Profits Quadruple for Art Basel’s Parent Company—and More Industry Intel

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– Switerland’s MCH Group , which owns the Art Basel fairs, reported increased revenue and profit in the first half of 2026. Net profits quadrupled from CHF 4.4 million ($5.4 million), in the same period last year, to CHF 18.4 million ($22.3 million). The Art Basel fairs are not reported separately, but fall under the company’s Community Platforms division, to which this growth was solely attributed. Increases were consistent across the Americas, Asia/Pacific/Africa, and Europe regions, while revenue in Switzerland declined from CHF 83 ($100 million) to CHF 63 million ($76.4 million). ( Monopol )

– The International Fine Prints & Drawings Association has announced 76 exhibitors for its 2027 fair, running April 8–11 at the Park Avenue Armory . Newcomers include White Cube , and New York galleries Sikkemma Malloy Jenkins and Gladstone .

Auction Houses

– Sotheby’s is dipping its toe into the French dining scene with Chez Sotheby’s , a pop-up at a quaint Paris apartment on Rue de Rivoli, coinciding with Art Basel Paris. Hosted in partnership with the art advisory _Polimeno , more than $150 million worth of artwork is on the menu, including pieces by Wayne Thiebaud, Gerhard Richter, George Condo, and Lucio Fontana . The dining experience is led by chef Erika Blu of Marseille’s Atelier Renata.

– Christie’s is marking 20 years since its UAE debut in Dubai with its first auction in Abu Dhabi. “MAWASIM” takes place at the Abu Dhabi Edition on November 1, featuring works by Paul Guiragossian , Samia Halaby , and Mohamed Melehi among the highlights.

– Bonhams appointed Silke Stahlschmidt as its representative in Zurich.

– Henry Highley is now worldwide head of private sales at Phillips .

Galleries – Chicago gallery Secrist | Beach launched a new project space called Satellite on September 17.

– Former Pace director Dani Forest Brandi is joining art advisory Beaumont Nathan as senior director.

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– New York’s Ortuzar promoted Kenta Murakami to partner and hired Greene Naftali ‘s Jeffrey Rowledge as senior director.

– Pace Prints acquired Brand X Editions . ( Artnet News )

– Amid the art fairs in New York next week, Ben Brown Fine Arts is organizing an Upper East Side gallery night on Thursday, September 24. More than 20 venues will stay open until 9 p.m., including Anton Kern Gallery , Alisan Fine Arts , and Gladstone . Here’s a Google Map .

– Lucy Bull is now repped by Hauser & Wirth in collaboration with David Kordansky Gallery , Sarah Ball joined Pilar Corrias in London, New York’s Alexander Gray Associates now reps Márcia Falçao with Brazilian gallery Fortes D’Aloia & Gabriel and Contemporary Fine Arts (Berlin and Basel), David Reed joined the lineup at Rodder (New York), L.A.’s Nazarian / Curcio added Larissa Lockshin to its roster, Marina Adams joined Peter Blum Gallery (New York), David Hartt joined Bortolami (New York), Maruani Mercier (Brussels) now reps the estate of Hermann Nitsch, and Gazelli Art House is now working with the Lilly Fenichel Foundation .

Museums & Institutions

– A monumental donation of 180 works worth more than €16 million ($18.5 million) from the Thyssen-Bornemisza family to the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza , as well as the long-term loan of 180 more, worth €10 million ($11.5 million), will form the collection of a new museum for contemporary art in Madrid, expected in around 2031. ( Artnet News )

– Staff at the V&A ‘s South Kensington site announced further strike action on September 25 and 26 over pay and working conditions.

– Unionized staff at the Brooklyn Museum , the American Folk Art Museum , and the Whitney Museum of American Art voted in favor of strike action amid ongoing contract negotiations. ( Artnews )

– Argentina’s Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Bueones Aires chose Mexican architect Frida Escobedo to design a major expansion, expected to open in around 2030. ( The Art Newspaper )

– Si Hene, a new cultural centre in Accra for archiving Ghanaian history, opens in early November. ( The Art Newspaper )

– Harvard Art Museums appointed Jeannie M. Kenmotsu as curator of Asian art.

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Biennials and Awards

– The 2027 Islamic Arts Biennale will be led by Nada Raza , director of the Alserkal Arts Foundation; Idries Trevathan , former chief curator of the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) in Dhahran; and Islamic art scholars William Robinson and Alain Fouad George . The event returns to the Western Hajj Terminal at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on November 1.

– Mori Art Museum director Kataoka Mami was appointed Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Republic. Artist Shiota Chiharu was appointed Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.

– Photographer Tyler Mitchell won the $250,000 Don Tyson Prize for the Advancement of American Art , courtesy of Crystal Bridges and the Tyson Family Foundation .

– The 2026 Isamu Noguchi Award went to artist Danh Vo and fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto .

– Anna Puigjaner won the 2026 RIBA Charles Jencks Award for architecture.

– The inaugural Spector Craft Prize winner is Sharif Bey , who will have one work acquired by the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art .

– The €50,000 ($57,400), 2026 Prince Claus Impact Award went to artist and academic kąrî’kạchä seid’ou .

People

– New York P.R. firm Cultural Counsel will restructure as its founder Adam Abdalla steps back from day-to-day operations while maintaining ownership of the company. Senior vice president Marcella Zimmerman will takeover public-facing duties. ( Artnews )

RIP – Peter Max , whose psychedelic paintings defined the 1960s, has died at 88. ( Artnet News )

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