The Art Daddy's Weekly Daddy Wrap up for 3/7/25
All the art daddy news that is fit to print.
This week was marked with the start of the Spring auction sales. While it's still officially winter, it did seem sales wise things still seem to be thawing out a bit. This may also be in part to the larger political events of the week which included Trump's first official address to congress which was met with a widespread protest from Democrats and the announcements of tariffs from Mexico and Canada. Both countries' leaders also announced their own tariffs would be implemented in reaction to Trump's latest plan.
The walker of a billionaire spotted in Chelsea this week.
The art world has been on the edge of their seats to see how this would play out for a number of reasons from a sales point of view, but also for shipping and what this means for galleries, fairs, and collectors. While the full effects have yet to be realized, the bigger takeaway daddies, I think, is that we're fucked. I am sorry to say. But last night I did spot a billionaire in the wilds in Chelsea so there may still be hope. There were a few things that happened in the news, and a story I am proud to say I broke, and a few other surprises along the way. Keep reading for a new series, and all the art daddy news that is fit to print for 3/7/25.
Daddies in The Wild: A Postcard from Chelsea
Last night for the first time in a while, daddy headed to Chelsea to do what I do best… see art and spot daddies. This time though I was headed to a private opening among others. The private opening at Kravets and Wehby produced some of the finest daddies I may have seen all year and possibly in the history of the account.
With primo canapés and the sparkling rose flowing, I saw art world legend Annina Nosei, who gave Basquiat his first show even before Mary B! She was like an art world angel, wrapped up in my Italian nonna who I missed, dipped in Prosecco and kissed by Caravaggio himself!
If that wasn’t enough, at the same opening there was in the flesh and with his caretaker who I am now trying to jockey for the spot for, billionaire Hubert Neumann was also in attendance. The 94 year old looked spry all things considered, because a highly publicized court battle with your kids that is Rupert Murdoch-esque can sure take it out of you. And he was arrested in 2023 over a pretty nasty family feud.
The 94-year old Neumann at a private opening from last night.
Hubert was holding court and while daddy does need my own art daddy like Hubert, I think I want one that’s a little more flush with art and cash. It’s fair to say he, his art, and his assets will be tied up after his death.
If that wasn’t enough, later on in the evening despite a mid show at David Kordansky, after months of being in a social media standoff with the man because he blocked daddy, I saw him in person at the gallery. See the screenshot below!
Last night was one for the books and full of art world gossip which I love.
Tell Your Dad
This is going to be a new little section I will include as I hear things and also break my own stories. It was a busy week for daddy when I found out Larry G. may not be single after all. I also heard a wild story about the Felix art fair, so keep reading for that. If you have a hot tip for daddy, reach out via email or dm and tell your dad!
Tara Downs Performs CPR on Drowning Victim at Felix Art Fair
If things in LA weren’t chaotic enough, recently someone told me that last month at the Felix art fair someone drowned poolside and gallerist Tara Downs tried to come to the rescue! The fair which has galleries in various parts of the hotel, including pool side cabanas, also happened to be where Tara Downs Gallery was located.
Little did Tara know that she also might try to save someone. According to an art daddy source, a non-fair goer, presumably a hotel guest, was swimming, and drowned. After being pulled from the water, Downs is said to have tried to resuscitate them by performing CPR. Despite Downs’ best efforts, I am told that the swimmer died.
Larry Gagosian Might Not Be Single Afterall
Last month in a rare interview with the CBS Sunday Morning show, mega gallery owner grinned at the camera and declared in fact that he was single. This gave the art daddy pause because following his breakup from Anna Weyant, the painter he reps, and his now ex girlfriend who is 40 years younger, I have been trying to trap his ass with no luck.
However my excitement was only short lived. In December an image surfaced of Lar Bear at a Met Dinner with the model Erica Pelosini who has been with Emily in Paris. Erica made a 45 second appearance in a 2020 episode in Emily in Paris with a Golden retriever, and frankly I wasn't impressed. Watch here for reference.
Erica and Larry at the Vanity Fair Academy Awards Dinner.
While she is certainly attractive and modelesque, she does have an old/young air. The larger trend seems to be women in their 20s who have either had so much work done, or are so done up with makeup and other things it ages them. Despite this, Erica and Larry were spotted again, on Tuesday night at a red carpet event hosted by Vanity Fair for the Academy Awards Dinner. Erica posted her step and repeat solo, but I recovered the outtakes which are pretty convincing of the May to December couple.
She has also posted about the purchase of a new vintage Ferrari and from what I am guessing, this was brought to her by Larry G. While Larry may very well be playing the field, being photographed with Erica is sending a clear message as well. I haven't given up hope yet on a future with Larry, but at least I can be a little more clear eyed about who my competition now is.
Daddy’s Auction Highlights for 3/7/2025
Christie's Sale Takeaways from Wednesday March 5th
Sales for Christie's on Wednesday for the evening sale were tepid to say the least. Three lots in total were withdrawn and with over 60 in total it resulted in two auctioneers taking bidding duties. This was good for viewers because this meant that Yü-Ge Wang was able to come out and be the auction daddy she is. In a fuchsia blazer Yü-Ge worked her auction magic despite bidders not being as eager as we would like. Also Christie's knows how to really curate things well so this played in their favor for the sales from Wednesday.
Yü-Ge working the room.
She was fantastic, but unfortunately bidders did not live up to expectations. However, the auction house did go a little hard with “20th/21st Century” and “Art of the Surreal” happening one right after the other. Total revenue for the evening was $166.6 million. Some stand out lots include Francis Bacon’s Portrait of Man with Glasses III (1963) and Tamara de Lempicka’s Portrait du Docteur Boucard (1928). Both $8.55 million after fees.
Sotheby's Takeaways from Tuesday March 4th
Total sales for Tuesday were $78.6 Million. Artnet called it “solid.” I think it's relative given where the market is at. I say this because out of the 41 lots, three were withdrawn including a crowd pleasing Gerhard Richter which always sells well and this one was even priced low at $6.3 million.
The sale didn't produce any real bidding wars despite Ollie's best efforts. The 2024 sale had slightly more lots and a bigger roster of artists it will be pulling from, but despite that, sales averaged $2.2 million per lot. Despite that it's not a perfect one to one comparison either. Some highlights included Yoshitomo Nara, Cosmic Eyes (In the Milky Lake), 2005, for £9.03 million ($11.4 million).
There were 41 lots intotal and 3 were withdrawn. Another top lot of the night included After Embah by Lisa Price which sold for $6.8 million which was a new record for this artist at auction. Alberto Burri's Sacco e Nero 3 also made its auction debut and sold for $6.2 million. All and all it was a decent sale.
Art Daddy Headlines
Bad Art Dealer Daddy Douglas Christmas Spotted at Frieze Last Month Despite Prison Sentence
This week The Art Newspaper reported that Douglas Christmas, the now disgraced art dealer daddy who was convicted in May on three counts of embezzling from his gallery's bankruptcy estate, was spotted at Frieze last month. While this may not sound like a huge deal to attend an art fair, Christmas was instead supposed to report to a federal prison on 2/17, but instead he was at the VIP opening.
In January,, Christmas, the founder of Ace Gallery, was sentenced to 24-months in prison after embezzling $260,000 from their estate. Even though Christmas is a flight risk, a judge pushed back his self surrender date for an appeal to go through according to The Art Newspaper.
Alex Greenburger's Take Down of Anne Imhof's Doom installation at The Armory
This week veteran ARTnews editor Alex Greenburger wrote an epic takedown of Anne Imhof's Doom performance. The performance, which was the artist's first to premiere in NYC in over a decade, was curated by Klaus Biesenbach, who also worked with her on the 2016 performance at PS1 MoMA. This latest performance happens on a massive scale at the Armory through March 13th and is 3 hours long! The New York Times profiled it last weekend, but daddy Alex really dug into the problematic elements of the performance for him that stood out.
Here is an image of the performance which look like a fashion ad c. 2004.
There are choreographed numbers, several scenes that include large SUVs, a larger Romeo and Juliet plot line. It seems to have everything but the kitchen sink for this performance, and that may very well be where the problem lies. Greenburger writes, “Yet DOOM did not liberate me. I felt like just another prop in Imhof’s disaffected world, perhaps one that didn’t even belong there. Most of the time, as I watched Imhof’s zombified performers traipse around, recite quotations from dance criticism, and take selfies, I felt nothing at all.” Read the full article here.
In a NYT Style section manner, I also want to set forth some taste making elements.
I am reading: I'm reading Dancing on My Own by Simon Wu
I am drinking: Polar’s single batch dessert winter seltzers.
I am looking at: All the men over 60 with real estate in other countries on daddy apps. I am also going to auctions to meet men over 60 with real estate in other countries so this counts as a form of looking