The online art startup Artspace, founded in 2011, has laid off a sizable portion of its staff. According to ArtNews, who broke the story, the majority of staffers that were let go worked for the company’s editorial department.
The layoffs included editor-in-chief Andrew Goldstein, who had served as Artspace’s chief digital content officer since 2012.
In an email to artnet News Emmanuele Vinciguerra, CEO of Artspace, offered little insight into the reasons behind the staff cuts:
Artspace was acquired in 2014 by Phaidon to build an integrated art vertical including e-commerce and digital and print publishing. Since the acquisition, we have collaborated on artist editions, content, sponsorships, social media, and programming. After two and a half successful years, Artspace and Phaidon have joined forces to accelerate growth and leverage our artist and collector relationships. Artspace will still have a dedicated team and with the additional support of Phaidon’s staff and global resources, we will invest in our website, collectors, and gallery relationships. We look forward to continuing to serve our customers and partners through our dedicated Artspace and Phaidon team.
With scant available details on the reasons behind the restructuring, the future of Artspace’s publishing department remains unclear. ArtNews reported that all but five of the company’s 19 employees have been terminated, and that only the operational and marketing departments escaped the layoffs unscathed. At the time of publication, the company website’s staff page had not yet been updated.
The news comes days after Louise Blouin Media terminated Scott Indrisek, the recently appointed editor-in-chief of its print publication, Modern Painters. He had worked for the online and print art media company in several different editorial capacities for seven years.
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