Three Dealers Go on the Record

Bloomberg has three comments on the upcoming auction. White Cube’s Jay Jopling denies there is a mountain of unsold works:

“The appetite for Damien’s art,” Jay Jopling, White Cube’s owner, said in the statement, “is such that we never have enough and I’m always keen to have as much work on consignment as possible.” The market for Hirst was strong and suggestions to the contrary were based on “redundant documents.”

Robert Sandelson suggests Hirst is making an end run around his galleries:

“Sotheby’s auction is payback time for Damien,” said London dealer Robert Sandelson, who in the summer of 2006 hosted a selling exhibition of Hirst works acquired through secondary sources. “He’s saying to the dealers, `If you can’t sell these pieces, I’ll find someone who can,”’ said Sandelson in an interview.

But Kenny Schachter thinks everybody will benefit from the sale:

“Any revelations about unsold works shouldn’t affect the auction,” said the London-based dealer Kenny Schachter, who was on the guest-list for Sotheby’s preview at the Hamptons. “Hirst and Sotheby’s are looking for new collectors for this material. In the end it could help sell some of the dealers’ inventory — if it goes well.”

Hirst’s Dealer Denies `Mountain’ of Unsold Works Before Auction (Bloomberg)