January 2009

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Agnew’s, one of the grandest commercial galleries in London, has sold its Grade II listed premises on London’s Bond Street after 131 years of business. The gallery at 43 Bond Street was purpose built in 1877 and has provided the setting for seven generations of the Agnew family to build up one of the most prestigious Old Master dealerships in the world. Among the masterpieces that the firm have handled are the Rokeby Venus by Velazquez – now in London’s National Gallery; The Annunciation by Rossetti – now with Tate; Ruben’s The Entombment, in the National Gallery of Canada; and Rembrandt’s Self Portrait, in Washington’s National Gallery. Such was Agnew’s draw that American collectors and museum curators made the pilgrimage to Agnew’s annual exhibitions of Old Master paintings and watercolours for decades.

So is the sale of the historic Agnew’s premises a symptom of increasing pressure in today’s art market and the economy? Or simply an evolution that businesses make to survive?

What happens when the value of property exceeds the value of art market?
The property market is reported to be on the downturn and yet the Agnew’s building – reported to be sold for about £25m ($50m) – has risen in value more rapidly in the last decade than an Old Master painting. This is not the first time that Agnew’s has responded to changes in the property market: in 1994 they sold a section of the building to plug a reported debt of £15m ($30m) after over-borrowing after the financial crash in the 1980’s.

Art fairs as an alternative to gallery space?
The consolidated success of art fairs from Frieze to Maastricht are potentially a cheaper and highly effective alternative to gallery space while guaranteeing access to large numbers of prospective buyers. As chairman of the family business, Julian Agnew, was reported as saying that art dealing ‘now takes place so much in fairs … the physical location is not as important. Maastricht in March was our most successful ever.’

Does modern and contemporary art provide a more consistent revenue?
Alex Wengraf, a veteran old master dealer, added: ‘This is a sign of the times. I don’t think any large-scale old master gallery is viable any more, because there is a dearth of traditional paintings on the market to sell.’ Although headline-hitting prices are achieved for select Old Masters, the far steadier supply and sale of modern and contemporary works represents a more dependable income. Over the past decade Agnew’s has both anticipated and reflected this phenomenon by steadily introducing more modern British and contemporary to their stock.

Looking to the future
Julian’s daughter Gina Agnew has just appointed a new director of contemporary art and Julian himself has said, ‘the building is unsuitable for art dealing in the 21st century, and some artists have refused to show here. And it’s too big for us.’ The money from the sale of their property (to Etro fashion store) ‘will be ploughed back into stock. Almost all art dealers today are under-capitalised, but there will be big buying opportunities in the next two years.’

18 July is the last day before Agnew’s moves to new premises, taking with them several busts of their ancestors, the huge library, the furniture and Old Master paintings that have long-adorned the building.

Julian Agnew, who has personally worked in the building for 43 years made the statement: ‘The decision to leave the gallery, which has housed our business for 131 years has not been an easy one. We are a business, not a museum. A business can only succeed if it does this.’

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