One of the art world’s most viral Instagram meme-makers, @JerryGogosian, is teaming up with Sotheby’s to stage a sale inspired by the social-media platform.
Jerry herself, whose real name is Hilde Lynn Helphenstein, said in a statement that her account is the “unquestionable center of the art world,” which prompted her to curate the sale as a way to draw attention to artists in her social-media orbit.
The sale will feature work by 20 artists including Marc Quinn, Ronan Day-Lewis, and Sarah Thibault, though Helphenstein admits that much of the actual curation was done by Instagram’s algorithm.
Quinn’s work, priced at $250,000, is the most expensive in the sale, while works by Day-Lewis and Thibault are listed at $11,500 and $15,000, respectively. Helphenstein said she discovered their work after querying her 112,000 followers, and then was prompted by Instagram to look at certain artists.
Using Instagram’s explore page and suggested followers features, Helphenstein said she was out to give rising artists “a platform for the first time.” (It is unclear how that relates to some of the very well-known artists in the mix, such as Quinn, a YBA who has had solo shows at Tate Britain and the Venice Biennale.)