Year-end art world shocker - Damien Hirst leaves Gagosian Gallery after 17 years

The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, 1991

Here’s a year-end art world shocker – Damien Hirst has ditched Gagosian Gallery after 17 years according to Georgina Adam at the Financial Times, who broke the story (though some wags are wondering if Gagosian gave Hirst the heave ho).  It was only a year ago that Gagosian’s global empire hosted Hirst’s spot paintings in all eleven galleries. The move leaves Hirst without New York gallery representation, for now.  Will he go with David Zwirner? Or will he bypass a New York dealer and pursue a direct to the consumer route as he did in 2008 when he auctioned $200 million of his works through Sotheby’s in London. The story comes on the heels of reports that Hirst works have more recently lost value and performed poorly at auction. Happy holidays, indeed.

Visitors encounter “The Golden Calf” by Damien Hirst, which at $18.6 million was the top seller of Sotheby’s two-day sale. Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images.