Investment Group acquires Clars Auction Gallery, Richard G. Unruh III appointed CEO and President

The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Friday, March 29, 2024


Investment Group acquires Clars Auction Gallery, Richard G. Unruh III appointed CEO and President
Richard G. Unruh, CEO & President of Clars Auction Gallery.



OAKLAND, CA.- On Wednesday, August 14th, 2019, Clars Auction Gallery announced that is had been acquired by a private investment group. The investors, who will now serve as the board of directors of the firm, are pleased to announce that Richard G. Unruh (who is also part of the investment group as well as on of the board of directors) will assume the role of CEO and President of Clars. For the past several years, Richard (Rick) Unruh served as Vice President and Director of Fine Arts for Clars, and has been pivotal in substantially increasing sales of the Fine Art department to national and global level collectors, achieving numerous new world records and securing important estates, institutions and museums as clients.

In a statement by Unruh, he said, “This acquisition is very exciting for all of us at Clars and we will continue to serve our clients with the same dedication, integrity and vision for the future that former president and owner, Redge Martin, did for 23 years. I am so honored to assume the role of CEO and President for this distinguished company and, on behalf of myself, the board of directors and the amazing staff here at Clars, we look forward to building on our many great strengths and taking Clars to even higher levels in both the national and international markets. I am also personally grateful for having had the opportunity to work with Redge Martin for the past several years. He’s an icon in the industry, building Clars to be one of the most respected full service auction houses in the country. I am further grateful that, while he looks forward to moving on to his much-deserved retirement, he will still remain part of the Clars family, available for advice and consultation now and in the future.”

Redge Martin joined Clars Auction Gallery in 1993 when it was under the ownership of Harvey Clar, who founded it in 1972, coming from the auction house Butterfield & Butterfield. In 1996, Martin bought the Gallery from Harvey Clar and has spent the last 23 years, never faltering from his vision of taking Clars to the highest level possible, as the leading auction house in the Western United States, and becoming a force in the global auction market of fine art, jewelry and estates. He now looks forward to spending time with grandchildren and several international endeavors.

In his statement regarding his years as President of Clars, Redge Martin said, “I had never been to an auction, having a finance background, until I serendipitously took a job at Butterfield’s. It was very rewarding to grow Clars auction gallery to twelve times the volume it had had when I started. This was during a time when the entire industry went through a seismic shift as the Internet and online bidding changed everything. So Clars, being in the proximity of Silicon Valley, had to change as well.”

“This is a very small industry, but you see amazing things, view incredible houses, and meet some very interesting people over time.”

“It took a lot of work, but we were able hire many fantastic people who made the whole business possible and we’re very grateful to them. They were able to blend great customer service with product knowledge and technical skills. They were, and continue to be, the reason clients come back to Clars and give us many referrals.”

Among the other exciting changes at Clars, they are proud to announce that Deric Torres, former Vice President of Furniture and Decorative Arts has been promoted to the role of Sr. Vice President of Trusts & Estates while retaining his directorship of the furniture and decorative arts division. In a statement by Torres, he said, “ I am thankful for the opportunities Redge gave me over the years. It’s been rewarding and so exciting and I look forward to moving forward to greater visions under the new leadership.”

In a final statement, CEO Rick Unruh said, “While we have great goals and plans for Clars, for both our longtime and new clients, Clars will remain unchanged. I think it’s a real testament to the passion and commitment all of us at Clars share that, even though Harvey Clar sold the Gallery to Redge 23 years ago. At age 89, Harvey still pops in from time to time – he’s still family. And now, while Redge will be retired, he’ll be stopping in from time to time as well. It’s hard to think of another company that’s been around for 47 years and still has all the previous owners involved. Now that’s special and that’s Clars!”










Today's News

August 18, 2019

Hôtel de Caumont Art Centre displays masterpieces from the Thannhauser Collection

'Easy Rider' star Peter Fonda dead at 79

Ai Weiwei fears 'Tiananmen' crackdown in Hong Kong

"The Little Prince" sketches found in Switzerland

The Met's Rock & Roll exhibition reaches a milestone 500,000 visitors

Meet the Ercolines, the Woodstock lovebirds whose hug made history

Folk mainstay Arlo Guthrie reflects on 'transformative' Woodstock experience

Nirvana artist finds a new canvas in Serbia

Krannert Art Museum acquires complete works of conceptual gay photographer Hal Fischer

Hollis Taggart now represents André Hemer

Montreal Museum of Fine Arts presents Omar Ba's first Canadian monographic exhibition

Jan Fabre presents a new and unique monumental work at the Venice Biennale

Mudam Luxembourg presents a major retrospective exhibition dedicated to the visual work of Etel Adnan

M+ presents Five Artists: Sites Encountered - an international group exhibition across generations

Important works featured in inaugural exhibition of Max Bill's work at Hauser & Wirth Zurich

Fondation Phi pour l'art contemporain exhibits works by pioneering artist Yoko Ono

Ingo Maurer installs a "Pendulum" in the Pinakothek der Moderne's Rotunda

Helsinki Art Museum showcases Ellen Thesleff's trailblazing and evolving art

Uli Aigner juxtaposes a porcelain vessel with the Baroque pictorial programme of the Carlone Hall

The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago opens first-ever museum exhibition devoted to Virgil Abloh

Investment Group acquires Clars Auction Gallery, Richard G. Unruh III appointed CEO and President

A major exhibition of work by designers Aamu Song and Johan Olin on view at Design Museum Helsinki

Paris Internationale announces its exhibitors list

MAMbo – Museo d’Arte Moderna di Bologna opens first personal exhibition in Italy of Julian Charrière




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful