Randy Kennedy visits Carol Bove’s new show at David Zwirner and thinks he sees work that’s very familier … yet also new. Kennedy writes that she “seems to channel spirits from the pantheon of heavy-metal 20th-century sculptors, a he-man group (it is almost exclusively male) that includes John Chamberlain, Tony Smith, Alexander Liberman and Anthony Caro:Continue Reading
How Do You Know Hauser & Wirth, Zwirner Have Achieved the Pinnacle of the Global Art Market?
It is worth quoting from this idiosyncratic piece by Judith Benhamou-Huet about the ascendancy of Hauser + Wirth and Zwirner galleries because it somewhat echoes and confirms the observation made by others that in today’s global art world, these two veteran galleries have begun to eclipse (if that’s even the appropriate word) Gagosian in the art world’s imagination as the most-discussed art enterprises.
Like Gagosian, too, the galleries reaching a level of importance seems to bring out any number of sniping comments and observations. Benhamou-Huet hints darkly that the added gallery spaces are surreptitious real estate investments:Continue Reading
David Zwirner’s Un-Corporate, Resilient Art Industry
Bloomberg BusinessWeek has an interview issue coming out and one of the subjects is David Zwirner who used to view the idea that his kids would go into the art business—as he did following his own father—warily. Now he’s all for it and thinks there’s a bright future:
Do you think New York’s Chelsea or the art world in general has become too corporate?
The art world—with the exception of Sotheby’s, which is a publicly traded company—has no corporations. This is a pretty fantastic industry. We’re moving real money. But we’re basically family-owned businesses that are free to react quickly. The art galleries have gotten bigger but not more corporate. We do a lot of silly stuff that shareholders wouldn’t let us do. Like building a ridiculously gorgeous, expensive, and over-the-top building.The business has been on a roller coaster in recent years. Can you shed some light on that?
The art world has been almost ridiculously resilient. If I compare what happened in 2008 and 2009 to what happened in ’91 and ’92, it’s like night and day. We had very good years in 2008/2009. They were good enough for us to take a big risk and buy this property. And we’ve had record years since. The art market is not just the trade of goods, it’s a lifestyle. People will sell their stocks and their bonds, because it’s just money. Their paintings, their relationships in the art world, are much more than that.
Dealer David Zwirner on the Art Market and Collectors Like Steve Cohen (Bloomberg BusinessWeek)
Zwirner's ArtHK 11 Opening Sales
Straight out of the gate, David Zwirner is touting six sales at ArtHK 11:
The major paintings are by Luc Tuymans (2011), Yan Pei-Ming (2011), and Daniel Richter (2004). We also sold two significant sculptures by Adel Abdessemed (both 2011).
All the new works by Luc Tuymans, Yan Pei-Ming (who is in attendance, at the fair all week), and Adel Abdessemed were made especially for this fair.
- Luc Tuymans, The Couple, 2011, Asking $1.1 million USD
- Daniel Richter Tuwenig, 2004, Asking $700K USD
- Yan Pei-Ming, Selfportrait, 2011, Asking $420k USD
- Adel Abdessemed, mappemonde, 2011, Asking $250k USD
- Adel Abdessemed, fatalité, 2011 Asking $200K USD
- Michael Riedel, 18, 2011, Asking: $40K USD
Robins Loses Suit for Lack of Proof
Craig Robins lawsuit against David Zwirner’s gallery goes down in flames for Robins–and the art world, according to Randy Kennedy:
Mr. Robins sued, asking for a temporary restraining order to prevent the Zwirner gallery from selling three paintings in a show of new work, paintings that Mr. Robins contends he should have the right to buy. But Judge William H. Pauley denied the request for the restraining order, in part because Mr. Robins provided no written evidence that the gallery ever agreed to keep the 2004 sale confidential or promised to get him off the blacklist and sell him new works.
In the ruling Judge Pauley wrote that the case “offers an unflattering portrait of the art world – a world of self-proclaimed royalty full of ‘blacklists,’ ‘greylists’ and astonishing chicanery.” In denying Mr. Robins’s request to prevent the sale of the paintings, the judge added that “collectors in this seemingly refined bazaar should heed the admonition ‘caveat emptor.’ ”
Collector’s Motion for Court Order Against Gallery Is Denied (New York Times)
