ABOUT
ABOUT THE GALLERY
GOWEN represents emerging and mid-career artists, developing rigorous, engaging presentations. Distinguished by a rich, expansive programme comprising exhibitions, curatorial projects, and participation in international art fairs, the gallery often undertakes ambitious, large-scale or monumental installations.
Founded in 2009 as Faye Fleming & Partner by Laura Gowen and Faye Fleming, the gallery became Gowen Contemporary in 2010. Following a period of closure due to personal circumstances, Founder and Director Laura Gowen reactivated the programme at Rue Jean-Calvin 4 in 2017. In 2021, marking a new phase of growth and development, the gallery inaugurated its flagship 200 m² space at Grand-Rue 23 in the heart of Geneva’s historic old town. A second exhibition space - GOWEN LAB - housed in the original gallery location, is dedicated to emerging practices, guest curators, and artist talks, allowing the gallery to deliver its ambitious programme across two complementary venues.
Since its inception, GOWEN has championed pioneering and critically engaged artistic practices, often presenting contemporary works alongside significant historical works drawn from private collections. Committed to diversity and the visibility of underrepresented voices, the gallery embraces all media and forms of artistic expression.
Today, under the continued direction of Laura Gowen, the gallery is strengthened by the dynamic involvement of co-directors Michael Gowen and Marie Allal-Dittmar. Their fresh perspectives enhance the gallery’s established programme, including the development of a stronger photography component, while reinforcing GOWEN’s collaborative and forward-looking presence within the contemporary art landscape.
For general enquiries: info@gowen.art
LOCATIONS
GOWEN GALLERY | Grand-Rue 23, Geneva
VIEW MAPLocated in the historic old town of Geneva, the principal gallery at Grand-Rue 23 provides the setting for large, formal presentations and events.
GOWEN LAB | Rue Jean-Calvin 4, Geneva
VIEW MAPSituated around the corner just a stone’s throw from the main gallery, GOWEN LAB at Rue Jean-Calvin 4 serves as a second project space for GOWEN, as well as offering possibilities for short-term artist residencies. Complementing the main gallery space at Grand-Rue 23, GOWEN LAB provides a relaxed, accommodating setting for intimate encounters with small-scale, emerging sector or spontaneous presentations and artist talks, or as a possibility for extending exhibitions running at the gallery’s principle space. GOWEN LAB is regularly offered to guest curators and artists, invited to bring fresh and exciting contributions to GOWEN’s wider exhibition program.
MEET THE TEAM
Laura Gowen graduated from the Università degli Studi di Milano, Italy, Faculty of Literature and Philosophy, including art history. After seven years working in finance and organization in Milan, she moved to Switzerland, where she raised a family of five children. For over 20 years, Laura has been active as a private art dealer in Geneva, specializing in modern and contemporary works on the secondary market. In 2006, she founded Art Connection S.A., a discreet Swiss art dealing company focused on high-value artworks. In 2009, she co-founded Faye Fleming & Partner (formerly Arquebuse), a gallery dedicated to the primary market and international, emerging artists. Becoming sole owner in 2010, she renamed the gallery Gowen Contemporary, now known as GOWEN. Today, GOWEN presents a dynamic exhibition program across two Geneva spaces and participates regularly in international art fairs. Since 2022, Laura has also been a guest speaker at HEG, School of Business Administration of the HES, University of Applied Sciences in Geneva.
Marie Allal-Dittmar is a historian holding a Franco-German Master’s degree in History, earned through a dual- degree program between Aix-Marseille University and Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen. Her research focuses on contemporary history, transnational networks, migration, and the circulation of ideas between Europe and the Arab world. Alongside her academic career, Marie has developed a strong interest in cinema, contemporary art, and, more specifically, photography and image- and archive-based practices. Marie has worked with GOWEN since 2024. In 2026, she became co-director of the gallery’s photography program.
Michael Gowen was born in Geneva in 1999. He studied French literature, art history, and Russian language at the University of Geneva. Throughout his academic career and beyond, he has developed a particular interest in cinema, architecture, and history. In 2024, following a several-month internship at the studio of Joana Vasconcelos in Lisbon, he joined GOWEN, where he now serves as co-director with specific attention on the gallery’s photography program.
Alexia Green
Head of Communications Art & Comm. Faculty Lecturer alexia@gowen.art+41 (0) 78 674 83 21
Alexia Green holds a BA in European Business Administration and has worked in marketing, advertising, and communications roles across the UK, France, and Germany. Her career has spanned the pharmaceutical, technology, and art sectors, leading to her current role as Head of Communications at GOWEN. Alongside her work at the gallery, she serves as a lecturer at a private business school on the Swiss Riviera, where she encourages undergraduate students to engage with contemporary issues and explore how art can challenge perspectives, cultivate critical thinking, and help us see the world differently. This dialogue between academia and the art world enriches her approach to communication, audience engagement, and cultural exchange.