Sotheby’s
Sotheby’s has opened a new permanent Monaco gallery and hired a new director.
The auction house opened a pop-up gallery in the principality last year and after strong sales it has decided to make it a permanent space.
Sotheby’s expansion follows record private sales across Sotheby’s France and Monaco in 2020 and 2021 as well as its successful auction of 600 lots from the Karl Largerfeld collection in Monte Carlo last year (its first in the principality in almost 25 years)
The gallery opening is part of its wider strategy to grow private sales which includes a gallery in Aspen, Colorado, this summer and follows the launch of galleries in Palm Beach, East Hampton and Los Angeles in recent years.
For its first exhibition, set to open on July 4, just ahead of artmonte-carlo (July 14-16), Sotheby’s has gathered a selection of works from private collections by Claude and François-Xavier Lalanne.
The gallery at 20 Avenue de la Costa, Monte Carlo will also house its Monaco office which is relocating there.
Mark Armstrong is to retire after 40 years at the helm of the business and Louise Gréther, previously at Artcurial, has joined as director of Sotheby’s Monaco.
While at Artcurial, Gréther opened its Monte Carlo office in July 2015. Originally from the UK, Gréther is bilingual in English and French. Since 2020, she has also been the president of Monaco Art Week. Sotheby's opened its first office in Monaco in 1967 and was the first international auction house to organise sales in the principality.
Christie’s
Christie’s is returning to Aspen, Colorado with a pop-up gallery in the city. The two-storey, 2,635 sq-ft art gallery, close to Aspen Art Museum, was designed by architect Annabelle Selldorf (who also designed the new galleries at Christie’s New York in Rockefeller Center). and includes an outdoor sculpture garden. Events will run all summer. Christie’s has been holding events and exhibitions in Aspen for the past 20 years.
Hansons
Hansons Auctioneers has hired seven new staff and consultants across its four UK salerooms.
Among the new joiners is textiles and fashion valuer Virginia Ewart and jewellery, silver and watches assessor Melissa Lee-Patrick who both join its Staffordshire saleroom team at Bishton Hall. Lee-Patrick will also work with Hansons’ Banbury saleroom.
Hansons’ Bishton Hall team has also been boosted by the arrival of general valuer Kim Wood who specialises in 20th century objects, silver, pre-Victorian and Art Deco ceramics.
At Hansons in Etwall, Derbyshire (its head office and saleroom) Dr Gwynne Harries has joined as a philatelic consultant. Harries will work in a collaboration between Hansons and auction house Spink & Son.
Dolls and teddy bears consultant Janet Rawnsley has joined to help expand Hansons’ toy sales, and will hold monthly valuation events in Knutsford, Cheshire.
Ian Hall, who has been working in the art and antiques trade for 37 years including at Hall Fine Art near Nottingham, joins as a consultant focusing on developing the professional and private client services.
Dr Richard Halliday, who has returned after a six-month sabbatical, rejoins Hansons’ Banbury saleroom to take up the position of head of curated ceramics at Hanson Holloway’s Ross.
Charles Hanson said: “Business growth has enabled us to strengthen Hansons’ team of valuers and antiques experts to support our salerooms in London, Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Oxfordshire.
FCS Compliance
Sotheby’s former global compliance director Rena Neville has launched a new anti-money laundering division within a property advisory firm.
The anti-money laundering art division has been set up with compliance specialists FCS Compliance.
Neville, who is also founder of Corinth Consulting, has created what she calls a “one-stop-shop service for art market businesses subject to the UK’s anti-money laundering legislation”.
The new operation, FCS Compliance Art Division, will also include Neville’s deputy director at Corinth Consulting, Paula Trommel and work with Malcolm Driscoll, lead AML consultant at FCS Compliance.