ArcoBonsai 2026 confirms program and guest demos for April fair
ArcoBonsai published its program on February 27, confirming more than 70 exhibitors, the XXIX Congresso U.B.I. and guest demos by Mauro Stemberger and other masters April 24-26 in Arco.
Organisers released the ArcoBonsai 2026 program and exhibitor list on February 27, confirming a three-day fair April 24 to April 26 with more than 70 exhibitors, the XXIX Congresso U.B.I. and the XXIV Trofeo ArcoBonsai in Arco, Garda Trentino. The announcement pins the main exhibition to the Municipal Casino halls and its surrounding gardens, with additional activity at Palatennis.
Sales and display areas will extend into the town’s promenade, with stalls for plants, bonsai, flowers and accessories along Viale delle Palme and Viale delle Magnolie, drawing exhibitors from Italy and abroad. A large specialized marketplace will sit alongside curated exhibitions and demonstrations, and the program explicitly welcomes the Libera Associazione Garda Orchidee APS with a dedicated orchids exhibition and demonstrations.
The demonstrator roster names Mauro Stemberger, identified as an internationally renowned figure in Italian bonsai, alongside masters Salvatore Liporace, Donato Danisi and Sandro Segneri, who are scheduled for a joint demonstration. Argentine artist Xec Fernández and Filippo Biscontin, listed as Italian Talent 2025, are also on the program. Cultural and educational reports will be part of the line up, and the schedule notes that some sessions will be “also dedicated to suiseki.”
Competition activity will include the Italian Talent 2026 selection contest and the Trofeo ArcoBonsai, with the tree styling element described as a “traditional and highly appreciated tree styling competition” and noted as “valid for the assignment of the Arcobonsai Trophy.” The styling contest format will first pit 15 Bonsai Instructors against one another, followed by a phase featuring 20 Italian bonsai clubs.
Food and local products will run as collateral programming: the “Village of Trentino Flavors” in Piazza Segantini will offer typical dishes prepared on the spot, while Coldiretti exhibitors in Piazza delle Canoniche will present Trentino fruit and vegetable products, wines, cheeses, cured meats, Zambana asparagus, aromatic herbs and “other local excellences.”
Organisational context for 2026 signals a heavier lift behind the scenes: the edition involves “an even greater organizational and financial commitment than in previous years, as the organizers will take on costs that were previously borne by the Arco Bonsai Association.” Arcobonsai, founded in 1985 and long positioned as a central Italian bonsai gathering, returns under the theme of the “Japanese symbol of friendship,” and the event will again host the U.B.I. Congress after Arco was chosen nine times as its venue.
With masters, competitions, a 70-plus exhibitor marketplace, orchids and a local food village confirmed, ArcoBonsai 2026 promises a concentrated weekend of styling demos, suiseki talks and market stalls in Arco from April 24 to 26.
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