Every week, Artnet News brings you Wet Paint, a gossip column from original scoops. If you have any advice, email Annie Armstrong at [email protected].
A VIBE CHECK ON HENRY STREET
A little less than a year ago, I reported on the Chinatown gallery cluster on Henry Street, which emerged largely during the pandemic, when rental prices were at an all-time low and free time for hobby projects was at an all-time high. In my interviews at the time, there was an underlying sense of uncertainty, as the cost of living in New York was gradually returning to the status quo. Everyone wondered how long the favorable conditions would last.
Since the publication of this article, of course, the economy has slowed down. However, the art market has always been a bit of an exception. I personally get whiplash for witnessing a lukewarm auction seasonto be followed by a knockout edition of Art Baselwhere financial troubles have been left behind in America as a million dollars works by picasso, BourgeoisAnd Baselitz easily sold.
So what about my dear friends in Henry Street? Inquiring minds wanted to know, so I checked back this week to find out how business was going for scrappy young entrepreneurs.
“It’s slower now than it’s been the last two years,” shared Ellie Rineslong-time resident of Henry Street and engine of 56 Henry, which expanded to two spaces last year. “I have noticed a slowdown, particularly among private dealers who are also collectors. They’re not as active because they’re not making as many sales. It’s a trickle down effect. »
Nonetheless, Rines isn’t too concerned about the state of the market, jokingly, she was so confident KarmaIt is Jonas Wood prints show would be sold she plans to follow up with her owner, Brendan Dugan, to buy some of his art. Along with the impact of art professionals tightening their budgets, she attributed the drop in sales to the typical summer lull. “It’s quiet here because of people’s European travel budget,” she cracked. “They’ll buy this instead of a painting.”
At the end of the street at ScenariosI caught their owner Jackie Kemplay take a cigarette break. “People grumbled, but I’m not really worried,” she said. “We just finished our show with Faye Wei Wei, which is nearly exhausted. I feel like the art market is such a bubble anyway, it’s hard to know what’s going to affect you. When I asked her how concerned she was about her gallery’s current financial situation, she confidently replied, “Zero.”
In the meantime, Will Leung is a little more worried about the current climate. Leung manages four spaces: Long story short And ATM Gallery on Henry Street and two other Long Story Short outposts in Los Angeles and Paris. “It works well, but I definitely feel it in all my galleries,” he said.
From Leung’s perspective, the slowdown stems at least in part from the collecting class, which no longer wants to pay top dollar for emerging works of art. “Now collectors are stepping back and saying, ‘Why is this happening? “I mean, I’m a young gallery and I only sell young works. I’m the last to say to the artist, “Oh, we should raise the price. I just sell the paintings and move on.
Leung also noted that the current global climate for commodities is lean and the art world is not immune to macroeconomic effects. “It’s not just about art, that’s all. People are scared. Food prices are high and living expenses have increased so much. For example, a lunch that used to cost $6 now costs $15, so people are thinking, “Should I save money?” This is survival mode.
However, he expressed optimism and downplayed the seriousness of the situation, saying, “I don’t think we will see any gallery closures on this street. It may take a few months, but eventually people will realize that this is a temporary situation. What goes up must come down.”
LINDEMANN RELIES ON MONTAUK
Exterior view of southern Etna Montauk, with a hand-painted sign by Julian Schnabel. Courtesy of the artist and South Etna Montauk.
For my friends in the art world who moved to the Hamptons this summer, I have a few questions. First of all: Hey, it’s cool if I come and crash a little in your guest house? And second, have you seen Adam Lindeman over there this season?
Sources in the area suggest the art collector and dealer, whose family net worth is estimated in the billions, has left Montauk. Although Lindemann owns several properties in the area, Fresh paint learned that he had handed over the keys to two, for the time being at least.
Thenthe “ranch” (I use quotes because it’s actually a 12-bedroom cattle-free complex) that Lindemann acquired, is quietly listed on the Hamptons-specific upscale real estate website To the Eastavailable for short term subletting at the price of $350,000.
The listing on the site does not explicitly mention that this is the Lindemann estate, which is historically significant for once belonging to Andy Warhol. However, comparison of the photos in the ad strongly suggests that this is the same property that the dealer tried to sell in the summer of 2020 for $65 million, without success. Instead, the listing describes the seaside retreat as a place where “sand meets surf, coast connects with grassland, land and waves converge, and sea and sky intertwine, inviting you to relax”. Pretty poetic, isn’t it?
A few kilometers south Montauk Highway is the South Etna Montauk Foundationan exhibition space co-directed by Lindemann and his wife, co-merchant Amalia Dayan. Or at least it was. According to Google, the space has been labeled as “permanently closed” and a tipster revealed that an Australian clothing store called Venroy now occupies the premises. I contacted Lindemann to inquire about the situation, and although he vehemently denied that the foundation was closed, he said the foundation was moving due to difficulties operating through the summer. “It was hard for me to open all summer, nobody wanted to sit there!” he explained.
I’ll keep my ears to the ground on where the foundation lands and let you all know. In the meantime, if you decide to take this sublet, let me know. Perhaps you could lend one of the property’s three guesthouses to your favorite gossip columnist, and I can Really dive into some reports.
