IN LOS ANGELES, on La Cienega Boulevard, Phil Leider sat in an office above my head from ’64 to ’67 while I ran the Ferus Gallery. I can distinctly remember one day when my skin color changed as a result of the charge he always radiated. He adored dialogue and would grab the lapels of anyone around and go to it. He played a significant role in laying the ground on which much contemporary art and criticism is based. He was for me a compass to get you to that clearing in the murky art world.
Irving Blum is a partner of Blum Helman Gallery in New York.
