This Week's Top Stories: Inside the world of Larry Gagosian, and Vera Molnar’s NFT triumph
3 min read · 28 Jul 2023
(Untitled) Pollo Frito, Jean-Michel Basquiat, 1982. Image: Masterworks
Market
Four Vera Molnar works minted during the Dutch auction hosted by Sotheby’s Gen Art Program. Image: Sotheby's
Vera Molnár's NFT Collection Fetches $1.2 Million at Sotheby's
In a record-breaking auction, an NFT collection by the 99-year-old artist Vera Molnár titled "Themes and Variations" sold out within an hour, generating a total sales volume of $1.2 million. The collection comprised 500 pieces of generative art. It was the first time the auction house's NFT marketplace, Sotheby's Metaverse, had used a Dutch auction format, where the price is reduced until a buyer is found. (ARTnews)
David Zwirner Swops Architects for Chelsea Space
David Zwirner abandons his initial plan for a Renzo Piano-designed gallery and is now focusing on a smaller new gallery in Chelsea designed by go-to architect Annabelle Selldorf. (The New York Times)
Masterworks Sells Shares in $36.7 Million Basquiat Painting
Masterworks is offering 1.8 million Class A shares of a Jean-Michel Basquiat's 1982 painting, to investors keen on owning a fraction of a work of art valued at $36.7m. (Barron's)
Shows
Artist Jeffrey Gibson
Jeffrey Gibson Will Be the First Indigenous Artist to Represent the US in Venice
Multimedia artist Jeffrey Gibson, of Choctaw Indians and Cherokee descent, will represent the US at the next Venice Biennale, making him one of the first Indigenous artists to do so. His multimedia installation, "the space in which to place me," is set to open in April 2024. (The New York Times)
Museum
Trinket, L. Pope, 2015. Image: MOCA
Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles Acquires Pope.L’s Giant Flag
MOCA has acquired "Trinket", a US flag blasted by giant fans, a dramatic installation by artist Pope.L. The Los Angeles museum first presented the installation in the artist's 2015 solo show. (ARTnews)
Cardiff Miller Art Warehouse Brings Canadian Artists' Work Home
Canadian artists Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller, best known for their sound installations, have turned an empty warehouse in Enderby, near Vancourer, into the Cardiff Miller Art Warehouse. This space will host a variety of their immersive large-scale installations, some of which will be showcased in Canada for the first time. (Vernon Morning Star)
Profiles
An installation view of Brian Clarke’s exhibition at Newport Street Gallery, London. Image: PCA
How Larry Gagosian Reshaped the Art World
The dealer has been so successful selling art to masters of the universe that he has become one of them. An in-depth profile tells the story of his rise and rise. (The New Yorker)
Brian Clarke Reignites Interest in Stained Glass Artistry
An exhibition by Brian Clarke, one of the world's leading artists using stained glass, at Damien Hirst’s Newport Street Gallery in London aims to raise the status of a medium that fuses art and architecture whether on a grand or domestic scale. (Financial Times)
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