What acquavella galleries inc. does

Acquavella Galleries is a privately held, family-owned art gallery founded in 1919 by Nicholas M. Acquavella, an Italian immigrant who began trading Italian Renaissance and Baroque paintings in New York. Now in its third generation of family ownership, the gallery has evolved from an Old Masters dealer into one of the world's leading specialists in 19th-to-21st century Impressionist, Modern, Postwar, and Contemporary art. It operates from two physical locations — the historic French neo-classical townhouse at 18 East 79th Street in Manhattan (acquired in 1967 from the Duveen Brothers/Norton Simon) and a Palm Beach gallery opened in 2020 — with a forward exhibition calendar running through 2026.

The gallery's core products are private treaty sales of fine art, regularly scheduled exhibitions with scholarly catalogues, museum acquisition advisory, and representation of a roster of contemporary artists (including Nicole Wittenberg, Yuka Kashihara, Harumi Klossowska de Rola, Miquel Barceló, Tom Sachs, and Damian Loeb). Revenue is generated primarily through transaction-based commissions on high-value private sales — described by the gallery itself as 'the bulk of our business' — supplemented by exhibition-related services and publications. The go-to-market is enterprise field sales targeting ultra-high-net-worth collectors and major museums, with no public pricing and all transactions negotiated by appointment. Marquee past transactions include the $450 million joint sale of the Donald Marron Collection (2020, with Pace and Gagosian), the 1990 acquisition of the Pierre Matisse Gallery inventory (~2,300 works), and major consignments to institutions including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Gallery of Art, Kimbell Art Foundation, and J. Paul Getty Museum.

The business is supported by a small senior team (11-50 employees) featuring Bill Acquavella and the third-generation family owners (Nick and Eleanor Acquavella), alongside directors of notable institutional pedigree — Philippe de Montebello (former Met Director), Ken Yeh (former Christie's Asia Chairman), and Michael Findlay (author of 'The Value of Art'). Customer acquisition is driven through international art fair presence (Art Basel Miami Beach, Art Basel Hong Kong), curated exhibitions, and earned media coverage in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, ARTnews, and The Art Newspaper. The gallery has no technology platform, no app, and no disclosed digital sales channel — the entire business model depends on physical premises, in-person relationships, and discrete private negotiations.

Name

acquavella galleries inc.

Legal name

Acquavella Galleries

Website

https://acquavellagalleries.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1919

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Acquavella Galleries is a third-generation, family-owned New York art gallery founded in 1919, dealing in 19th-21st century Impressionist, Modern, and Contemporary masterworks for ultra-high-net-worth collectors and major museums through private sales and curated exhibitions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fine Art Gallery

NAICS

Art Dealers (459920), Art Dealers (45992)

akta.pro primary industry

Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)

Keywords

• Fine art dealer
• Impressionist modern art
• Private art sales
• Museum acquisition advisory
• Gallery exhibition services

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Art Sales and Private Sales: Primary revenue from brokering high-value art transactions including Impressionist, Modern, and Contemporary works. The gallery facilitates private sales outside of auction houses, which constitutes the bulk of their business model.
2. Exhibition and Gallery Services: Revenue from hosting curated exhibitions and loan exhibitions, including accompanying publications and catalogues.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Acquavella Galleries is a family-owned art dealer that buys, sells, and exhibits high-value 19th to 21st century Impressionist, Modern, Postwar, and Contemporary masterworks through curated gallery exhibitions and private treaty sales. The gallery operates two physical locations (New York and Palm Beach), represents a roster of contemporary artists, and advises museums and ultra-high-net-worth collectors on acquisitions.

Product overview

Acquavella Galleries operates as a single unified gallery offering centered on fine art dealing, exhibition, and advisory services. The company presents regularly scheduled exhibitions of Impressionist, Modern, and Contemporary masterworks at its two locations (New York and Palm Beach), conducts private treaty sales of high-value artworks, represents select contemporary artists, and provides museum acquisition advisory services. The gallery's product offering centers on Gallery Exhibitions (loan and for-sale shows), Art Sales (both exhibition-based and private sales), Artist Representation, Museum Acquisition Advisory, and special historical programs like Acquavella at 100.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gallery Exhibitions Curated exhibitions featuring Impressionist, Modern, Postwar, and Contemporary masterworks presented at the New York townhouse (18 East 79th Street) and Palm Beach location. Exhibitions range from solo shows of represented contemporary artists (Nicole Wittenberg, Yuka Kashihara, Harumi Klossowska de Rola, Tom Sachs) to thematic loan exhibitions such as 'Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony' (April 2026, 50+ works) and 'Masters of Modernism: From Gauguin to Warhol' (December 2025).
• Art Sales and Private Sales Private treaty sales of high-value fine art including Impressionist, Modern, and Contemporary masterworks. The gallery handles transactions both through exhibitions and discreet off-auction private sales, which the gallery states constitute the bulk of its business. Transactions are negotiated individually and conducted by appointment only.
• Artist Representation Representation and promotion of established contemporary artists including Nicole Wittenberg, Harumi Klossowska de Rola, Jacob El Hanani, Damian Loeb, Tom Sachs, and Miquel Barceló, providing market access, exhibition opportunities, and collector introductions.
• Museum Acquisition Advisory Advisory services helping museums and cultural institutions acquire masterworks for permanent collections. Documented relationships include The Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Gallery of Art, Kimbell Art Foundation, J. Paul Getty Museum, Clark Art Institute, and nearly 20 Japanese museum institutions. Notable facilitated acquisitions include Artemisia Gentileschi's 'Esther before Ahasuerus' (Met), Degas' 'Little Dancer Aged Fourteen' (Henry Ittleson Collection), and Cubist works by Georges Braque for the Kimbell.
• Exhibition Catalogues and Publications Scholarly exhibition catalogues published for major shows, distributed through the gallery's Shopify publications store. Catal accompany curated exhibitions and provide art-historical documentation of featured works.

Quantifiable outcome

• Record-setting acquisition of $450 million Donald Marron collection through partnership with Pace and Gagosian

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship and core.

• Night GalleryminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 9 May 2024Collaboration with Night Gallery, a New York artist-run gallery, for the 'Afterglow' exhibition at Acquavella in 2024, showcasing contemporary artist collaborations.
• Canada GalleryminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 19 October 2021Collaboration with Canada Gallery for the 'Tangerine' exhibition, a collaboration with a New York artist-run gallery, October-November 2021.
• Sotheby'sminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 October 2020Opening of Sotheby's Palm Beach gallery location, joining Acquavella and Pace in the expanding art market presence in Palm Beach.
• Pace Gallery and Gagosian GalleryflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Joint partnership in 2020 to sell the $450 million Donald Marron collection privately, defeating auction houses in the process. This tripartite collaboration between three of New York's leading galleries represents a significant market development.
• Pace GallerycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 April 2017Collaboration with Pace Gallery for the Calder | Miró Constellations exhibition, presenting constellation works by both artists in a joint show. The partnership brought together two major modern art dealers for a significant exhibition.
• Sotheby'scoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1990Partnership with Sotheby's to form Acquavella Modern Art in 1990, acquiring the entire stock of the Pierre Matisse Gallery including ~2,300 works by artists such as Marc Chagall, Jean Dubuffet, Alberto Giacometti, Joan Miró, and Jean-Paul Riopelle. This was a record-setting acquisition for the art world at the time both in value and number of works.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Pace Gallery: Premier New York gallery with locations globally, representing major modern and contemporary artists including Calder (collaborated with Acquavella on Calder | Miró show). Direct competitor and frequent partner on mega-collection sales.
• White Cube: Major international contemporary gallery with NYC presence; competes in the upper-tier contemporary art market for collectors and institutional sales.
• Hauser & Wirth: Major international gallery with multiple locations; represents blue-chip contemporary artists and competes for UHNW collectors in the same segment as Acquavella. Comparable scale and prestige.
• Gagosian: Global mega-gallery with major locations in NYC (including Upper East Side) and worldwide; directly comparable as a top-tier private art dealer representing blue-chip modern and contemporary artists. Joint partner with Acquavella on the $450M Marron sale.
• Marian Goodman Gallery: Long-established New York gallery representing influential modern and contemporary artists; comparable heritage, prestige, and collector relationships in the same segment as Acquavella.
• LGDR (Lévy Gorvy Dayan Rosengart): Formed from merger of Lévy Gorvy and Dayan Rosengart; focuses on 20th-century masters and blue-chip contemporary art, directly competing for the same UHNW collectors and museum advisory business as Acquavella.
• David Zwirner: Leading New York gallery representing major contemporary artists; competes for institutional and private collector relationships in the same price tier. Strong brand comparable to Acquavella.

Broad incumbents

• Christie's (private sales): Global auction house with a significant private sales division; competes with Acquavella's off-auction business for estates and collectors. Source of talent (Ken Yeh came from Christie's Asia).
• Sotheby's (private sales): Global auction house that also runs private sales and advisory services. Partnered with Acquavella on the 1990 Pierre Matisse acquisition; competes in private treaty sales for high-value works.
• Phillips (auction house): International auction house with growing presence in contemporary and modern art; competes with Acquavella at the high end via auction and private sale channels.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AcquavellaArt
• Instagraminstagram.com/acquavellagalleries
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/acquavella-galleries-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about acquavella galleries inc.