COLLECTING CONTEMPORARY ART
A few years ago a request from a collector led me to a parallel career as an art advisor. After 20 years working within the art world as an artist and academic, I had a unique access to artists and their studios, and a deep critical, historical and practical understanding of what constituted great art. Dealing with galleries, curators and artists over the last few years has been an absolute pleasure. This book is a celebration of some of the work that has been placed in collections, both established and new.
Contemporary art should reflect contemporary culture. It should acknowledge its place in history but also engage the world around us, helping us see things afresh. To paraphrase the American artist Jasper Johns, an artwork should clash two flinty ideas together, causing a spark so that seeing becomes thinking. Whether the work is investigating film, politics or just painting itself, the art should take elements from the world and re-present them in a way that makes us pause. If you know where and how to look, there is a wealth of such thoughtful and progressive art - art which is both affordable and delivers as an enlightening cultural artifact.
