Thaddaeus Ropac has been in the art business for over 40 years. The Austrian gallerist has spaces across London, Paris, Salzburg and Seoul that span a total of 12,000 square meters, and his influence is nothing if not international. He represents the estates of behemoths like Joseph Beuys and Marcel Duchamp, and the foundations of Robert Mapplethorpe, Donald Judd and Robert Rauschenberg. Alongside contemporary giants including Anselm Kiefer and Georg Baselitz, a host of younger names such as Alvaro Barrington, Zadie Xa and Cory Arcangel complete his roster of 70-plus artists.

Known for always following his gut, the dealer had his first foray into the art world after a chance encounter with Beuys’s work on a school trip to Vienna. Intent on working for the artist, he traveled to Düsseldorf and landed an unpaid gig in the studio. This life-changing connection led to introductions to Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat. He worked with both when he set up his first gallery in 1983.

Here, he looks back at 2024 and lets us know what he expects from the year ahead.

“Joan Snyder: Body & Soul,” installation view at Thaddaeus Ropac London, 2024. Courtesy Thaddaeus Ropac Gallery. Photo: Aggie Cherrie.

What moment or project stands out as a personal highlight of 2024?

A personal highlight of 2024 has been announcing our representation of Joan Snyder and preparing for her first solo exhibition with the gallery, on view in London until February 5, 2025.

It has been very special to work with Joan to stage such a wide-ranging survey of her career, spanning from 1964 to an impressive new body of work, completed in 2024. It promises to be a moment of discovery for those who have yet to experience her distinctive, expressive paintings.

What was the best show you saw in your local city in 2024? 

I’m not sure which qualifies as my local city, but one of them of course is Paris, where a standout has to be the Hans Josephsohn retrospective, curated by Albert Oehlen at the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris. Josephsohn is arguably one of the most overlooked sculptors of the 20th century, and it’s been inspiring to see how Oehlen’s dynamic curation has shed fresh light on his sculptures—works that feel at once both contemporary and timeless.

Tell us about the best show you saw abroad in 2024.

In New York, I found Christopher Wool’s major self-organized exhibition, “See Stop Run,” very impressive. The artist’s ambitious curation of his own work in such an unconventional setting felt both personal and innovative.

What are you looking forward to most in 2025? 

Anselm Kiefer’s 80th birthday takes place next year and will be celebrated with several major international shows, including the Van Gogh Museum and Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, Royal Academy of Arts in London and Saint Louis Art Museum, marking this important milestone year.

Who is the art professional you have your eye on for 2025, and why?

Ralph Gleis, who succeeds Klaus Albrecht Schröder as director at the Albertina museum in Vienna. It is an exciting transition for such a historic institution and I look forward to seeing what he will accomplish.