Ewan Venters to join the gallery as our first global Chief Executive Officer

The new CEO position will bring enhanced leadership to a business that is renowned for its dedication to artists and dynamic programming and has, over the course of close to three decades, expanded to include locations across Europe, the United States, and Asia.

Currently CEO of Fortnum & Mason, Venters, 48, will take up his position at Hauser & Wirth in January 2021 and will be based in London. Working alongside, and reporting to, Iwan and Manuela Wirth and Marc Payot, he will help to oversee the strategic evolution of the gallery for the future and lead its global operation.

This will enable the three presidents to devote their time more fully to their relationships with the gallery’s artists and clients.

‘We are thrilled to welcome Ewan Venters as our global Chief Executive Officer. Ewan will bring an invaluable ‘fresh eye’ to our business, and his experience and insights will keep us at the forefront of creativity in enterprise,’ said Iwan Wirth.

‘Since our beginnings in 1992, Hauser & Wirth’s first priority has always been our daily work for our artists and our clients. Our business and the art world itself have grown dramatically in scale and velocity, and now that we are a global concern, it is essential to have a strong Chief Executive to lead our team and ensure that we can continue to focus on our first priority—and to do so with even more passion.

His significant experience with digital innovation will touch so many areas of the gallery’s activities, helping us to engage new audiences worldwide for our artists.’

Venters brings to his new role an outstanding record of leadership and business acumen honed over the course of a 30-year career. He has been Fortnum & Mason’s CEO since 2012 and, during his highly successful tenure at the privately-owned company, has led a business and brand led transformation through product and service innovation, including a series of collaborative contemporary art projects with Zhang Enli and Chris Levine, and the collector Frank Cohen, amongst others.