Meredith Rosen Answers 7+ Questions from The Art Daddy
Because Every Art Daddy Needs a Rosen.
Meredith Rosen has long been one of the sharpest, most subtly subversive figures on the New York gallery scene. Since founding her eponymous gallery in 2017, Rosen has built a reputation for exhibitions that are both conceptually rigorous and socially attuned, often unsettling expectations around performance, identity, and power. Add to that her hilarious #artdealing videos, which have become a cult favorite among insiders, and it’s no wonder Daddy loves her so much.
With a program that includes artists like Anna Uddenberg, Guillaume Bijl and Irène Zurkinden, among others, the gallery has become a space where intellect and provocation meet under a clean, white cube surface. This summer, Rosen will relocate from her Upper East Side space to a new location on 36th Street, marking a great reverse Manhattan migration and a strategic downtown shift that signals where the conversation (and the collectors) might be heading next.
The Gallery Queen herself, Meredith Rosen.
Originally imagined as part of a now-dormant collaboration with Cultured, the interview comes to life here in the form it always intended to take: direct, irreverent, and a little indulgent. Rosen generously answered several hard-hitting questions from the Art Daddy with her signature mix of poise, humor, and candor.
From the politics of programming to power lunches, what follows is an honest and occasionally spicy glimpse into the life and mind of a gallerist who always plays the long game. Because when Meredith Rosen speaks, the room leans in and when she moves neighborhoods, you know something’s shifting in the art world climate and beyond. The Art Daddy came with questions, and Meredith didn’t flinch. Buckle up.
The Art Daddy: Define what an art daddy is to you. And who is your art daddy?
Meredith Rosen: Big boss energy. Mary Boone in 1980.
AD: What’s one piece of advice you wish you had been told when you were younger?
MR: No one can ruin your career. Nothing just happens.
AD: If you had to choose a figure from art history who has big daddy energy, who would it be and why?
MR: Kippenberger. He didn’t give a fuck.
AD: What was your biggest break in the industry?
MR: Getting into Art Basel for my first art fair.
AD: Describe your perfect Thursday night opening scenario (include your favorite dinner spot and post opening activities)
MR: Go to shows, get out alive.
AD: What art-world event or ritual do you dread the most and why?
MR: Oh please, I love it all.
AD: Who is your art world crush/What artist's artwork do you have a crush on and why?
MR: Maurizio Cattelan. I like artists that collect.
AD: What is the one art exhibition that has always stuck with you and why?
MR: Mike Kelley at the Bourse de Commerce. His ritual performance work changed my life.