SHARON HELGASON GALLAGHER | DATE 1/4/2023

Ronald Feldman: In Memoriam

Ron was one of the first people who encouraged me to strike out on my own and, ultimately, to start D.A.P. and Artbook. It turned out that those early conversations would be only the beginning of the guidance he so generously offered, not occasionally, but again and again and again—often before I even knew I needed help. Sometimes, it was an introduction. Whether to an artist, writer, curator or collector, banker, accountant or insurance broker, Ron always seemed to know just the right person at just the right moment.

Other times, Ron gave me his focused time and just listened, willing to serve as my tireless sounding board, while I fleshed out new visions of the future. We also enjoyed a certain repartee and challenged each other with conceptual jokes, laughing and one-upping each other with what we thought were witty philosophical riffs. He let me feel his equal as we sparred.

But, in the early days of our friendship, he also knew I was still really just a kid. And in those years, on too many late dark nights of the soul, he saved me from my bleakest self-critiques by willing me to believe in my thinking. More than anyone else in my life, Ron gave me the courage to believe in the future as a positive and, surprisingly, welcoming place.

Ron was a mentor in business, surely. A mentor in the arts, yes. A mentor in democratic politics, most definitely. And—as if that were not enough—he was and will forever remain for me an exemplary model of the ethic of care.

Thank you, Frayda, Mark, Andy and Julie for sharing him with me and so many others.

Sharon Helgason Gallagher
January 4, 2023