Cristopher Canizares Leaves Hauser & Wirth to Start Artist Management Firm
3March 27, 2026
Cristopher Canizares, an integral partner atHauser & Wirth, has announced his intention to depart the juggernaut art gallery in order to start his own artist talent management agency,Artnewsreports. Canizares spent sixteen years at the Marc Payot–helmed gallery and assumed a number of roles during his tenure—he had his hands in sales and exhibition planning, but overseeing an artist’s career became his chief preoccupation over time.
Canizares plans to shepherd his clients through every step of the art world circuit by helping them liaise with potential buyers, galleries, and institutions looking to add work to their collections. He plans to call his venture the Artist Legacy Bureau, and will work with a small group of handpicked clients to keep his services specialized.
“It’s really taking something that has been occupying a fraction of my time and making it the whole of it,” he told Artnews. “I am hired by the artist, I am paid by the artist, I work for the artist.”
“I don’t want to build a giant company,” Canizares added, “I want to be deeply engaged with a very small group of artists.”
Conceptual artist Rashid Johnson will be one of the Artist Legacy Bureau’s marquee clients—Canizares has worked closely with Johnson for years on developing and realizing special projects.