The Canadian-born, London-based vendor Stephen Friedman is liquidating his gallery enterprise after three a long time. He closed his New York house on the finish of final yr, on the time citing plans to “consolidate its operations in London”, the place a number of new administrators had lately been employed. The London house has now additionally been closed.
An announcement from the gallery says: “Stephen Friedman Gallery commenced the administration course of on 2 February 2026 to permit for an orderly evaluation of its monetary place. FRP Advisory have been appointed because the administrator. All issues at the moment are topic to the administrator’s consideration. The gallery is now closed to the general public and isn’t presenting at Artwork Basel Qatar this week.”
At Artwork Basel Qatar, a last-minute change to the ground plan revealed that Stephen Friedman’s solo sales space of labor by the late Huguette Caland is now being introduced by the Huguette Caland Property. Representatives for Lisson Gallery stepped in to man the sales space. It’s understood that Lisson underwrote the prices of the stand.
It’s not but recognized whether or not the 39 artists and estates on Stephen Friedman Gallery’s books have begun to be transferred to different galleries.
Stephen Friedman first opened his modern artwork gallery on Previous Burlington Avenue in Mayfair in 1995, at a time when the YBAs dominated the London artwork scene. After 25 years, in October 2023, Friedman moved to larger premises on Cork Avenue. In line with accounts filed on Firms Home that yr, the transfer in London “was required each as a result of the corporate’s present lease was coming to an finish, and since extra workplace and exhibition house was wanted for the corporate’s growth”. In November 2023, Friedman opened a gallery in New York which, in keeping with the accounts, allowed “the gallery’s present artists to exhibit in New York, with out having to contain one other unbiased gallery”.
The gallery has by no means publicly disclosed the prices of renovating the 2 areas, however the agency’s accounts reveal that Friedman misplaced £1.7m in 2023 because of the development of two new galleries, “together with incurring hire on the brand new areas earlier than the transfer and concurrently holding the outdated house whereas they have been being refurbished”. This, in addition to “a powerful downturn within the business’s financial market”, contributed to the gallery’s monetary troubles and it falling behind. These final filings on Firms Home have been submitted late, incomes the gallery a primary Gazette discover for obligatory strike-off in March 2025—a public warning that an organization is prone to being dissolved. That motion was discontinued simply days later.
At that time, money movement projections for 2025 have been “optimistic”, in keeping with the accounts. However, the filings revealed, because of “the slower than regular sell-through of a significant exhibition on the finish of 2024 and a sluggish begin to 2025, money movement is at present tight”. The gallery was already then “implementing some speedy value chopping throughout the board and discussing refinancing choices with our financial institution”. Auditors additionally famous that the gallery’s reliance on financial institution amenities to fulfill its day-to-day money wants was a rising concern.
The latest accounts have been because of be filed in December, after which on 31 January, however stay undisclosed.
