Gérard Faggionato After 22-years London art dealer Gérard Faggionato isclosing his Mayfair gallery and joining the sales team at the London outpost of New York gallery David Zwirner, reports the New York Times.
Faggionato’s reduced sales at several recent gallery shows (the Times cites examples at October Gallery, Pilar Ordovas, and Dickinson), demonstrates the difficulties faced by London art dealers in the current climate. Though the city is home to some of the world’s wealthiest people, they aren’t necessarily buying art from dealers, even as after New York galleries including Pace, Marian Goodman, Michael Werner, Skarstedt, and Dominique Lévy have opened locations in London in an attempt to tap into what could be a highly lucrative revenue stream.
Comparing London to New York, David Zwirner told the Times, “There isn’t the same density of collectors. There’s a competitive spirit among New York collectors, and they show up. In New York, you have four major museums with important groups of trustees, who are all quite active as collectors. There’s a group dynamic.” In London, that spirit seems largely reserved for auctions, although Zwirner may be an exception: the current Luc Tuymans exhibition has sold eight of 10 canvases to buyers in the US, the UK, China, France, Italy, and the Middle East, reports the Times.
Faggionato was previously head of both the Impressionist and modern department and the department of postwar and contemporary art at Christie’s, and will join Zwirner in April, focusing his efforts on the sale of new works and the re-sale market for older ones. The dealer will continue to represent Francis Bacon’s estate in Europe, as he has done since 1998.
“Our clients are looking at all areas of the 20th century. It’s logical to grow the gallery in a way that gives more options for both buying and selling,” Zwirner explained, highlighting, Faggionato’s expertise in the secondary market.
David Zwirner Gallery is a contemporary art gallery in New York City and London owned by David Zwirner that is active in both the primary and secondary markets.
The gallery opened in 1993 on the ground floor of 43 Greene Street in SoHo New York. Zwirner was a partner with Iwan Wirth in Zwirner & Wirth. In March 2012, the gallery announced its expansion to Europe, setting up in London’s Mayfair neighbourhood. The gallery opened in October 2012 with a solo exhibition of new works by Luc Tuymans.