Interview with Todd Levin Art Advisory

Courtesy Sperone Westwater, New York
Alighiero e Boetti's "Far Quadrare Tutto," 1979

NEW YORK— It goes without saying that art advisors are intensely busy people during art fairs — especially when, like Todd Levin, they occasionally don a curatorial hat too. We talked to the Levin Art Group dealmaker (and curator of the acclaimed 2009 show "Your Gold Teeth II" at Marianne Boesky Gallery) to find out why he considered the Dakis Joannou show a miss, what was hot at the ADAA, why the art trumps the nightlife, and why Independent is the must-see of all the satellite fairs. Here is what he had to say.

• With so much going on this week, the three most significant things for me are the ADAA opening, the Armory opening, and Independent's opening. Everything else is negligible. Independent is singularly interesting, specifically for the person who conceptualized it, Darren Flook, along with his wife, Christabel Stewart. The invited participants will represent an interesting and lively cross-section of what's happening in the young and mid-level galleries now.

• The two most interesting and elegant booths at the ADAA were Sperone Westwater's all-Boetti booth and Marianne Boesky's featuring a very interesting selection of Arte Povera. The opening felt lively.

• I purposely avoided the Dakis show on Tuesday night for a number of reasons. First, I strongly disagree with the entire concept of the exhibition based on the obvious conflicts of interest. Second, I didn't think I'd be able to see the work, given the crowd. I really abhor celebrity cluster$@%#s.

• As for my strategy at the Armory Show this year, rather than going for specific objects at specific booths, I'm really going to take the overall temperature of what the gallerists are doing in terms of their programs. I'll go over the weekend to really have the opportunity to speak with the gallerists one-to-one and gain a better understanding of what they're doing in their spaces. This time around, it's more about research and development, and less about purchase and acquisition.

• I don't do the whole nightlife thing. It doesn't add anything for me, neither in terms of my social connections nor in terms of access to information. My nightlife thing consists of private dinners and private drinks with gallerists where we can speak in a detailed, prolonged way about work and do business in a more humane fashion.
By Sarah Douglas
Published: March 5, 2010