Dealers

Art marketanalysis

Amid cutbacks, big art market players are still chasing growth

Mega-dealers and auction houses are shrinking some areas while expanding others

From punk pioneer to major market player: 40 years of Maureen Paley gallery

Paley's operations have grown from a derelict London house to three spaces across the UK—but her risk-taking, collaborative nature remains the same

EU tax breaks could benefit dealers at Basel

New directive aimed at aligning VAT rates, due to come into force at the beginning of 2025, could have a big impact on galleries in countries including France and Germany

Leaderscomment

How the Rybolovlev vs Sotheby's case shows the need for greater transparency in the art market

As the trial between the Russian billionaire and the auction house is thrashed out, it may be time to consider incorporating blockchain into the art scholarship process

Real Housewives of Art Basel in Miami Beach: reality tv hits the art world

Beginning with an Apprentice-style dating show, a flurry of television shows will follow the lives of affluent dealers as they navigate the choppy waters of the art world

Recent UK High Court rulings raise questions over dealers’ duty of care towards clients

Two cases involving respected London dealers John Eskenazi and Simon Dickinson brought up issues of negligence and authenticity with differing results

Influential Düsseldorf dealer Hans Mayer—the first to show Warhol in Germany—dies aged 82

The gallerist is credited with introducing European audiences to post-war US artists

Art Basel in Miami Beach sales report: dealers brace for gloomier times ahead

The fair saw healthy sales, particularly at the market’s top end, but many galleries are wary of a downturn

Anny Shaw. With additional reporting by Gareth Harris

Qatari sheikh wins £4.2m lawsuit against prominent London dealer John Eskenazi

While the judge decided the defendant sold the works in good faith, he ruled that all seven objects purchased by the sheikh are fakes

Suspected Old Master forger Giuliano Ruffini is arrested in Italy after turning himself in

The 77-year-old, wanted by French police for "fraud, money laundering and forgery of works of art", was released after ten days in custody

‘Pay-to-play’ galleries—which charge artists thousands to exhibit—are on the rise

By asking for participation fees upfront, art businesses are hedging their bets against poor sales—but how ethical is this practice?

Art Basel settles into a ‘new normal’ despite market uncertainty

The fair’s opening day was buoyed by the presence of a new generation of artists, collectors and dealers

Brexitnews

‘Brexit ruined my business almost overnight’: UK dealer says his income has plummeted by 60% since Britain left the EU

Almost all of Steve Shovlar’s clients are based in Europe—but added taxes and red tape are putting them off

Confessions of a dealer: Stefan von Bartha

We talk to the Swiss dealer about his love of Argentinian art movements, a culinary catastrophe and why he wants the world to know about Felipe Mujica

Confessions of a dealer: David Castillo

We speak to the established Miami dealer about life-affirming breakfasts, why dealers are taste-makers and his love for Leonora Carrington

Dealersinterview

Michael Findlay: 'You don’t make art good by making it expensive’

A fixture of New York’s art scene since the 1960s, dealer Michael Findlay mourns the loss of the city’s local market and fears that the cost of real estate will destroy innovation

Confessions of a dealer: Esther Kim Varet

We talk to Esther Kim Varet, the founder of the Los Angeles (and now, Seoul) gallery Various Small Fires about the art world, a pet peeve and the next big thing

Why advance sales at fairs are gaining ground

In the internet age, pre-selling at fairs is commonplace but collectors are unlikely to stop buying in person any time soon

Confessions of a dealer: Sam Gordon

We talk to Sam Gordon, co-founder of the New York gallery Gordon Robichaux, about his art-world enthusiasms and words to live by

Five minutes with… Brett Gorvy on the Asian art market

Lévy Gorvy launches its Hong Kong space with a group show exploring how nature and tradition have provided comfort in turbulent times

London dealers embroiled in Ezra Chowaiki fraud scheme over $1.2m Chagall painting

Fresh complaint seeks the return of the work allegedly sold by the disgraced Manhattan dealer under false pretences

Spoonfuls of brie and G&T fishbowls—how to gain the Maastricht inch

Tefaf exhibitors know their food, drink and naked saunas, so here is their guide to the most indulgent spots in the Dutch city

Collectingfeature

Hustlers with a habit: what five Tefaf exhibitors collect and why

From Dinky toys to Old Masters, dealers share what objects take their fancy

Double Jeopardy? US dealer fights extradition to Poland, for the second time

Alexander Khochinsky’s lawyer calls the country’s actions over a €10,000 looted painting “aggressive and disproportionate” and says his client will not get a fair trial in the “illiberal democracy”

Art and entertainment worlds cosy up at Frieze Los Angeles

Having for years viewed each other with suspicion, relations between agencies and galleries may start warming up

Christopher Gibbs: the man who brokered £50m Getty grant to the National Gallery—and fed Princess Margaret hash brownies

The antiques dealer was more than an “acid-tripping ex-roué once known as the king of Chelsea”

Dealer Mary Boone pleads guilty to $1.6m in tax fraud

The art dealer will pay $3m in restitution to the IRS after falsifying returns to hide her use of gallery profits to upgrade her Manhattan home

Lawnews

New York art dealer pleads guilty to multimillion-dollar fraud

The court has ordered that Ezra Chowaiki forfeit over $16.6m as well as works by Picasso, Calder, Chagall and Degas