Organizer Information
The Mixed Bathing World Executive Committee was founded in 2008 with the goal of hosting an international art festival in Beppu City, Oita Prefecture, and works under the philosophy of sharing time and space across nationalities, genders, and generations. Its secretariat, NPO BEPPU PROJECT, is based in Beppu and has spent nearly two decades inviting artists from Japan and abroad to create work, hold exhibitions and workshops, and integrate art into the city's daily life, including through public art tours and artist-audience events. Beyond the international art festival "Mixed Bathing World" (first held in 2009 and continuing through subsequent editions), the Committee runs the solo-exhibition festival "in BEPPU," the ongoing public-art project "ALTERNATIVE-STATE" (launched 2022, aiming to install eight permanent works across the city over four years), the citywide "Beppu Art Month," and the community marché "TRANSIT MARKET." Art Fair Beppu itself launched in 2023 and has featured 179 artists and artist groups across its first three editions; this open call is for its reintroduction as Art Fair Beppu Spring. The 2027 edition is supported by a Fiscal Year 2026 grant from Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs.
Title & Description
Art Fair Beppu Spring 2027 — Call for Exhibiting Artists
Art Fair Beppu Spring continues the fair's founding format — artists present on-site, selling work through direct conversation with visitors — while entering a new phase built around five initiatives: drawing on Beppu's growing artist-in-residence networks across Asia to invite artists from the region alongside those in Japan; shifting to a co-directorship of four directors from Japan and abroad who jointly shape artist selection and exhibition design; expanding into a city-wide, walkable fair across multiple central Beppu venues; partnering with local restaurants, hot springs, and accommodations to embed the fair in the city's daily life; and introducing a multi-year participation track for artists who want to keep returning. The fair aims to discover and showcase emerging talents "and to launch their work from Beppu to the world," positioning the city as a hub for cultural exchange across Asia.
Theme
No specific theme stated in the source; the fair frames itself around discovering "new and unseen value" from emerging artists, with a stated aim of positioning Beppu as a meeting point between Japanese and Asian creative networks.
Categories
- Visual Arts
- Painting
- Sculpture
- Video/Film
- Performance
- Craft
- Art Fair
Eligibility
- Applicants must be 18 years of age or older at the time of application
- Applicants must currently be based in East Asia, Southeast Asia, or South Asia, including Japan
- Applicants must be actively and ongoingly creating artworks and engaged in artistic activity; all genres are welcome, including painting, sculpture, video, performance, craft, and project-based work
- Applicants must be able to communicate in Japanese or English
- Applicants are expected to be present at the venue during the fair to explain their work and engage in sales discussions with visitors (short breaks allowed; a paid representative may cover temporary absences)
- Exhibited works must be available for sale with clear, accessible pricing
- Applicants must be able to independently handle installation, deinstallation, sales, and shipping arrangements
- Applicants must maintain reliable communication with organizers and submit required materials by set deadlines
Program Benefits & Awards
- Exhibition space assigned by the Office in a venue across central Beppu
- Round-trip transportation expense subsidy for the exhibiting artist, capped by place of residence (see Appendix 1 in the source; e.g. ¥50,000 for Tokyo/Kanagawa/Saitama/Chiba residents, ¥45,000 for Taiwan, ¥55,000 for China/Hong Kong/Macao/Philippines) — not available to artists residing in Beppu City
- Round-trip shipping cost support for artworks via the designated courier service (return shipping excluded; not available to Oita Prefecture residents)
- Accommodation for four nights (29 January–1 February) at a ryokan or business hotel in Beppu, for one person per exhibiting artist/group (not available to Oita Prefecture residents)
- Introduction/public announcement as part of the exhibitor roster
- Optional multi-year participation track for continued engagement with Beppu across future editions
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 21 August 2026
- Notification of selection results and Exhibit Manual sent: mid-September 2026
- Public announcement of exhibitors: early October 2026
- Notification of exhibit space: mid-October 2026
- Exhibition plan submission/consultations begin: mid-November 2026
- Artwork shipping details due: late November 2026
- Exhibition plan finalized: mid-December 2026
- Artwork pickup: early January 2027
- Exhibitor stay period (set-up): 29 January 2027
- Fair opens: 30 January 2027
- Fair ongoing: 31 January 2027
- Fair closes/dismantling and move-out begins: 1 February 2027
- Final removal deadline: 2 February 2027, 13:00
- Settlement process for sold artworks: late February 2027
- Payment for sold artworks: March 2027
Location
Various venues across central Beppu City, Oita Prefecture, Japan
Additional Details
- Ticket admission for the public event: Early Bird ¥1,500 / Advance ¥2,000 / Standard ¥2,500 (sales from November 2026); free for ages 15 and under; complimentary tickets for high school and university students; bundled options with a Beppu City Municipal Hot Springs bath voucher are planned
- Applications are reviewed by the fair's four co-directors; reasons for selection outcomes are not disclosed and individual inquiries about results cannot be answered
- In case of copyright or third-party rights disputes related to the application or exhibited works, full responsibility falls on the applicant, not the organizer
- Selected artists receive a "Participation and Artwork Sales Agreement" alongside their results notification
- Personal information will not be disclosed to third parties except where the applicant is selected
- The organizing entity is the Mixed Bathing World Executive Committee, with NPO BEPPU PROJECT as management office; the 2027 edition is supported by a Fiscal Year 2026 grant from Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs