Why Did Hirst & Co. Leave? A Look Back at Gagosian Artist Defections
BLOUIN ARTINFO
When news broke recently that three of Larry Gagosian’s biggest artists — Yayoi Kusama,Damien Hirst, and Jeff Koons — were defecting from the gallery in one way or another, it challenged the dealer’s reputation as “the leading Lothario” in the “courtship wars” over top artists, as the New York Times once put it. It’s a title he has earned for moves like convincing sculptor John Chamberlain to end his 30-year relationship with Pace, doubling John Currin’s prices after recruiting him from Andrea Rosen in 2003, and offering German painterAlbert Oehlen a greater “global presence” than London dealer Thomas Dane last year.
BLOUIN ARTINFO
