Every week, Artnet News brings you Wet Paint, a gossip column of original scoops. If you have a tip, email Annie Armstrong at [email protected].
MARONEY OUT
Since the death of leading New York dealer Barbara Gladstone last summer, many have been watching her gallery as a test case for whether a top-flight outfit can continue to excel without its founder. So far, Gladstone seems to be navigating those tricky waters. While the veteran painter Carroll Dunham recently departed, it added six new artists to its star-studded roster this year, including buzzy new names and industry mainstays, like Peter Saul, Precious Okoyomon, Brook Hsu, and Joseph Yaeger.
Gladstone’s continued strength is perhaps attributable to the fact that the staffers that Barbara brought on are veterans. Its partners include living legend Gavin Brown and Max Falkenstein (the gallery’s senior partner, who just chewed the fat in a must-read interview with my colleague Eileen Kinsella). And its crack team of directors includes the beloved writer Alissa Bennett, former auction house wunderkind Julian Ehrlich, who was hired in May, and of course, the quintessential “curator boyfriend” himself, Cooke Ma—but wait!
Wet Paint can exclusively reveal a surprising development inside the Gladstone Gallery: “Director at large” Cooke Maroney has flown the coop. The news was confirmed by a gallery representative, who said that he “has transitioned to working independent projects. We’ll be collaborating regularly in the future, and look forward to continuing our relationship in a new way.”
I got in touch with Maroney, who told me, “My time with Gladstone has been a true privilege which I am extremely grateful for, and I look forward to collaborating with Gladstone in future endeavors.”
Maroney had been at the gallery for a full decade, joining after a stint at Gagosian, where he built a Rolodex of high-profile clients. The 41-year-old was born into the trade, the son of an art dealer, James Maroney, and a paintings conservator, Suki Frederick.
In 2019, he married actress Jennifer Lawrence, and gossip rags went crazy over the concept of the “curator boyfriend.” This was around the time that Karma director Siniša Mačković started dating Chloë Sevigny (who told Cultured in 2022, through a laugh, “I’m a really indie version of Jennifer Lawrence and her art husband”). They have two children, one named Cy, after Cy Twombly, one of Maroney’s favorite artists.
After sharing his initial comment, Maroney followed up with another thought, about Gladstone’s latest exhibition: “P.S. the Katz x Barney show is extremely good. It’s my favorite gallery.”
O SUPERMAN
Christopher Reeve in Superman (1978). Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.
Sotheby’s has had a hectic run since 2019, when Patrick Drahi acquired it. With the market heading south, its 2024 sales were off almost a quarter versus 2023, there have been layoffs and departures, and the New Yorker published a scathing profile in August that suggested the business was hitting every branch on the way down the metaphorical tree.
Amid the turmoil, the house has been looking to activate new revenue streams. There was that odd, expensive clothing line, for one. It also moved into pop-culture collectibles that are a far cry from the luxury goods typically associated with the 281-year-old house. To helm that category, it hired art advisor to the stars Ralph DeLuca as a vice chairman. It sold a piano used by Amy Winehouse (for $253,000), a drawing that John Lennon made on acid ($35,000), and the iconic sweater vest worn by Ferris Bueller during his day off ($279,000).
This is not exactly Jeff Koons money, but every sale helps in tough times.
However, my sources on the ground tell me that there’s been a bit of trouble behind the scenes of this new venture. One anonymous tipster mentioned to Wet Paint that the house’s “Film Memorabilia” auction, which was set for this past Tuesday, was quietly cancelled. The website for the sale now delivers a “404: Error Code” message.
DeLuca declined to comment, and the house, in a statement, said only that it “will not be proceeding with the sale of Film Memorabilia.”
The most-buzzed-about piece in the auction, actor Christopher Reeve’s Yvonne Blake-designed Superman costume, will be auctioned by itself at an as-yet-undetermined date with an estimate of $600,000 to $800,000, I’m told.
Other items that were set to hit the block included one of Harry Potter’s wands, an Iron Man helmet, some “Star Wars” lightsabers, a Darth Maul prop, and Yoda’s walking stick.
What happened? No one is saying. But two weeks ago, the Los Angeles Times published a piece about how props from iconic films are becoming increasingly lucrative—and increasingly thorny as collectibles. They can sell “on par with rare wine, Swiss watches, and fine art,” Stacy Perman reported. “But as prices for these objects have surged, so have questions about their authenticity.” One collector told the Times, “The second the money got real, so did the fakes.”
WE HEAR
You know that painting in the front room at Bar Oliver? The restaurant confirmed it’s by Julian Schnabel… Dua Lipa is among the many fans of Sasha Gordon’s show at David Zwirner… A wild rumor is circulating that John Currin is going to represent the U.S. at the next Venice Biennale. It doesn’t seem all that plausible to me, but perhaps the talk indicates the mood in the U.S.A… This weekend, East Village gallery Smilers is launching a riff on The New York Earth Room (1977), Walter De Maria’s legendary installation piece in SoHo. The New York Vape Room, which is attributed to R. Mutt (a Marcel Duchamp alias), is composed of up-cycled vapes that have been crowdsourced since August. Go check it out at 431 East Sixth Street, #4… Last Days (2022), artist Matt Copson’s experimental opera loosely based on Gus van Sant’s same-named 2005 film, which dramatizes the final days of Kurt Cobain’s life, has been optioned for a film adaptation by Mubi. I saw the fantastic theater version at the Royal Opera House in London with the aria sung by Caroline Polachek, and I can’t wait to see how Copson approaches it for the silver screen… Finally, the estate of Walter Robinson is on the hunt for his painting Antonia with Toothbrush (1984). Any readers know where it is?
WET DRIP
Art curators have a reputation for a very certain aesthetic: an oddball pair of glasses, some severe Issey Miyake or Balenciaga, a serious expression. I’d like to dedicate this week’s section to one curator who is renowned for a very different sense of style: the great Thelma Golden, director and chief curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem. Her sartorial taste has always been about billowing silhouettes, intricate patterns, and sealed with a kiss of coral-red lipstick—far more lively, and far less self-serious, than the standard curator uniform.
This week, the Studio Museum hosted its annual gala at the Glasshouse in Hell’s Kitchen, and Golden was, as usual, dressed to impress, with a silk crepe de chine dress made by art-loving label Ulla Johnson.
You can get Golden’s look here. And you can visit the Studio Museum’s new home beginning on November 15.
See you next week.