Peter Doig in his studio ahead of his exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery in London © Fergus Carmichael, The Courtauld
The British painter and art market heavyweight Peter Doig has left Michael Werner gallery, which has represented him internationally for 23 years.
Doig’s wife, Parinaz Mogadassi, who founded and runs Tramps Gallery in New York, confirmed the move to The Art Newspaper, saying: “Peter is working independently, is not represented by any gallery and has no plans at present to join another gallery.”
Describing the relationship between artist and dealer as “a delicate balance” between the professional and personal, Mogadassi adds: “Ultimately, from an artist's perspective, the best way to be assured transparency in all dealings, is to be the one directly leading the conversations surrounding one’s work and life. You have to also feel there is a sense of likemindedness.”
Tramps Gallery has collaborated with Doig on projects in the past, and Mogadassi says her gallery “will continue to support Peter in anyway we can, without the expectation that he commits to representation”—which is how she works with the artists she has relationships with.
Historically unusual, it is becoming increasingly common for artists to exhibit works fresh from the studio in museum shows. Doig currently has an exhibition on at the Courtauld Gallery in London, which includes several paintings created in the artist’s new London studio, where he relocated from Trinidad in 2021. One canvas from 2023, Canal, shows a London scene of a boy with a plate of eggs next to a waterway.
According to Mogadassi, none of the works are currently for sale; some have been loaned from private collections including that of the French luxury goods titan François Pinault, while the American billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin has sponsored the exhibition.
Doig’s primary market prices are said to reach seven figures, while his auction record stands at $39.9m, which was achieved for a 1990 painting, Swamped, at Christie’s New York in November 2021.
