank of the Huangpu River, with Bund City Hall Plaza within the historic waterfront area.