With an estimated $1 billion in annual sales, and 16 locations peppering the globe, it’s hard to get any bigger or more important in the art stratosphere than Gagosian Gallery.
That’s why this morning’s reveal that the world’s dominant art brand — founded and directed by the forceful Larry Gagosian — is coming to the Dallas Art Fair this April, as the most prominent name in an esteemed roster of nearly 100 galleries, is well, cultural news that will be heard from Manhattan to London, Paris, Beverly Hills, Athens, and Hong Kong (all sites among Gagosian’s global art nodes).
While Gagosian — home to talents such as the heir to Andy Warhol’s Pop crown, Jeff Koons — is a star attraction (the dealer’s unquestionably the Tom Brady of the art playing field), the Fair has carefully cultivated a dealer lineup that reflects an international perspective and a significant depth. Returning Dallas dealers such as the respected Barry Whistler and the eagerly watch Erin Cluley, exhibit alongside notables Skarstedt Gallery (home to 1980s figurative master David Salle, whose work is being rightfully rediscovered), and Galerie Perrotin, returning again with international “it” artist Daniel Arsham, who mines history, natural science, and archaeology in his dystopian sculptures and installations.
Another interesting convergence. Artnews reported upon the artist who took Beyoncé’s sensational Instagram “pregnant with twins” image that rocked the social media channels this week. Awol Erizku is his name, and the Addis Ababa-born, MoMA-exhibited talent is set to show in 2017 at Night Gallery, from L.A., one of the 30 new dealers to the Fair.
Will works by Erizku be in Night Gallery’s booth? Can a collector acquire the Beyoncé image? Stay tuned.
Save these dates and read our March issue for more on the exhibitor list: the Fair rolls out its ninth edition April 6 through April 9 at Fashion Industry Gallery, in the Dallas Arts District, neighboring such acclaimed institutions as the Dallas Museum of Art and the Nasher Sculpture Center.
FYI: both museums, as well as the non-collecting Dallas Contemporary, are beneficiaries of the Fair’s opening night Preview Gala, set for Thursday, April 6: will go-go Larry Gagosian be in attendance, to rub shoulder with Fair co-founders Chris Byrne and John Sughrue? That is the question of the day.