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ABOUT AARON PAYNE FINE ART
Aaron Payne is an art dealer and gallerist with over three decades of experience in the acquisition and sale of Modern, Postwar and Contemporary Art. He founded Aaron Payne Fine Art in 2000 after working over a decade for other prominent American art dealers. Aaron has had galleries in New York City and Santa Fe.
Aaron Payne was born and raised in Los Angeles. His love of art comes from his parents and growing up in a home surrounded by the artworks of Romare Bearden, David Hammons, Jacob Lawrence, John Outterbridge, Betye Saar and other contemporary African American artists. His parents were some of the earliest collectors of David Hammons and other Brockman Gallery artists and many weekends were spent either at the gallery or entertaining artists in their home.
Aaron has worked with The Romare Bearden Estate, Faith Ringgold, the Alma Thomas Estate and many others. His areas of specialty include American Modernism, the Stieglitz Circle, Western Art, Postwar, Contemporary and African-American art.
As an advisor to private, corporate and public collections, Aaron has placed seminal works by important American artists in both public and private collectons, and also set private sale and auction records for many artists in the process.
Aaron is also a collector of African-American art and currently manages his family's collection of African-American art. He has lent artworks to numerous seminal exhibitions including Now Dig This (2011) and the recent Soul of a Nation (2017-2020).
Aaron is on the board of the Santa Fe Soul Festival, working to highlight and support African American culture in New Mexico. He is also a supporter of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum and SITE Santa Fe as a Business Council Member. And he is an appraiser who appears regularly on Antiques Roadshow. Aaron also serves on the board of the Santa Fe Art Institute and uses his experience in the art world to try and facilitate better access and opportunities for young artists trying to navigate an entry to and a path towards career in fine art.
He hopes that his presence and experience in the art world can help to foster confidence in and a better perspective for others navigating a career in the arts.
Aaron holds a B.A. in History & Literature from Harvard College. Most importantly, he is a father to two daughters, and is also an Ashtanga yoga and paddle boarding enthusiast. He also enjoys hiking in New Mexico and traveling to trek in other countries.
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ABOUT AARON
Aaron Payne was born and raised in Los Angeles. After earning a degree in History & Literature from Harvard he decided to do the obvious things…working first in documentary film, and then moving to New York to pursue a career as an art dealer.
Aaron has specialized in American Art since joining Sid Deutsch Gallery on 57th Street in New York in 1989. In 1991, Aaron became the director of the gallery and participated in the sale and exhibition of important works by American Modernists.
For the last 25 years, aaron payne FINE ART has specialized in the work of Twentieth Century American masters, focusing primarily on the American Modernists, Stieglitz Circle, American Abstract Artists, African-American Art, Postwar & Contemporary art. aaron payne FINE ART works with both new and experienced collectors, individuals and institutions, to provide the highest level of quality, scholarship, and service.
In 2006 aaron payne FINE ART opened on Marcy Street in Santa Fe. Many of the artists the gallery features traveled between New York and Santa Fe, trading techniques and experiences with the artists they met in these cities. Some of these artists were not in either place, but knew of each other through exhibitions at galleries, museums or the various salons, which featured the art of their day. I see a connection between all of them. We are always seeking to highlight the relationships between these artists.
To further this mission the gallery has begun exhibiting the works of the Santa Fe Art Colony, Taos Moderns, and Postwar art. We have also organized significant exhibitions of these artists, most notably our 2011 exhibition of the modernist painter Cady Wells. More recently, the gallery has focused on the Washington Color School artists such as Kenneth Noland, Alma Thomas, and Sam Gilliam.
Over the years we have worked as advisors to private, corporate and public collections. We are also pleased to provide appraisal services as well as consultation and referral services for framing and conservation of fine art. We are always actively looking to purchase quality artwork. Your inquiries are welcome.
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WHY I DO WHAT I DO
My love of art comes from my parents and from my earliest memories of growing up in Los Angeles. At home I was surrounded by the artworks of Romare Bearden, David Hammons, Jacob Lawrence, John Outterbridge, Suzanne Jackson, Betye Saar and other contemporary African-American artists.As a child I went to many gallery openings, and a lot of these artists were friends of my family and guests in our home. Some of my best memories from childhood are visits to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) with my mother.For me, art has always been a space where I can connect with my own inner life in a way that is not dictated by anyone. When you are with an artwork, there are no rules, no expectations. All we have to do is listen.
