A Fair of Her Own

There is something particularly relevant about an art fair that begins by asking who gets to participate, rather than simply who gets to exhibit. Echo Soho was founded by India Rose James, the Founding Director of Soho Revue, with a clear intention: to create a smaller, more accessible platform for female-led galleries and the artists they represent.

Its first edition, held at Artist’s House on Manette Street during Frieze Week in 2025, brought together twelve galleries and collectives and attracted more than 1,300 visitors. The majority of exhibitors made sales, with 68 per cent reporting a profit, suggesting that accessibility does not have to come at the expense of commercial ambition. The fair also drew collectors and representatives from institutions including Tate, the V&A, the Courtauld Gallery, the ICA, the Royal Academy and Serpentine Patrons.

That model arrives at a moment when the structure of the art world is being questioned with increasing urgency. Research conducted by Artnet and the Association of Women in the Arts in 2025 found persistent barriers to women's progression, including pay inequality, work-life pressures and limited access to mentorship and leadership opportunities. Women represent roughly 75 per cent of the art-world workforce, making the gap between participation and influence particularly striking.

Echo Soho approaches this imbalance through practical means. Its participation model has been designed around affordability, while exhibitors receive support with art handling, booth photography and access to a shared VIP network. For emerging galleries, these details matter. An art fair can be a significant financial gamble, particularly for smaller operations without established collector networks or the resources of larger international galleries.

The second edition, Echo Soho II, returns to Artist’s House from 15 to 18 October 2026 during London Art Week. This time, the ambition is broader: strengthening gallery visibility, developing collector relationships and creating deeper connections with institutions, while retaining the intimate scale that gives the fair its character.

James has described the original concept as a response to a gap she observed within London's increasingly crowded fair landscape. Her experience running Soho Revue since 2019 gave her a close understanding of the financial and logistical pressures facing galleries entering the fair circuit.

What makes Echo Soho interesting, then, is its refusal to treat inclusion as a decorative gesture. The fair is built around infrastructure. It asks what happens when support is designed into the system from the beginning.