Stephane Custot (born 1963), is a French

gallerist An art dealer is a person or company that buys and sells Work of art, works of art, or acts as the intermediary between the buyers and sellers of art. An art dealer in contemporary art typically seeks out various artists to represent, and build ...

and

art dealer An art dealer is a person or company that buys and sells works of art, or acts as the intermediary between the buyers and sellers of art. An art dealer in contemporary art typically seeks out various artists to represent, and builds relationshi ...

. He is the owner of Waddington Custot gallery in London and Custot Gallery Dubai.

Early life

Stephane Custot was born in Paris in 1963, the son of a society dentist and collector of Chinese art. He studied at Panthéon-Assas University between 1983 and 1985. In 1987, he joined the

Sotheby's Institute of Art Sotheby's Institute of Art is a private, for-profit institution of higher education devoted to the study of art and its markets with campuses in London, New York City and online. The institute offers full-time accredited master's degrees as wel ...

in London to study history of art for one year.

Career

In 1988, he began working at the Galerie Hopkins in Paris, Avenue Matignon. While working at the gallery, Custot joined forces with Patrick Perrin to create a new fair: the ''Salon du Dessin''. In 1996, Stephane Custot and Patrick Perrin founded SOC (Cultural Organization Society) to support cultural and artistic projects. In 1998, Emmanuel Moatti joined Custot and Perrin, and they opened the Salon des Beaux-Arts in Paris. This fair became the Pavillon des Antiquaires and Beaux-Arts first installed in the Eiffel-Branly space and then at the

Tuileries Gardens The Tuileries Garden (french: Jardin des Tuileries, ) is a public garden located between the Louvre and the Place de la Concorde in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. Created by Catherine de' Medici as the garden of the Tuileries Palace in ...

. In 2001, after 13 years, Custot became associate co-director at Galerie Hopkins. The gallery exhibits the work of artists including

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

Henri Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known prima ...

Max Ernst Max Ernst (2 April 1891 – 1 April 1976) was a German (naturalised American in 1948 and French in 1958) painter, sculptor, printmaker, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and Surrealism ...

and

René Magritte René François Ghislain Magritte (; 21 November 1898 – 15 August 1967) was a Belgian surrealist artist known for his depictions of familiar objects in unfamiliar, unexpected contexts, which often provoked questions about the nature and bounda ...

, and contemporary artists such as Sam Szafran,

Jedd Novatt Jedd Novatt (born 1958) is an American sculptor who creates dynamic, non-representational compositions of geometric forms. He is best known for his 'Chaos' series of works in either welded steel or bronze. Life and work Born in Brooklyn, New ...

and

Marc Quinn Marc Quinn (born 8 January 1964) is a British contemporary visual artist whose work includes sculpture, installation, and painting. Quinn explores "what it is to be human in the world today" through subjects including the body, genetics, ident ...

. In 2007, the Pavillon des Antiquaires and Beaux-Arts became PAD Paris (Pavilion of Arts and Design). The same year, Custot (who in the meantime moved to live in London in 2005) and Perrin exported PAD to London. Located in Hanover Square, the fair presents design pieces from the 1860s to the present day. The fair takes place at the same time as

Frieze In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...

. In 2011, the fair was exported for the first time to New York from 10 to 14 November. 49 international galleries set up at Park Avenue Armory. A second edition was launched in 2012. However, the fair only had minor success.

Waddington Custot Galleries in London

Following the departure of Lord Bernstein, Custot bought the shares and became a partner of the

Waddington Galleries Waddington Custot is a London-based art gallery specialising in modern and contemporary art. Formerly known as Waddington Galleries, it has been situated on Mayfair's Cork Street since 1958. History Waddington Galleries was founded on Cork ...

which became Waddington Custot Galleries. The gallery is located at 11-12

Cork Street Cork Street is a street in Mayfair in the West End of London, England, with many contemporary art galleries, and was previously associated with the tailoring industry. It is part of the Burlington Estate, which was developed from the 18th centur ...

, Mayfair in London, and exhibits the work of British, European and American artists. On 30 November 2015,

Leslie Waddington Leslie Waddington (9 February 1934 – 30 November 2015) was a British art dealer who served as the chairman of Waddington Custot Galleries, 11 Cork Street, London. Early life and education Waddington was born on 9 February 1934. He was the so ...

died. Custot then became the sole director of Waddington Custot Galleries. Custot brought new artists to the gallery as well as building on the Waddington legacy. He developed the publishing side of the business, producing the first monographs on

Barry Flanagan Barry Flanagan OBE RA (11 January 1941 – 31 August 2009) was an Irish-Welsh sculptor. He is best known for his bronze statues of hares and other animals. Biography Barry Flanagan was born on 11 January 1941 in Prestatyn, North Wales. ...

and

. In 2021, the gallery published the first book on Peter Blake’s work in collage. It was named in ''Wallpaper'' magazine’s top ten art books for 2022.

Custot Gallery Dubai

In March 2016, Custot opened Custot Gallery Dubai in the district of

Alserkal Avenue Alserkal Avenue is an industrial compound hosting warehouses in the industrial zone of Al Quoz, in Dubai. The area is an arts and culture district for Dubai with lineup of galleries, facilities and platforms, such as Alserkal Avenue that houses ...

in Dubai. The gallery represents contemporary artists and participates in a few contemporary art fairs in the Middle East such as Art Abu Dhabi and

Art Dubai Art Dubai is a leading international art fair that takes place every March in Dubai. Founded in 2007, Art Dubai is the pre-eminent platform for art from the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia. Each year, the fair features a globally diverse ...

Distinctions

*Custot serves on the expert panel of the Compagnie Nationale des Experts (National Company of Experts) CNE. *In July 2008, Custot awarded the Chevalier Medal of the

Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...

(Order of Arts and Letters). *In 2021, Stephane Custot was promoted to the rank of ''Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' by the French Minister of Culture.

Personal life

Custot is married to Laurence, a former banker, they have two children, and live in Kensington, London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Custot, Stephane French art dealers 1963 births Living people Paris 2 Panthéon-Assas University alumni