The Blobification of the Art Industry: How Lockdown Has Accelerated the Blurred Lines Between Galleries and Auction Houses
As they compete for art market dominance, auction houses and galleries are increasingly adopting one another's sales strategies.
April 13, 2021
Sotheby’s exhibition of Prints & Multiples is now open in London, England, ahead of the auction on 19th March at Sotheby's on March 13, 2020 in London, England. Photo by Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for Sotheby's.
In February last year, a group of art-dealing titans went public with an unusual proposition—they would team up and sell the storied collection of the late philanthropist Donald Marron. The move was a shock to the art-world system because it saw three galleries, Gagosian, Pace, and Acquavella, snaffling up a $450 million estate that historically would have been the territory of auction houses.