SAND, SUN, and CONTEMPORARY ART:

CAN ART FAIR 

words Onur Basturk

photos (portraits) Maria Santo 

Now in its fourth edition, CAN – Contemporary Art Now – returns to Ibiza from June 25 to 29, once again transforming the island into a vibrant hub for contemporary art. 

What began just four years ago as a single fair has since evolved into a full-fledged Ibiza Art Week, with exhibitions unfolding across the island and an ever-expanding community of artists, gallerists, collectors, and cultural travelers converging under the Mediterranean sun.  As the founder and director of CAN Art Fair, Sergio Sancho continues to shape this dynamic platform, where cutting-edge artistic voices meet the relaxed rhythms of island life. In this interview, Sancho reflects on the fair’s growing global presence, its unique connection to Ibiza, and what lies ahead.

In just four years, CAN Art Fair has consolidated itself as the central axis of contemporary art in Ibiza. What do you think is the key to this success, and how does the unique spirit of Ibiza contribute to the identity of the fair?

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It has consolidated, first of all, because the island was crying out for cultural initiatives and needed more projects of this kind to arrive and give it a boost. There were already things happening, of course, but the arrival of new projects like CAN Ibiza Art Fair has awakened the island in this sense, and from now on, it's going to be unstoppable.

The fair has always been conceived with a strong awareness of where we are. That’s why, for example, it’s held in the afternoon—it invites you to enjoy the rest of the island’s attractions: the beach, the nightlife... But it’s not just that—even the natural light at the fair is something that defines it, makes it different, and helps it feel fully integrated with the island and its environment.

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BALANCING THE GLOBAL AND THE LOCAL 

This year's gallery program features a diverse mix of international and local participants. What is your approach to selecting galleries, and how do you balance global reach with a connection to the local art scene?

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From the very beginning, we’ve tried to strike a balance between international reach and local depth. That’s been our intention since the first edition, and especially with the second one through the launch of the OFF Program. We always knew this had to happen—we needed to develop and give visibility to local talent and ensure that projects emerging here had a place in the fair. Saša Bogojev, who is the curator of the fair, oversees the selection process. He invites the galleries and makes the final selection. As for the more local part, we evaluate which strong projects are active in the islands and make sure to give them a space.

TO GIVE GREATER VISIBILITY TO BALEARIC CREATION 

The expanded OFF Program, with its itinerary through emblematic places in the Pitiusas, is a prominent feature this year. What are your objectives for this initiative, and what kind of experience do you hope to offer visitors?

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This program, using the unique locations the island offers, aims to give greater visibility to Balearic creation. What it achieves, in the end, is that visitors can meet local artists and connect with proposals that, otherwise, a foreign audience might not have the opportunity to discover. What this program mainly seeks to do is facilitate that dialogue.

WE ALWAYS SAY YOU CAN GO TO THE FAIR IN FLIP-FLOPS! 

CAN Art Fair has become more than just an art event—it’s also a meeting point for collectors, art enthusiasts, and travelers. How do you intend to create an immersive experience in Ibiza that combines contemporary art with the island’s unique atmosphere?

One of the fair’s fundamental characteristics since the first edition has been to take full advantage of what the island can offer in order to create a truly distinctive project. From the start, CAN Art was conceived as a crossroads for encounters—but in a relaxed way. We want there to be time to visit studios, to go to Formentera by boat, to have dinners in a laid-back setting... it’s a way of interacting: artists, gallerists, collectors—all coming together in a different and more relaxed rhythm. We always say you can go to the fair in flip-flops, and those kinds of details make people more open, more willing to talk and connect.

How do you see the future of CAN Art Fair? What are your long-term goals and dreams to establish Ibiza as a key destination for contemporary art?

It’s a project that is steadily consolidating. It’s generating more interest, making waves abroad, and attracting more visitors each year. This year, the addition of CAN DESIGN enriches the content and draws in a broader audience with different interests.

The evolution is ongoing. Looking ahead, we want CAN Ibiza Art Fair to become an unmissable date on the international contemporary art calendar. It comes right after Art Basel, a much more serious and rigid fair, and we love the idea that people can follow it with a post-Basel experience in a more relaxed setting here on the island—one that naturally becomes a meeting point, effortlessly blending art and lifestyle.