Pace Cuts 50 Artists, Challenges ‘Broken’ Mega-Gallery Model

Pace Gallery New York +6 locations Follow +

Pace has today cut 50 artists from its roster and 50 staff from its business in a bid to break free of what its chief executive has called a “broken” and “unfixable” mega-gallery model.

As first reported by The New York Times, the total number of artists represented by the gallery will decrease by about 30 percent, from around 135 to 85. Its staff will also be reduced by about 20 percent, from about 250 to 200.

Marc Glimcher, Pace’s chief executive, said: “The art world has changed dramatically over the past decade, and the current gallery model isn’t only broken, it’s unfixable. Every gallery is currently making temporary fixes and compromises to prop up a system that no longer works.”

Pace Gallery—which currently has spaces in London, New York, Los Angeles, Geneva, Berlin, Seoul and Tokyo—opened its most recent location, 125 Newbury, in 2022. The 362-square metre (3,900-square-foot) space joined the gallery’s global headquarters at 540 West 25th Street—an eight-storey, 6,970-square-metre (75,000-square-foot) gallery and research library. 

While Pace has not announced plans to shutter any of its locations, Glimcher has confirmed that the gallery will returns to its roots. He said: “The ‘mega-gallery’ model—a system devised to manage multiple spaces and growing rosters—made a lot of sense when new markets arose around the world and others deepened.

“...It has also resulted in rosters that are so large that it’s impossible to give all of the artists the level of support that they deserve and makes it virtually impossible to have a programme that presents a strategic, unified vision.”

Speaking to The New York Times, Glimcher’s father and Pace founder Arne Glimcher echoed this sentiment. He told the paper: “I think this whole mega-gallery thing is ridiculous and also unsupportable. I always thought that.”

Moving forward, Glimcher confirmed that the gallery will continue to operate on a global scale, and will focus on its remaining roster of around 80 artists. “We need a model correction,” he said.

“For Pace, this means returning to our roots, recentering and reasserting our historic mission: We’re going back to the future, connecting younger artists to their spiritual fathers and mothers and building upon our 66-year history.”