POWER 100
photos, left to right: Hans Ulrich Obrist, Glenn D. Lowry, Sir Nicholas Serota
reposted from Art Review
Published On:
Sunday, 03, January 2010
INTRODUCTION
The ArtReview Power 100, published each year in the November issue of ArtReview magazine, is a comprehensive listing of the artworld's most powerful figures. Entrants are ranked according to a combination of influence over the production of art internationally, sheer financial clout (although in these times that's no longer such a big factor) and activity in the previous 12 months — criteria which encompass artists, of course, as well as collectors, gallerists and curators. Regular appearances are also made by those who run the major art fairs, by museum and foundation directors, and even by the occasional critic.
Coming on the heels of 12 months of extraordinary financial stress, both in the artworld and the real world, the 2009 edition of the Power 100 reflects fundamental changes in influence. Previous No. 1s, both artists and collectors, have plummeted, while only the most ambitious of museums have stayed near the top; meanwhile, percolating up from the middle ranks is a new generation of highly networked, flexible, globetrotting curators — men and women at the very centre of a new way of working.
The ArtReview Power 100 is not just a who's who to contemporary art but also a guide to general trends and forces that shape the artworld. With almost a third of entries new to the list this year, and sharp divisions among the panel of international experts making the selections, this edition is one of the freshest in years.
