Galerie Francesca Pia, which was originally founded in the Swiss city of Bern in 1990 by the eponymous dealer, has announced that it is calling time at the end of October.
The gallery, a regular presence at Art Basel (24 times), relocated to a larger space in Zurich in 2007 before moving to the city’s Löwenbräukunst-Areal district in 2012 alongside Kunsthalle Zürich, Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, and Hauser & Wirth. In 2023, Galerie Francesca Pia set up shop in its current location on Limmatstrasse 270.
“To mark the closing of our final exhibition with Wade Guyton, we warmly invite you to a finissage apéro this Saturday, October 25 from 5 pm. The artist will be present!,” the gallery posted on Tuesday, signing off: “Francesca Pia and the gallery team.” Pia was among the first dealers to represent American artist Guyton.
She grew up in the countryside outside Bern and has represented artists including Hans-Peter Feldmann, Josef Strau, and Mai-Thu Perret. Pia told Independent Magazine in 2020 that she never set out to start a gallery. “I was asked by friends to do it,” she said. “And in a way, it was both euphoric and difficult in that moment. I had all these artists around that I liked but I knew that I couldn’t show them all.”
The dealer joins what is a growing list of prominent gallerists to call it a day this year. They include Tim Blum, Adam Lindemann, and Oliver Babin, while other operations are scaling back, such as Pace, Almine Rech, and Kasmin Gallery.
“Over the years, I’ve gone through so many crises,” Pia told Independent Magazine. “But as artists, we have to continue what we’re doing. We’ll always find new ideas.”
The gallery did not reply to a request for comment from ARTnews by time of publication.
