Unforeseeable travel restrictions and the chronic postponement and cancellation of fairs have forced galleries, and those interested in buying art, to find creative ways of finding one another.
The digital space is one, but another more old fashioned strategy (if you have the cash) is bringing the art to the clients, wherever they might be—the Hamptons, St Moritz, Palm Beach. Hauser & Wirth excel at this tactic. Alongside galleries in major cities like Hong Kong, New York and London, they spring up where art buyers go to get away from the urban sprawl, seaside resorts and seasonal getaways like Southampton, St Moritz and Somerset. The latest addition will open among the palm trees, blue skies and baccarat tables of Monte Carlo, Monaco, near the legendary Hôtel de Paris.
“Hauser & Wirth has [always] created physical spaces in the locations where our artists and our collectors reside…This is something we have always done. But it’s an even more important step given the impact of events over the last year during which we have sought out new ways to present and sell works of art,’ says Iwan Wirth, the president of Hauser & Wirth. “In former times, Monaco was a destination for artists, writers, and filmmakers who were as captivated as we have been by the Côte d’Azur.”
The first show in the striking 290 sq. m main gallery, which is topped with a grand skylight, will be an exhibition of the work of Louise Bourgeois, titled Maladie de l’Amour (19 June-25 September). One of the French-American artist’s famous Spiders , a bronze arachnid over three metres tall, will be installed in the gardens adjacent to the gallery.
