Influential Art Dealer Joe Helman Dies at 89
Joseph A. Helman, an influential art dealer and co-founder of Blum Helman with Irving Blum in 1973, died at 89 on July 16 in his New York home. He grew up in St. Louis and made his fortune in real estate before discovering contemporary art through a magazine in a barber shop. He bought Jasper Johns's Painting with Ruler and Gray (1959) for $7,000 from Leo Castelli. In 1968, he opened the Joseph Helman Gallery in St. Louis, featuring artists like Richard Serra and Roy Lichtenstein, and even hosted an Allan Kaprow Happening. After selling the gallery in 1972, he set up Blum Helman on East 75th Street, a hub for artists until it closed in 2003. In 2023, he and his wife Ursula donated the gallery's archives to the Archives of American Art.
Key facts
- Joseph A. Helman died on July 16 at his home in New York at age 89.
- He co-founded Blum Helman with Irving Blum in 1973.
- Helman purchased Jasper Johns's Painting with Ruler and Gray (1959) for $7,000.
- He opened the Joseph Helman Gallery in St. Louis in 1968.
- Blum Helman was located at 13 East 75th Street and designed by Charles Gwathmey.
- The gallery represented artists including Richard Serra, Bryan Hunt, Bruce Nauman, and Richard Tuttle.
- Helman attended the 1973 Robert C. Scull auction where Jasper Johns's Painted Bronze sold for $90,000.
- In 2023, Helman and his wife Ursula donated the gallery archives to the Archives of American Art.
Entities
Artists
- Joseph A. Helman
- Irving Blum
- Jasper Johns
- Richard Serra
- Frank Stella
- Roy Lichtenstein
- Ellsworth Kelly
- Allan Kaprow
- Bryan Hunt
- Bruce Nauman
- Richard Tuttle
- Andy Warhol
- Robert C. Scull
- Peter Ludwig
- Frederick R. Weisman
- Larry Gagosian
- Charles Gwathmey
- Willoughby Sharp
- Liza Béar
- John Coplans
- Frank Lloyd
- Peter Freeman
- James L. McElhinney
- S.I. Newhouse Jr.
- Victoria Newhouse
- Hans Thulin
- David Geffen
- Emily Rauh
- Joseph Pulitzer Jr.
- Ivan Karp
- Leo Castelli
- Ronald Greenberg
- Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn
Institutions
- Blum Helman
- Joseph Helman Gallery
- Ferus Gallery
- Marlborough Gallery
- Leo Castelli Gallery
- Saint Louis Art Museum
- Pulitzer Art Foundation
- Whitney Museum of American Art
- Philadelphia Museum of Art
- Museum of Modern Art
- Sotheby's
- Sotheby Parke-Bernet
- Artforum
- Avalanche magazine
- Salon 94
- Archives of American Art
Locations
- New York
- St. Louis
- Missouri
- Los Angeles
- Upper East Side
- 13 East 75th Street
- 57th Street
- Ladue Trails