Robert Mnuchin
Robert E. Mnuchin | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth year and age Scarsdale, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Art dealer, former investment banker |
| Years active | 1957–present |
| Known for | Mnuchin Gallery; connection to Willem de Kooning; purchase of Jeff Koons' Rabbit artwork |
| Notable work | Purchase of Jeff Koons' Rabbit at $80 million |
Robert E. Mnuchin (born 1933) is an American art dealer and former investment banker. Following a 33-year tenure at Goldman Sachs, he retired to open the Mnuchin Gallery based in New York City.
Mnuchin is particularly recognized for his connection to Dutch-American abstract artist Willem de Kooning. In 2019, he made headlines by purchasing Jeff Koons' Rabbit at $80 million, setting a record for the highest amount paid for a piece by a living artist.
He is also the father of Steven Mnuchin, who held the position of United States Secretary of the Treasury during the initial Trump administration.
Early life
Born in 1933, Mnuchin was raised in Scarsdale, New York. His parents, Harriet (Gevirtz) and Leon A. Mnuchin, were modest collectors of art, owning pieces by Franz Kline, Mark Rothko, and a work attributed to Henri Matisse. He completed his studies at Yale University in 1955.
Career
Following his graduation from Yale, Mnuchin served two years in the US Army before joining Goldman Sachs in 1957. He became a general partner in 1967, took charge of the trading and arbitrage division starting in 1976, and was appointed to the management committee in 1980. Together with Gus Levy, he was instrumental in developing Goldman's block trading operations and led the equities division until his retirement in 1990 to concentrate on the art world. In his final year at Goldman Sachs, his earnings reached $8.7 million.
In 1992, Mnuchin co-established C & M Arts gallery alongside James Corcoran. The gallery earned acclaim for its exhibitions of Willem de Kooning’s work, including a significant retrospective. It also featured artists like Jeff Koons, whose show there played a key role in revitalizing his career, as well as Andy Warhol, Donald Judd, Frank Stella, John Chamberlain, Alexander Calder, Philip Guston, Damien Hirst, Julian Schnabel, David Hammons, Sam Gilliam, and Ed Clark.
In 2005, after partnering with Dominique Lévy, the gallery was renamed L&M Arts; Lévy departed in 2013 to establish her own nearby gallery. Subsequently, Sukanya Rajaratnam joined as partner until 2023.
Mnuchin attracted attention again in 2019 when he placed an $80 million bid ($91.1 million including fees) at Christie's auction on behalf of hedge fund manager Steve Cohen for Koons' Rabbit.
His private collection boasts works by de Kooning, Jackson Pollock, and Mark Rothko.
Personal life
Mnuchin's first marriage was to Elaine Terner Cooper. They had two children, including Steven Mnuchin, who followed a career at Goldman Sachs before becoming US Secretary of the Treasury. Elaine Cooper served as vice president of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum's international directors council until her death in 2005.
In 1963, Mnuchin married Adriana, who founded retail ventures Tennis Lady and Cashmere-Cashmere. She co-founded The Shakespeare Society in 1995 and Roundtable Cultural Seminars in 2009. Together they have a daughter, Valerie Mnuchin; Robert and Valerie launched a restaurant in Shelter Island, New York, in 2023. His stepdaughter Lisa Abelow Hedley is an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker married to writer Tom Hedley.
In 1990, Robert and Adriana purchased the Mayflower Inn located in Washington, Connecticut; they renovated it into a Relais & Chateaux hotel before selling it in 2007. In 2011, they acquired an Upper East Side residence measuring 5,850 square feet for $14.25 million; it was sold five years later for $13 million.
Although Mnuchin supports Democratic candidates, he has refrained from publicly commenting on his son’s political endeavors.