We are delighted to cordially invite you to an online presentation of Philip Mould’s series Art in Isolation
Philip Mould is an international art dealer who has been based in London’s Mayfair and St. James’ for the last thirty-five years, specialising in five hundred years of British art. His award winning BBC1 programme Fake or Fortune? (2011) is now the most watched returning Arts programme globally. Over the decades, Philip has made major art discoveries including works by Van Dyck, Gainsborough, and Rubens. He authors two significant books on the subject of art discovery: Sleepers: In Search of Lost Old Masters and Sleuth: The Amazing Quest for Lost Art Treasures. Created in the time of Lockdown, Philip’s Art in Isolation is an outstanding series of YouTube videos that combines his unique charisma of speaking about art and his lived experience.
Organizer: dr hab. Małgorzata Hołda, Department of British Literature and Culture, University of Lodz
Philip about the genesis of Art in Isolation series:
As an international art dealer, I am in the business of re-homing artworks – ensuring that important works of art are stationed in their most appropriate context – whether that be a national institution like the National Portrait Gallery, or on the wall of a discerning collector who fully appreciates the significance of the artwork he or she owns.
Rarely am I afforded the luxury of spending extended amounts of time with these artworks myself. During lockdown, a time when we all remained contained within the four walls of our homes, I was lucky enough to do just that. Finally surrounded by the artists whom I have admired for years, I swiftly developed new relationships with each of them – but the desire to share these artworks with a wider audience continued to press upon me, and so Art in Isolation was born.
With my son Oliver behind the camera, we opened the door of our family home and welcomed the world of the internet inside. The videos themselves were largely spontaneous – we’d devote the morning to deliberating which artwork to share and spend the afternoon live-streaming our thoughts and reflections via the internet. Oliver uploaded the videos onto Instagram and YouTube and a community began to form – within days we’d accumulated thousands of views and hundreds of comments. To give you an insight into the kind of videos we produced, I’d like to share with you episode 18, on the artist Vanessa Bell:
This episode proved to be particularly popular, possibly on account of my admiration for the artist. Vanessa Bell, as explained in the episode, was a member of the Bloomsbury group – a collective of artistic individuals who often lived and worked together, embracing an unrestricted and bohemian lifestyle. This artwork was one which I simply had to have with me during lockdown – the hazy, summer’s light was a reminder of holidays in Europe, crystallised through the freedom of her astute brushstrokes. But also, as an artist who endured the horrors of the first and second world wars and herself experienced her own form of ‘lockdown’ during both these periods, this artwork emanated a sense of fortitude and hope and most of all, the possibility of a return to normality.
Thankfully for us all, lockdown eased and indeed, a ‘new normal’ soon ensued. As an ode to the strength of Bell, and the solace this painting brought me in lockdown, upon the easing of restrictions, the first major exhibition I put on at my Pall Mall Gallery was dedicated to her work and the work of her partner Duncan Grant. Focusing on their artwork between and during the World Wars, the parallels between their isolated situation and our recent lockdown felt pertinent and relevant. I am pleased to say that we have continued to champion her work at the gallery, and she has since become one of the most sought-after artists that we deal with. From a homemade video to a major exhibition, I am pleased to say that Bell is another artist that I have been able to ‘rehome’ and share with a wider audience.