Haunch of Venison to close Zürich gallery

Contemporary dealer says expansion in London, Berlin and New York is behind the move

By Gareth Harris | Web only
Published online 2 Jul 09 (News)

London. Contemporary art dealer Haunch of Venison has announced the closure of its 3,500 sq. ft space in Zürich which opened in 2005. Haunch, which is owned by Christie's, denied that the economic slump has prompted the Swiss withdrawal, saying in a statement: "To ensure the continued support of their roster of international artists and an expanding exhibition programme in London, Berlin and New York, contemporary gallery Haunch of Venison announces the closure of their Swiss exhibition space, Haunch of Venison Zürich, at the end of 2009.

"Following Haunch of Venison London's recent relocation to 6 Burlington Gardens earlier this year, the London programme has been extended to include a broad range of multi-faceted exhibitions; the closure of the Zürich space will allow the gallery to further focus on a programme of work by gallery artists and invited participants."

Formerly housing the British Museum's ethnography displays, the Burlington Gardens venue was acquired by the Royal Academy of Arts (RA) in 2001 for £5m. Haunch took over the building in central London last February (current exhibitions in the space include a show of work by Romanian artist Adrian Ghenie, until 25 July).

A number of Royal Academicians expressed reservations over the three-year lease to a commercial gallery (The Art Newspaper, July 2008), but it was reported that Haunch is paying the RA over £4m for use of the space, which will cover the costs of renovating the building for future public use. Meanwhile, Haunch of Venison opened its new Manhattan gallery last September.

Jitish Kallat, an Indian artist represented by Haunch, told The Art Newspaper: "I'm not really surprised about the gallery's decision to discontinue its Zürich operation given the spectacular expansion of its curatorial and operational hub in London." Christie's declined to comment on its role in the closure process.