Manuela and Iwan Wirth recently bought a private club in London
Manuela and Iwan Wirth are the owners of the huge art gallery Hauser & Wirth. They recently bought a private club in London that has a short but storied history and 150 works of art. The Wirths bought the Groucho Club through their hospitality business, Art Farm. Art Farm owns a group of small hotels and restaurants. Manuela, a restaurant at Hauser & Wirth's Los Angeles gallery, is one of these places to eat.
"I know what a special place it holds in the cultural landscape of London"
In a statement, Ewan Venters, the CEO of both Artfarm and Hauser & Wirth, said, "As a member of the Groucho for a while, I know what a special place it has in London's cultural landscape. The club's future is safe as long as Artfarm owns it. We will honor the club's history and traditions, and we're looking forward to working with its members to give the Groucho a long-term future that builds on its eclectic appeal and "maverick" spirit. It wasn't clear if Hauser & Wirth would work with the Groucho Club in any way. Many of Artfarm's other businesses don't have anything to do with the gallery.
The club has hosted some of Britain's most famous entertainers
The 37-year-old club has a reputation for being hard to get into. It has hosted some of the most famous artists in Britain, like Damien Hirst, who is said to have had a party thereafter he won the Turner Prize in 1995. The name of the club comes from Groucho Marx's famous remark that he didn't want to join a club that would have him as a member. At a time when most businesses of its kind were only open to men, the club let women join.
Hirst, Michael Craig-Martin, Banksy...are part of the Groucho Club collection
Its art connections are also not just limited to people in the club's social network. Some of the well-known British artists whose work is in the Groucho Club's collection are Hirst, Michael Craig-Martin, Tracey Emin, Peter Blake, Yinka Shonibare, and Banksy. The Financial Times said that Artfarm paid £40 million ($48.9 million) to buy the club. About 5,000 people are currently members of The Groucho.
Selena Mattei