Hauser & Wirth

Hauser & Wirth is a contemporary and modern art gallery headquartered in Switzerland with gallery locations across Europe, Asia, and North America. Founded in 1992 in Zurich, it has grown from a single apartment-based operation into one of the most expansive international gallery networks in the art world, representing over 80 artists and artists' estates while maintaining a significant publishing program and collection in Henau, Canton of St. Gallen.

Hauser & Wirth was founded in 1992 in Zurich by Iwan Wirth, Manuela Wirth, and Ursula Hauser. The gallery began operations from Iwan Wirth's Zurich apartment before opening its first permanent venue in 1996 in the former Löwenbräu building. Ursula Hauser had begun building her own art collection in the 1980s, acquiring works by artists such as Max Bill and Meret Oppenheim, and the gallery launched with already established artists including Gerhard Richter and Marcel Broodthaers. Marc Payot joined as co-president in 2000, and in 2020 Ewan Venters was appointed as the first CEO, followed by Mirella Roma in 2024. A significant development in the gallery's early growth was Iwan Wirth's collaboration with German entrepreneur Friedrich Christian Flick, for whose Flick Collection Wirth developed the collection concept and served as advisor. The gallery's expansion accelerated in the 2000s and 2010s with openings in London (2003), New York (2009 and 2013), Somerset (2014), Los Angeles (2016), Hong Kong (2018), Menorca (2021), Paris (2022), and West Hollywood (2023). Future locations announced include Palo Alto, California (Spring 2026) and Palermo, Italy (2030).

The Hauser & Wirth Collection is housed in Henau in the Canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland. It emerged from the gallery's activities and has been the source of numerous exhibitions. The collection was listed as being of national significance in the Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance until 2021. Works from the collection have been featured in exhibitions including a Paul McCarthy survey at Lokremise St. Gallen (1999), 'Wechselstrom' at Lokremise St. Gallen (2001), 'The House of Fiction' at Lokremise St. Gallen (2002), a Roman Signer survey at Lokremise St. Gallen (2003), '(In Search of) The Perfect Lover' at Kunsthalle Baden-Baden (2003), 'Swiss Made: the art of falling apart' at Cobra Museum, Amstelveen (2005), and 'Ballerina in a Whirlpool' at Kunsthalle Baden-Baden (2006). The gallery's roster encompasses both Swiss artists, including Roman Signer, Christoph Büchel, and Pipilotti Rist, and international figures such as Louise Bourgeois, Maria Lassnig, and Paul McCarthy.

Hauser & Wirth represents over 80 artists and artists' estates, including Frank Bowling, Mark Bradford, Stefan Brüggemann, George Condo, Roni Horn, Rashid Johnson, Christina Quarles, Pipilotti Rist, Lorna Simpson, Uman, and Avery Singer. The gallery manages several major artist estates and foundations, notably the Estate of Philip Guston, the Louise Bourgeois estate, and the Jack Whitten Estate. Other estates under the gallery's administration include those of Eva Hesse, Jason Rhoades, Lee Lozano, André Thomkins, and Eduardo Chillida. The gallery has organized significant exhibitions including 'Alexander Calder. Mobiles and Gouaches' and 'Joan Miró. Sculptures and Paintings' in Zurich (1992), the installation of Roth Bar at Dieter Roth's solo exhibition in Zurich (1997), 'David Hammons' at Hauser & Wirth Zurich (2003), 'Revolution in the Making: Abstract Sculpture by Women, 1947-2016' at Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles (2016), 'Schwitters Miró Arp' at Hauser & Wirth London (2016), 'Louise Bourgeois & Pablo Picasso: Anatomies of Desire' at Hauser & Wirth Zurich (2019), and 'Mark Bradford. Masses and Movements' at Hauser & Wirth Menorca (2021).

Hauser & Wirth operates multiple distinctive spaces across three continents. In Zurich, the gallery occupies three spaces in the former Löwenbräu brewery building on Limmatstrasse. The London branch opened in 2003 in a former bank on Piccadilly designed by Edwin Lutyens, and in 2021 the gallery acquired the Thomas Goode building at 19 South Audley Street in Mayfair to create a new flagship alongside its Savile Row space. The New York presence includes a purpose-built gallery at 542 West 22nd Street in West Chelsea, designed by Selldorf Architects and opened in spring 2020, replacing earlier spaces including one at the former Roxy disco and skating rink. Hauser & Wirth Somerset, opened in 2014, was created through the renovation of Durslade Farm, a collection of farm buildings in rural Bruton. The Los Angeles space, opened in 2016, occupies the restored Globe Mills complex, a 100,000 square foot former flour mill in downtown Los Angeles that received the Los Angeles Conservancy's Chair's Award in 2018. Hauser & Wirth Menorca, opened in July 2021 on Illa del Rei, was developed through a conservation project overseen by Paris-based architect Luis Laplace, repurposing historic buildings on the island; this project received the Best Social Responsibility Initiative award from the Government of the Balearic Islands in September 2021, was listed among Architectural Digest's '2022 Works of Wonder,' and named 'Best Art Destination' in the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2022. The Paris space, announced in June 2022, is located in a 19th-century hôtel particulier with renovations overseen by Luis Laplace.

Hauser & Wirth maintains gallery locations in Europe, Asia, and North America. European spaces include three locations in Zurich, London (Piccadilly, Savile Row, and Mayfair), Somerset, Gstaad, St. Moritz, Basel, Paris, Menorca, Chillida Leku, and Monaco. The Asian presence consists of a Hong Kong location. North American spaces include three Manhattan locations, Los Angeles, and West Hollywood, with a future Palo Alto location announced for Spring 2026. The gallery previously operated in Southampton, New York. Beyond exhibition spaces, Hauser & Wirth operates Artfarm, a hospitality enterprise, and runs an artist-in-residence program at Hauser & Wirth Somerset since 2013. The gallery also maintains educational partnerships, including with Cal State LA (which received a one-million dollar grant from the gallery in 2019 for its television, film, and media studies department) and CalArts. In 2018, Hauser & Wirth launched the Hauser & Wirth Institute, a non-profit organization based in New York. The gallery's publishing arm, Hauser & Wirth Publishers, opened a stand-alone headquarters and bookshop in Zurich's historic center in June 2019, occupying the former home of the Oprecht & Helbling bookshop and the Europa Verlag publishing house. The gallery also produces a quarterly art magazine, Ursula, launched in September 2018 with Randy Kennedy as executive editor.