Austrian-born, Netherlands-based performance artist Florentina Holzinger has joined the roster of blue-chip gallery Thaddaeus Ropac. This move comes just months before she is set to unveil her project "Seaworld Venice" for the Austrian Pavilion at the 2024 Venice Biennale, marking a significant shift of her boundary-pushing, interdisciplinary practice from the theater and dance worlds into the commercial art gallery system.
ARTnews interviews Mohammed Hafiz, co-founder of Athr Gallery in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, as part of its Newsmakers series. Hafiz discusses the evolution of the Saudi art scene since Athr's founding in 2009, the gallery's expansion into multiple locations and a foundation offering grants and residencies, and the role of grassroots patrons and collectors before the Ministry of Culture's involvement in 2018. The interview, conducted at the Athr Foundation in Riyadh during the first annual Art Week Riyadh, also touches on Hafiz's personal history with art, including buying his first artwork in high school in the 1990s, and challenges misconceptions that the Saudi art scene began only recently.
Jean-Marc Bottazzi, a Japanese bond trader and collector based in Hong Kong, discusses his philosophy of collecting in an interview with The Art Newspaper. He emphasizes deep, focused support of artists rather than acquiring a superficial variety, citing his extensive holdings of over 100 works by the 96-year-old Japanese artist A-Yo and deep collections of Abstract Expressionism, Gutai, and conceptual photography.
Bridget Finn, who became director of Art Basel Miami Beach in July 2023, has organized the 22nd edition of the fair from start to finish for the first time. In an interview days before the VIP opening at the Miami Beach Convention Center, she discussed welcoming 286 galleries, the importance of hospitality, and the fair's role in Miami's art scene. She highlighted 34 new galleries joining this year, notable works by Augusto Machado and Roberto Huarcaya, and the fair's efforts to engage diverse audiences including VIPs, institutions, and the general public.
Dyani White Hawk, a prominent Native American artist known for her beaded abstract works, has joined Alexander Gray Associates in New York while maintaining her long-standing representation with Bockley Gallery in Minneapolis. White Hawk, who gained widespread recognition at the 2022 Whitney Biennial, creates paintings that incorporate beadwork and emphasize the contributions of Native women to abstraction. Her recent achievements include a MacArthur "genius" fellowship in 2023, a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2024, and a site-specific ceramic mosaic installation titled "Nourish" currently on view at the Whitney Museum.
Nacho Polo and Robert Onuska, co-founders of the design gallery Studiotwentyseven, discuss their art collection in an interview with The Art Newspaper. Housed in their Tribeca apartment, the collection spans painting, sculpture, and photography with an emphasis on materiality and sculptural form. They recount their first acquisition—Ron Gorchov's *Autolykos* (2019)—and their most recent purchase, Alex Katz's *Nine Women 5* (2009). The couple also shares their instinctive buying process, a regret over missing a Nick Cave sculpture, and their anticipation for the Jean and Terry de Gunzburg collection at Sotheby's this spring.
Five Gen Z art collectors are profiled, revealing their distinct approaches to acquiring art. They prioritize direct relationships with artists, often via social media, and favor emerging and digital art, with many focusing on artists from their own generation and diverse backgrounds.
CULTURED magazine has published its 2026 list of 16 Power Advisors, highlighting the professionals who guide collectors in building influential art collections. The list includes established figures like Samy Ghiyati and Nicolas Nahab of the Paris-based advisory NG Partners, as well as Los Angeles-based advisor Nancy Gamboa, who worked with collector Jarl Mohn on the MAC3 donation to LACMA, MOCA, and the Hammer. The article notes that the number of art advisors has grown alongside the art market, with a 2020 survey finding that 30% of New York collectors had worked with one.
Mary Boone, the renowned gallerist who closed her eponymous gallery in 2019 after being sentenced to prison for tax evasion, has returned to the New York art scene. She is collaborating on the exhibition "Uptown/Downtown" at Lévy Gorvy Dayan, on view through December 13. The show features works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Richard Prince, and Cindy Sherman, among others, and explores the 1980s New York art world. In an interview, Boone discusses her comeback, the optimism of the 1980s that allowed her to succeed as a woman without family connections, and the current re-examination of that era.
The U.S. Department of Justice has released approximately 3 million additional files related to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, sparking a new wave of resignations and investigations across the global art world. The documents detail extensive connections between Epstein and high-profile figures, including museum leaders, major collectors, and artists. While inclusion in the files does not prove criminal wrongdoing, the public pressure following these revelations has forced several prominent individuals to step down from influential institutional roles.
Evan Beard, a former Navy intelligence officer and Oxford economics graduate, is launching a new secondary market gallery called Beard & Co. on New York's Upper East Side after leaving Masterworks, the $1 billion art-tech startup where he ran its secondary market gallery Level & Co. Beard's career path includes stints at Deloitte and Bank of America, where he managed art financing operations and worked with major U.S. collectors. His new gallery will employ a half-dozen staff and function as a discreet private bank for collectors, offering services such as art loans, auction guarantees, consignments, and estate planning.
Artsy's monthly "Artists on Our Radar" series highlights five emerging artists who gained significant attention in March. The selections are based on the publication's expertise and data, tracking impact through new gallery representation, exhibitions, auctions, art fair appearances, or the release of fresh work.
Nadine Khoury, a Dubai-based collector, curator, and art adviser, founded the Young Collectors Circle in 2023 to engage Millennial and Gen Z professionals in the Gulf region with the local art scene. The initiative offers free events such as studio visits, suppers with established collectors, and group outings to exhibition openings, aiming to make art collecting accessible and educational. Khoury, who previously worked at Green Art Gallery, started the circle with friends and grew it through social media and word-of-mouth, limiting attendance to 15 people to foster a friendly, barrier-free environment.
Artsy profiles 14 influential women who are shaping India's rapidly evolving art market, including Nita Mukesh Ambani, Jaya Asokan, Shireen Gandhy, and others. The article highlights their roles as founders, directors, collectors, and patrons, with a focus on the upcoming 17th edition of the India Art Fair, which will feature a record 135 exhibitors. Each woman is described as contributing to the growth of galleries, auction houses, biennales, and cultural institutions across the country.
Larry Gagosian, the mega-dealer, has candidly discussed the failure of his San Francisco gallery, which operated from 2016 to 2021. He stated the gallery simply failed because "nobody showed up" to openings, describing the experience as depressing. The closure was part of a broader reflection on his career, prompted by the opening of a new Gagosian gallery on New York's Upper East Side.
The Bennett Prize has launched its fifth call for entries, inviting women figurative realist painters to compete for a newly increased grand prize of $75,000. The award, established by collectors Steven Alan Bennett and Dr. Elaine Melotti Schmidt, includes a two-year stipend and a traveling solo exhibition that debuts at the Muskegon Museum of Art. Applications are open through September 19, 2026, with a jury featuring prominent figures like curator Miranda Lash and artist Julie Heffernan.
Cultured magazine has published its first Young Dealers List, highlighting 23 galleries under five years old that are revitalizing the art world. The list was compiled from over 100 recommendations gathered from more than 40 collectors, advisors, and curators. The article profiles one of the selected gallerists, Adora Mba, founder of ADA Contemporary Art Gallery in Accra, Ghana, who opened her space in 2020 after working as a cultural news producer. Mba emphasizes supporting emerging African artists and has dedicated her 2025 program to women artists and curators.
Liam Lis, a 23-year-old former child star who toured with Fifth Harmony and Zendaya, is now building a private art collection with his family in New York. In an interview with Cultured, he discusses key works in the collection, including Jean-Michel Basquiat's "Gringo Pilot (Anola Gay)" (1981), Damien Hirst's "Damnation" (2004), and Richard Prince's "A Nurse Involved" (2002), and credits his father, real estate developer Harry Lis, for nurturing his passion for art.
Kimberly Pirtle, a fast-rising auctioneer at Sotheby’s, has left the company to launch Gabriel Advisory Group, a hybrid art advisory and cultural philanthropy firm. The new practice works across primary and secondary markets, advising collectors on acquisitions while also guiding philanthropic strategy and institutional engagement, drawing on Pirtle’s experience in Sotheby’s collectors group and her work with benefit auctions for organizations including the Pratt Institute, the Bronx Museum of the Arts, the Queens Museum, and the Gordon Parks Foundation. Pirtle is also maintaining a role as a VIP consultant with Frieze.
John Phelan, a prominent figure on ARTnews's Top 200 Collectors list, has been fired from his position as Secretary of the Navy. His departure follows reported disagreements with senior Pentagon officials over a shipbuilding initiative, including a proposal for a "Trump-class" of battleships. Undersecretary Hung Cao will serve as acting secretary.
Art Basel has announced the 33 medalists for the second edition of its annual awards program, honoring a diverse group of artists, curators, collectors, and institutions. The cohort is divided into categories including emerging, established, and icon artists, as well as cross-disciplinary figures and art-world allies. Notable honorees include Julie Mehretu, Barbara Kruger, and the Studio Museum in Harlem, representing a broad cross-section of the global art ecosystem.
Laura Phipps has been appointed as the director of the Gochman Family Collection, a significant private collection primarily focused on contemporary Indigenous art. Phipps joins the organization following a distinguished 15-year tenure at the Whitney Museum of American Art, where she most recently served as an associate curator. In her new role, she succeeds Zach Feuer and will oversee a collection of over 750 works while managing the development of a new 10,000-square-foot public-facing exhibition space in Katonah, New York.
Billionaire retail magnate and prominent art collector Les Wexner provided a closed-door deposition to the House Oversight Committee regarding his past relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. During the testimony, Wexner characterized himself as "naive, foolish, and gullible" for trusting the disgraced financier, whom he labeled a con man. While Wexner denied any knowledge of or involvement in Epstein’s criminal activities, Democratic lawmakers noted that the 88-year-old offered few new details and frequently cited a lack of memory regarding key events.
John Phelan, a prominent art collector and the current U.S. Secretary of the Navy, flew on Jeffrey Epstein's private plane in 2006, according to newly released flight logs. The trip from London to New York occurred four months before Epstein's first indictment, and a friend of Phelan's confirmed the flight but stated it was his only interaction with the convicted sex offender.
Ronald Lauder, the billionaire art collector and heir to the Estée Lauder fortune, is named over 900 times in the recently released Jeffrey Epstein court documents. The emails reveal his assistants frequently scheduling meetings and calls with Epstein in 2017, though the substance of their discussions remains largely unclear. One email suggests Epstein sought to review Lauder's tax returns and will, while another indicates Epstein attempted to arrange a dinner involving filmmaker Woody Allen.
Newly released documents from the Department of Justice, part of the Jeffrey Epstein case, contain email exchanges from 2013 that reference prominent art collectors Steve Tisch and Jean Pigozzi. The emails show Epstein facilitating introductions between Tisch and multiple women, with discussions about their backgrounds and travel arrangements. Tisch has stated the association was brief and expressed regret.
The Prix Marcel Duchamp, France's most prestigious art prize, has announced its 2026 nominees: Joël Andrianomearisoa, Josèfa Ntjam, Laura Henno, and the duo David Brognon and Stéphanie Rollin. The five nominees will exhibit together at the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris in October, with the winner receiving €35,000. The jury is led by Centre Pompidou director Xavier Rey and includes prominent curators, collectors, and past winners such as Kader Attia.
The Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College (CCS Bard) has awarded its 2026 Audrey Irmas Award for Curatorial Excellence to Los Angeles–based curator Hamza Walker. Walker, executive director of the Brick (formerly LAXART) since 2016, will receive $25,000 and be honored at CCS Bard’s spring gala in April. He is recognized for exhibitions featuring artists like Elizabeth Paige Smith, Gregg Bordowitz, and Postcommodity, and for cocurating the acclaimed "Monuments" exhibition with the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, which examines artists' responses to Confederate monument removals. Walker also secured a $1 million donation from collectors Jarl and Pamela Mohn to fund the Brick's move to a new Hollywood space and its rebranding.
Komal Shah, a prominent art collector, announced the renaming of her Shah Garg Foundation to the Making Their Mark Foundation, coinciding with a three-day forum in Washington, D.C., scheduled for March 2025. The foundation takes its name from the traveling exhibition "Making Their Mark: Works from the Shah Garg Collection," curated by Cecilia Alemani, which highlights women artists from Shah and her husband Gaurav Garg's collection. The forum, held at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, will feature panels, keynotes, and performances organized around themes like Visionary Voices and Changemakers, with Alemani as curatorial director and Loring Randolph as director.
Richard Hambleton, the Canadian street artist known as the "Godfather of Street Art," is the subject of a new feature by Sphere Gallery, which has championed his legacy. The gallery, founded in New York in 2015 and now based in Laguna Beach, California, specializes in artists who shaped contemporary visual culture, including Hambleton. The article highlights Hambleton's early "Image of Mass Murder" body outlines from the 1970s and his iconic "Shadowman" paintings from the early 1980s, which appeared in cities worldwide. It also discusses his relationships with Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Keith Haring, as seen in his 2016 work *The Four Friends*. Gallery founder Philippe Hoerle-Guggenheim shares his personal encounters with Hambleton's work and explains why the "Shadowman" series remains significant for its raw, psychological intensity and its embodiment of 1980s New York City.