Manhattan art dealer Brent Sikkema, who represented prominent artists such as Kara Walker, Jeffrey Gibson and Vik Muniz, was found dead in his Rio de Janeiro apartment on Monday evening.
Brazilian publications reported that the gallery owner, who helped found Sikkema Jenkins & Co., was found with stab wounds to his body after local firefighters were called to his apartment in the Jardim Botânico neighborhood.
“It is with great sadness that the gallery announces the passing of our beloved founder,” Meg Malloy and Michael Jenkins, his business partners, said in a statement. “The gallery mourns this terrible loss and will continue in his spirit.”
Brazilian police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Officers will listen to witnesses, seek more information and conduct further investigations to shed light on the case,” Rio de Janeiro state civil police said in a statement to The Associated Press.
Sikkema, 75, worked in the art world for more than 50 years and opened his New York gallery in 1991 under the name Wooster Gardens. The gallery, which focused on contemporary art, was an early move from the SoHo district to the Chelsea arts district in 1999, where he soon gained new partners and renamed the gallery.
The dealer maintained a small but influential roster that helped build the careers of artists like Walker, who presented her first solo exhibition in New York nearly 30 years ago and continues to exhibit with the gallery. Other notable artists from the company include Sheila Hicks, Louis Fratino and Jennifer Packer.
“I'm shocked,” said Yancey Richardson, a longtime friend who runs a gallery across the street and shared photographer Mitch Epstein's rendering with him. “Brent had a great eye and thought outside the box. He didn’t just put on one painting exhibition after another.”
Richardson said Sikkema has been less involved with his gallery in recent years as he approaches retirement. “He tried to take a step back,” she said.
Sikkema's death precedes a critical showcase for one of the gallery's top artists, Jeffrey Gibson, who is preparing to represent the United States at the Venice Biennale in April. The exhibition is considered the art world's version of the Olympics and requires extensive fundraising and planning to be successful.
Sikkema lived in New York most of the year but developed an affinity for Rio de Janeiro. When he spoke to IdeaFix magazine about his apartment there, near the Tijuca Forest, he described it as a true urban “oasis.”
Maria Ionova contributed reporting.