10 Gallery Leaders Shaping the Online Art World

Since joining White Cube in 2022 as director of digital and audiences, Clara Bodelon has been instrumental in evolving the mega-gallery’s online presence. With galleries in London, New York, Paris, Hong Kong, and Seoul, White Cube has a busy program featuring some of today’s most established artists and estates, as well as an evolving cohort of emerging talent.

In addition to regularly uploading its gallery shows to Artsy, White Cube also uses the platform to launch dedicated sales of prints and works by newly represented artists through viewing rooms.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

Artsy’s reach—particularly in the U.S. and among younger collectors—has been essential in helping us build a fuller picture of new markets. As White Cube’s footprint expands globally and digitally, this has been particularly useful.

Artsy regularly introduces new features to help galleries offer a seamless online experience for collectors. Particularly important for us are options to better manage collectors’ expectations on availability, without discouraging them from getting in touch and building new relationships.

What is your advice to galleries looking to grow online?

The busiest online moments usually coincide with extremely busy offline events, which can make it easy to lose sight of potentially important opportunities. It is critical to be conscious of resources. One way to manage more demanding moments is through testing and exploring new tools—make a conscious effort to track and monitor results.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the art market in the next 10 years?

As collectors trend towards wanting more control of what they acquire, the market will need to find ways to increase transparency.

Formerly a VP of product and design at Artsy, Marisa Elena Todd joined David Zwirner in 2022 as chief digital officer. As one of the largest galleries in the world, David Zwirner has an industry-leading online presence, ranging from its e-commerce site Platform to Dialogues, one of the art world’s favorite podcasts. The gallery, which represents more than 60 artists and estates, has been an Artsy partner since 2014.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

Artsy has enabled us to continue to connect with a diverse range of global collectors—from next-generation collectors to established collectors and art advisors.

What is your advice to galleries looking to grow online?

For galleries aspiring to expand their online presence, it is important to ensure that your digital presence not only supports but also enhances your ongoing programming, including exhibitions, fairs, and museum shows.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the market in the next 10 years?

We are currently witnessing one of the largest wealth transfers in history. This new generation of collectors will be looking for new and seamless ways to begin assembling their collections.

Kathy Grayson founded The Hole in 2010 on the Bowery in New York. The gallery has since expanded to a second space in New York’s Tribeca neighborhood, and a third in Los Angeles. Known for its focus on emerging artists and thematic group shows, the gallery has grown into an established tastemaker that maintains a consistently strong monthly program and art fair schedule.

The gallery upholds a similarly robust presence on Artsy, where its roster of artists and uploaded artworks is maintained in a curated style that reflects the gallery’s dynamic artist presentations.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

We are selective about what we put on Artsy; we don’t just dump everything on there. We update our artwork records constantly by adding additional images or categories and uploading exhibitions so people can get a sense of our exhibitions (not just available single pieces).

We also use Artsy ourselves for curatorial research, and I have personally inquired after purchases for my own collection. That is to say, we boost our presence online by being active.

What is your advice to galleries looking to grow online?

Pay attention to it—don’t treat it as an afterthought. You may not get an instant ROI, but you are playing a crucial long game. If you aren’t sure how to put your best foot forward online, the only way to figure it out is to practice, so jump in.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the art market in the next 10 years?

The emerging art market is extremely volatile…I could write an essay on how it has changed just over the past month! But prognosticating about the next 10 years: The in-person experience stayed strong and was perhaps even burnished to a brighter shine by the pandemic; it isn’t going away.

Galleries need to play the online game correctly, mostly with reach and clarity, but also in person to provide a more meaningful experience: presenting shows that are more involved and need to be visited; enhancing human connection and relationships with clients and the general public; more impact at art fairs.

Especially in the emerging sector with works under $100,000, I bet that galleries will start to match the online and in-person balance and sleekness of high-end retail. I’m making no qualitative judgment about that.

From a marketing standpoint, mastering video is clearly the most important thing right now. I bet galleries start hiring videographers more than photographers soon.

Frej Forsblom founded Makasiini Contemporary in 2016 in the Finnish city of Turku. The gallery’s program focuses on long-term collaborations with emerging and mid-career artists, which it showcases in nine main shows annually.

The gallery leverages digital strategy to achieve substantial growth in a way that has transcended its geographical location. Several of the gallery’s artists, such as Eliza Douglas and Jacob Hashimoto, have experienced substantial growth in demand. By uploading artworks from the full swath of its artist list, the gallery brings itself into contact with a global pool of collectors.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

Artsy serves as a powerful tool to connect with new global collectors. Our experience shows that the more we invest in and engage with Artsy, the more inquiries and interest we see. By regularly uploading our most high-demand inventory, we keep our content fresh and enticing.

Keeping in regular touch with our Artsy advisor also helps us get more visibility by sharing our program. This increases our chances of being featured in curatorial collections and editorial content, which are distributed directly to collectors. We’ve also recently upgraded to a marketing plan, utilizing different ads and featured content to further boost our presence.

What is your advice to galleries looking to grow online?

To grow online, galleries must be active on social media, especially Instagram, and Artsy. Regularly adding content keeps followers engaged and informed about new and available works.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the market in the next 10 years?

The online market will continue to expand. The location of the gallery space will become less important compared to what you can offer online. The new generations, deeply connected with their mobile devices, find everything online now, which will help the global market grow. However, finding exciting ways to engage these audiences is crucial.

Art fairs will remain significant, but only the strongest will survive. It will become increasingly important to think more collaboratively and with a broader perspective.

Adeolu Tahouf founded Ogirikan Art Gallery in Lagos, Nigeria, with a mission to support young artists and provide a platform for more established names.

A pillar in its local community, the gallery organized Nigeria’s first miniature art fair in 2018. With its free entry and accessible prices, the fair extends the gallery’s goal of making art accessible to all. This is also reflected in the gallery’s presence on Artsy, where it uploads an extensive range of artworks by emerging artists.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

We upload at least one show monthly to keep our profile fresh and engaging and leverage a premium Artsy plan that includes viewing rooms, which we use to feature and highlight select artworks by our represented artists. By doing so, we’ve been able to showcase our artists’ works to a broader audience, drive traffic, and provide an immersive experience.

What is your main piece of advice to galleries looking to grow online?

Curate a diverse range of artists, including those who create miniature and small-scale works at affordable prices. This will help meet the needs of collectors with small spaces, first-time buyers, or those looking to add to their collections without breaking the bank.

Consider showcasing these smaller works prominently on your website and social media, and utilize relevant hashtags to increase discoverability.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the market in the next 10 years?

I think the biggest change we’ll see in the market over the next 10 years is a significant increase in young collectors (under the age of 40) seeking affordable abstract art. This demographic will likely drive demand for emerging artists and more accessible price points, potentially disrupting traditional market trends.

Joe Kennedy founded Unit in 2013 with his childhood best friend Johnny Burt. With a growing roster of artists (many of whom it co-represents with peer galleries), Unit is experiencing a banner year in 2024, opening a group show in Venice during the Biennale, and its own artist residency program, in partnership with ArtReview, in France.

The London-based gallery runs an intensive program that often includes more than three shows per month across physical and digital channels. In addition to consistently adding artworks and shows to Artsy, the gallery is an avid user of tools such as viewing rooms, which it leverages to present its shows in a nuanced, contextualized format.

What is your advice to galleries looking to grow online?

Make sure you develop a strategy that aligns with the bigger goals of your gallery—whether that’s geographic, demographic, or otherwise. Everything you do online should derive authentically from your values and vision for your gallery and artists. Treat the online space as you do your physical. You wouldn’t tolerate scuffs on the walls of your gallery, so don’t allow low-quality images on your online channels, either.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the market in the next 10 years?

We’re going to see an accelerated expansion of the size of the art market, with purchasing power in the hands of non-traditional and new types of collectors. Alongside this, I expect a drastic increase in transparency in the market, facilitated by access to big data. These changes will have many outcomes—one of them being, I suspect, a re-framing of the traditional model of gallery-artist representation and more agency for artists and their collaborators.

Yuting Zhu is the operation manager at 樂兿居 ARTIN SPACE, a secondary-market specialist that runs two gallery spaces in Hong Kong and Hangzhou, China.

The gallery’s Artsy page contains a broad range of works by in-demand Chinese artists such as Chu Teh-Chun and Liu Ye, as well as established European names such as Joan Miró. While it runs a physical program of shows, the gallery leverages its extensive inventory to run concurrent digital presentations, using Artsy as a gateway to engage with new collectors.

An e-commerce-first business, the gallery also prices works transparently on Artsy and responds rapidly to collector inquiries.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

Artsy not only provides the basic functions for online sales, but also includes sections like shows, fairs, and viewing rooms. Because of space limitations, our gallery cannot host quarterly exhibitions (which means most of our inventory remains in storage). But Artsy’s sections of shows and viewing rooms allow us to achieve this online, presenting our artworks within a cohesive theme or narrative. This makes the works easier to remember and enhances our gallery’s visibility.

What is your main piece of advice to galleries looking to grow online?

Even though we cannot see the faces of every customer who comes to inquire or purchase online, behind each ID, they are real people. Sincerity is the most important quality in all business relating to people. Whether in taking photos of an artwork, packaging, or shipping, a sincere attitude ensures speed and credibility.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the art market in the next 10 years?

Platforms like Artsy are making artworks more accessible. It will lead the client base to extend beyond traditional collectors. The collectors will also become more diverse in their art interests, unlike before, when people mainly focused on purchasing works by domestic artists.

Adenrele Sonariwo founded Rele in 2010 as an interface between the African and international art worlds. Initially starting as a nomadic gallery, it opened its first physical space in Lagos in 2015 before expanding to Los Angeles in 2018 and London this year. A flagbearer for contemporary African art, Sonariwo is also a founding director of the nonprofit Rele Arts Foundation and an esteemed curator: Her projects have included the first Nigerian pavilion at the 2017 Venice Biennale.

Rele’s online presence mirrors the gallery’s ambitious and broad programming. The gallery keeps an up-to-date selection of artworks and shows online, frequently with visible pricing, plentiful imagery, and accompanying text that educates—as well as attracts the attention of—new collectors.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

We consistently ensure that all of our shows, across all three locations, and new works from our artists, are posted on the Artsy platform.

What is your advice to galleries looking to grow online?

Be consistent and patient.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the market in the next 10 years?

The audience will continue to widen as platforms like Artsy are making it more accessible for people to engage with and collect art.

Frazer Bailey founded Moosey in the British city of Norwich in 2013 to spotlight lesser-known emerging artists. Bailey first started the gallery as a side hustle alongside his day job as a train fixer before making Moosey his full-time endeavor. In addition to running the gallery, Bailey also operates a dedicated print studio, where he and his artists create screenprints at accessible price points.

Moosey prides itself on fostering an inclusive environment for new and seasoned collectors alike. It has used Artsy to cultivate a loyal international clientele.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

Instagram used to be the best tool for emerging galleries, but these days it’s becoming more difficult to be seen due to their algorithms and the obsession with Reels. This means that we had to double down on any other tools available to us, Artsy being one. It’s definitely a tool that benefits you more the more you put into it. We’ve connected with some great collectors around the world who now continuously buy from the gallery through Artsy.

What is your main piece of advice to galleries looking to grow online?

It’s so tough right now for galleries like us who don’t have any financial backing—there are not many tools out there that don’t cost money. My advice is that it’s now down to the artists you choose. You have to be different and work with artists that haven’t been seen before.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the market in the next 10 years?

I think the biggest change we’ll see is that there’ll be a lot fewer galleries. The art world boomed so much in the COVID era and suddenly everyone wanted to open a gallery. Now the climate is a lot different. I just hope that there’s always strong backing for galleries showcasing emerging talent, taking risks, and so on.

Jamie Villamarin joined RoGallery in 1999, and today serves as an assistant director at the Long Island City gallery.

RoGallery’s secondary-market inventory includes works by some of the leading names in modern and contemporary art, from Damien Hirst to Elaine de Kooning. Founded in the mid-1970s by Gail and Robert Rogal, the gallery was an early adopter of digital technologies, launching its website in 1995 and online art auctions in 2000.

RoGallery is among the most active partners on Artsy today. The gallery optimizes its potential for making sales by prioritizing uploading works by artists with high demand on a regular basis.

How have you used Artsy to boost your gallery’s presence online?

Artsy has an amazing assortment of tools. By prioritizing the best of our inventory when uploading, we are able to maximize our viewership and maintain our status as a gallery that provides exciting and high-quality art. Artsy has a remarkable customer base with very discerning taste. Pieces from our collection have sold to cities across the globe.

What is your advice to galleries looking to grow online?

Consistency is key. Having a schedule of new pieces helps to stay on top of search pages and at the forefront of every collector’s mind. The goal is to always be present and always be new. People remember what they see regularly. When you upload more pieces, people are likely to remember your gallery’s name.

What’s the biggest change you think we’ll see in the market in the next 10 years?

If the last 10 years prove anything, it’s that customer service and building customer relationships are absolutely key. In ages past, this was done in person and one-on-one, but as technology changes, so, too, does the nature of how we foster these relationships.

RoGallery prides itself on being one of the first online galleries, putting our collection online in 1996. Since then, we have always seen the benefit of moving our collection with the tide. In the future, customers will expect a substantially larger presence online, with galleries that respond quickly and thoughtfully across a myriad of platforms.

Today with Artsy, galleries can use tools like “Send Offer” and collector profiles to ensure that every collector is communicated with intentionally. Our eye is also on TikTok, particularly for the future of the art market as more and more members of Gen Z become collectors.