Dominique Lévy facts for kids

Dominique Astrid Lévy (born June 1967) is a Swiss art dealer. She is well-known for co-founding and partnering in the Lévy Gorvy Dayan art gallery. This gallery has offices in major cities like New York City, London, Switzerland, Hong Kong, and Paris.

Early Life and Education

Dominique Lévy was born in June 1967, in Lausanne, Switzerland. Her mother was an art collector, which means she loved collecting artworks. Her father was a cotton merchant who left Egypt in 1956. This was when Gamal Abdel Nasser became the leader of Egypt.

Lévy showed an interest in art from a very young age. She attended Art Basel, a famous art fair, when she was only three years old. By the time she was 18, she had already organized her first art exhibition.

She studied art history and politics at the University of Geneva. She earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science. She also got a master's degree in the Sociology of Art. While in college, she even worked as an actress and a clown, performing at parties.

Career in Art

In 1987, Dominique Lévy started her first internship at Christie's in New York. Christie's is a very famous auction house for art and other valuable items. After returning to Switzerland, she worked at Sotheby's, another well-known auction house, for four years.

Later, she helped French art dealer Daniel Malingue open his gallery. She also worked with Simon Studer to create a business that curates art. Curating means choosing and organizing artworks for exhibitions. She then joined the team of London art dealer Anthony d'Offay.

In 1999, she was chosen by François Pinault to lead the private sales department at Christie's in New York. This department handles art sales directly to collectors, not through public auctions.

In 2003, Lévy started her own business called Dominique Lévy Fine Art. This company focused on advising art collectors and building strong, long-term relationships with them.

L&M Arts (2005–2013)

In August 2005, Lévy teamed up with Robert Mnuchin to create L&M Arts. This gallery had locations in New York and Los Angeles. It offered services to clients and organized exhibitions of modern and postwar art. They also showed new works by artists like David Hammons and Paul McCarthy.

Dominique Lévy Gallery (2013–2017)

In September 2013, the Dominique Lévy Gallery opened its space in Manhattan, New York. Its first exhibition was called Audible Presence: Lucio Fontana, Yves Klein, Cy Twombly. This show included the first public performance in New York of Yves Klein's important work, Monotone Silence Symphony.

In October 2014, Dominique Lévy expanded her galleries to London. She opened a new location on Old Bond Street, near the Royal Academy of Arts. She also helped organize an exhibition of Pierre Soulages's work in New York.

In 2015, her galleries displayed various artworks. These included Gerhard Richter's color charts, small sculptures by Alexander Calder, and works by Gego.

Lévy Gorvy (2017–2021)

In 2017, Lévy partnered with art dealer Brett Gorvy. He was previously a top executive at Christie's. Together, they founded Lévy Gorvy. This new gallery had spaces in New York, London, and Hong Kong. In 2020, they also opened a space in Paris.

In 2019, to celebrate the 100th birthday of artist Pierre Soulages, Lévy Gorvy organized a special exhibition. This show took place before his big art show at the Louvre Museum in Paris.

The gallery represented the art collections of several important artists who had passed away. These included Yves Klein, Roman Opalka, Germaine Richier, and Carol Rama. They also worked with living artists like Enrico Castellani, Boris Mikhailov, Frank Stella, Pierre Soulages, and Günther Uecker.

LGDR and Lévy Gorvy Dayan

In August 2021, Lévy Gorvy announced that they would join forces with Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn and Amalia Dayan. This new partnership was called LGDR.

Two years later, in August 2023, Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn decided to leave the partnership. The gallery then continued its operations under the name Lévy Gorvy Dayan.

Personal Life

Dominique Lévy has two children.

Recognition

Dominique Lévy has been recognized for her influence in the art world:

• 2014: Named one of the Movers and makers: the most powerful people in the art world by The Guardian newspaper.
• 2013: Featured in Women in art by Elle Magazine.
• 2012: Listed among the 10 most influential art dealers by Forbes magazine.