Larry Gagosian , the world's largest art dealer, ponders the future of his empire. Estimated by the Wall Street Journal at around 1 billion dollars, it now has 200 employees and twenty galleries around the world: six in New York, three in London and Paris , two in Los Angeles, and one in Rome, Athens, Geneva, Hong Kong, Basel and Gstaad .
The 77-year-old Californian, single without children, announced the creation of a new council to reflect on the question of his succession. "My goal in bringing together a council is to raise the bar for strategic thinking and the gallery's vision for the future," Gagosian said at a press conference . I felt it was important to welcome different perspectives and experiences […] on the opportunities and challenges facing artists today and tomorrow, as well as the future of the collection. We have brought together many of the most talented minds in their respective industries ."
In addition to Gagosian himself and seven of his senior associates, the board has 12 outside members from various sectors, all of whom are collectors. Among them are the billionaire Evan Spiegel, co-founder of the Snapchat application, the British artist Jenny Saville, the financier J. Tomilson Hill who chairs the Guggenheim Museum, the filmmaker Sofia Coppola and Delphine Arnault, vice-president of Louis Vuitton who also sits on the executive committee of her parent company LVMH, headed by her father Bernard Arnault.
The presence of the latter revives speculation about a possible takeover of the company by LVMH. Rumors denied by the merchant. "I have no intention of selling the company. I own 100% of it and have no investors […]. I like to be in control of what I have," he explained in The New York Times . But at the same time, he declares not to exclude such a possibility in the long term: "If someone came along and wanted to make a major investment, I think everyone would be ready to listen to it". The council - which will meet twice a year - held a first meeting in May.
What will the Gagosian company look like after Gagosian? Its peers in the field - David Zwirner, Hauser & Wirth, Pace Gallery, Acquavella, are family businesses with a younger generation that could take over from the founders, which is not the case with the septuagenarian. "I don't know who will succeed me," he continued in the New York Times. But we would like the company to live beyond me. The council creates a model for the gallery to move forward, enriching it". For now, Gagosian's future remains unclear. None of his deputies has emerged as a clear successor, although 67-year-old art dealer Andrew Fabricator , whom Gagosian hired in 2018,
The new board's directors, who are paid, are expected to serve a three-year term after which they are expected to be replaced unless Gagosian asks them to stay. "There is no doubt in my mind that when Larry is gone, the Gagosian Gallery will continue," said Tomilson Hill. Le Journal des Arts