NOTA BENE: This Week in the Art World

Nate fills Benjamin in on what he missed in Mexico City last week and tells the tale of the dream that led to a huge Kentucky Derby payday before briefly discussing the passing of art collecting lion Eli Broad.  Special Guest and charter Crab Posse member Lock Kresler then dials in from London for a detailed discussion of some of the top lots coming up for auction next week at Christie's and Sotheby's. A long time auction house specialist and art dealer Lock is an encyclopedia of knowledge about the art market and shares some amazing details and astute analysis about some of the pictures going under the hammer in New York next week. We discuss works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Martin Kippenberger, Matthew Barney, friend of the pod Joel Mesler, Jonas Wood, Alex da Corte, the most amazing Robert Colescott imaginable, what's going on with Rudolf Stingel and a whole slew more.  Nota Bene: Don't raise your paddle (or sign an irrevocable bid contract) until you've tuned in. 

With Nate reporting from Mexico City while Benjamin holds down the fort in NYC the gents discuss Jeff Koons defection to Pace Gallery, long lunches at Contramar, the passing of epic collector Hans Rasmus Astrup, consolidation in the art logistics game, supermodel Emily Ratajkowski's chic NFT trolling of Richard Prince and Olafur Eliasson's spectacle at the Beyeler Foundation in Basel. They are then joined by award winning Art Critic Andrew Russeth who shares what he has learned about art and food since moving to Seoul during a global pandemic including rumors of a Frieze bringing an edition of their art fair there, the potential fate of the 12,000 item, 2.5 billion (with a B) art collection of longtime Samsung chair Lee Kun-hee, and most critically all the tasty food he is eating. 

In the first half Nate and Benjamin discuss trivialities including the resumption of power breakfasts at Balthazar, the trendiness in the artworld of the expensive Prolon fast and the 4/20 reopening of steakhouse standby Smith & Wollensky. They go on to discuss Paula Copper's legacy planning as revealed in last Sunday's Times and how that highlights the lack of such public announcements by other top gallerists (happy birthday Larry). The lads go on to discuss some of the blockbuster lots Sotheby's has announced for their May sales as well as their results from Hong Kong including a record result for recent guest of the pod Joel Mesler. Benjamin shares what he has learned in his recent immersion into the antiquities market ahead of a Christie's sale this week including how Logan Roy of Succession may be driving a particularly hot segment of that market. Nate then shares some background on some reporting he did on Frieze LA that was recently featured in his column. The second half features an interview with Mills Moran of Los Angeles gallery Morán Morán wherein he discusses his new gallery in that city as well as their forthcoming expansion to Mexico City. Mills also tells us about the history of his gallery, how it has changed over the years and how they managed during the pandemic. All that, and more on Nota Bene. Don't close the deal until you've listened. 

Benjamin and Nate are joined by the brilliant Andrea Neustein to discuss what's what in the world of contemporary art this week. The three discuss Manhattan's best byo restaurant (wu's wonton king) and Benjamin's sublime sommelier and ordering skills; the hypebeast status of gear from Andrea's alma mater (Spence); the Whitney Independent Study Program; the change of venue for the 2022 edition of Frieze LA and the potential for a Frieze fair in Seoul; ArtBasel Hong Kong's pared down 2021 exhibitors list; the results of Urs Fischer's non-fungible token auctioned on Fair Warning; the (sort of) solidified attribution to Da Vinci of the painting Salvator Mundi sold at Christie's to Saudi ruler Mohammed bin Salman for $450 million in 2017; and the recently announced Met Ball. We wrap-up the first half of the pod discussing the Venice Biennale scheduled to open next year and past european art travels to documenta and  Skulptur Projekte Münster and how art-world travel  may change in a post pandemic world. The second half of the pod focuses on recent and forthcoming gallery openings, Nate's encyclopedic knowledge of Taylor Swift  AND the forthcoming New York Mayoral election featuring Benjamin's mea culpa for flirting with Andrew Yang as his choice. Nota Bene: Don't transact in the art market until you've listened. 

Nate and Benjamin discuss Nate's overactive social life including his *very* fancy literary-influencer dinner at Dr. Clark's. They are then forced to discuss Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) as superstar artist Urs Fischer is auctioning his first one off with Loic Gouzer's invitation-only app-based Fair Warning auction house. This leads to a discussion of the reported tension/jockeying between Urs, his main gallery (Gagosian) and Fair Warning backer and Pace Gallery head-honcho Marc Glimcher. The main event is an interview with the innovative gallerist Stefania Bortolami. The interview delves into her early  professional years including running a project space in Barcelona and then her tutelage under the seminal dealer Anthony d’Offay. We then discuss what it was like to move to New York and work for Larry Gagosian and the subsequent decision to break out on her own.  In addition to talking about some of the innovations her gallery has made, Stefania breaks important news in announcing her forthcoming "Artist's City" project in Buffalo this summer with one of the market's most in-demand painters. 

Nate and Benjamin have a quick chat on the news of the day covering passover seder, the stunning David Hammons show at The Drawing Center, how Frieze is trying to stage a safe in-person art fair in New York next month and Nate's profile of market phenom Robert Nava. In the second half we are joined by the artist and gallerist Joel Mesler who--hot on the heels of his sold out exhibition at David Kordansky Gallery in Los Angeles--breaks down his personal and artistic history. We cover his wayward youth in Los Angeles, his college years and (brief) move to Israel, graduate school in San Francisco, his place at the center of the all important Chinatown (LA) art scene of the early aughts, his gallery move to New York and later East Hampton and how he pivoted to becoming a fulltime (and highly in-demand) artist.  You won't want to miss this legendary recontour and his insightful take on what his long and varied journey has taught him about the contemporary art world and life in general. 

In this introductory episode of NOTA BENE your hosts--art advisor Benjamin Godsill and Wet Paint columnist Nate Freeman--give a short introduction to the Note Bene world. They discuss the best places to get a drink in art world capitals including London (Dukes), Zurich (Kronenhalle Bar), Miami (Mac's Club Deuce) and Basel (split decision between the Kunsthalle Bar and the bar of the Three Kings Hotel). Less louche (but no less interestingly) they discuss the future of Hong Kong as an art world capital and a host city for major art fairs given the political climate there. Wrapping it up they preview what we can look forward to in upcoming episodes of this brand new podcast focusing on the art world including: the art market, travel, art fairs, auctions and galleries brought to you by two insiders who have seen it all.