Mary Boone is a New York City base gallery owner. She represents many of the top artists today. Mary was an Art History major at the Rhode Island School of Design. Her two galleries reside in the art district in Chelsea and her main gallery is located on 5th Avenue above the men's Bergdorf Goodman department. Her first gallery was founded in 1977 in Soho, and her first two artists were Julian Schnabel and David Salle, both of whom became internationally renowned. Mary was also responsible for projecting one of the most famous black artists, Jean Michel Basquiat, into fame and infamy. She also has represented such important names like Brice Marden, Ross Bleckner, Richard Tuttle, Richard Artschwager, and Barbara Kruger. Mary began her career by working for the Bykert Gallery as a secretary and then opened her own gallery with a positive reception. She now lives in New York City and represents modern "downtown artists alongside older masters.