Pace Gallery will globally represent the Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative, the institution announced news on Friday. The news comes a few days before an Indiana exhibition, scheduled to open in Venice. It also coincides with the Biennale. Overall, this initiative is a business tasked with overseeing the heritage and artwork of the Pop artist.
Wondrous Opportunities for a Distinctly American Artist
The Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative describes itself as the key organisation in charge of preserving Indiana’s work and archives. Dealer Simon Salama-Caro created the initiative shortly after the estate reached a complicated and protracted court dispute on Indiana’s historical heritage. “This is the start of an exciting next phase of Robert Indiana’s illustrious legacy”, Salama-Caro said in an email.
“For Bob’s work to be globally represented by Pace Gallery provides wondrous opportunities for a distinctly American artist to be further introduced to new audiences around the world, where his art can continue to influence and inspire artists and creatives for years to come”, Salama-Caro also added.
Indiana is still well-known for his daring use of letters and numbers in prints, paintings, and sculptures. For instance, his well-known 1964 LOVE picture has been included in sculptures, prints, and other media. In 1978, after becoming well-known in New York City and hanging out with Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, Indiana moved to the isolated island of Vinalhaven off the coast of Maine.
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Collaborating With Other Venues
In contrast to his Pop contemporaries, Indiana struggled in New York and wasn’t given many significant retrospectives. But in the 1990s, when Salama-Caro started to represent him, his fortunes turned around. Indiana gave him a financial lifeline when he sold the rights to LOVE to the Morgan Art Foundation.
Waddington Custot in London and Kasmin Gallery in New York have been Indiana’s current dealers. Although Pace, which debuted Indiana artists in 1962, now represents the state solely, the gallery still intends to collaborate with other venues to promote the artists’ work. Indiana joins the ranks of renowned postwar estates and foundations that include Agnes Martin, Claes Oldenburg, Jean Dubuffet, Robert Irwin, Sam Gilliam, Kenneth Noland, and Mark Rothko.
“We think that there is a lot for people to learn about Robert Indiana and his contribution. We think that people are going to be astounded by the show in Venice”, Pace CEO Marc Glimcher said. “Robert Indiana: The Sweet Mystery” is the name of the exhibition, which will be on display at the Procuratie Vecchie in Piazza San Marco, Venice. Curated by Matthew Lyons and organised by Yorkshire Sculpture Park, the exhibition will include pieces from over 60 years of his career.
