Painter and filmmaker Julian Schnabel has left the stable of mega-dealer Larry Gagosian, and he’s not afraid to burn the bridge on his way out.

Schnabel announced his plans of leaving in a recent interview with the New York Times, stating that he wanted a deeper connection than the one he had with Gagosian. “I wanted to have a more human relationship with the person who was representing my work,” said the artist. For Schnabel, who recently mounted a joint-exhibition with his son Vito, personal relationships are evidently important.

Picture from left: Schnabel Julian with Schnabel Vito
Opening of Urs Fischer: Bruno & Yoyo at Vito Schnabel Gallery St.Moritz PhotoCredit: ©fotoSwiss.com/cattaneo

Schnabel is taking off and returning to the familiar arms of Pace Gallery, where he spent twenty years until jumping onto the Gagosian’s ship in 2002. “Ultimately, it’s about friendship,” the artist told the Times. And ever faithful, Arne Glimcher, director of Pace, continued to collect Schnabel’s artworks despite his departure.

Pace, which boasts some ten locations worldwide, from New York to Beijing, represents major-league artists like Chuck Close, David Hockney, Robert Irwin, Agnes Martin, Louise Nevelson, and Kiki Smith. And with a new space in Palo Alto, the gallery is extending its reach.

Notably, Schnabel isn’t the only artist who claims to be scorned by Gagosian. Mike Kelley told Artillery Magazine in a 2011 interview that the dealer only keeps artists for as long as they make money. “Larry Gagosian, I know, doesn’t care about my work…” Kelley said. “He’s a businessman. It’s like, you’re there as long as he can make money off you.”

However, with Damien Hirst making a grand return of his own to Gagosian’s empire, we doubt the dealer is mourning this loss too much.