When? March 30, 2022

Where? Zoom

Who? William Lim, Willem Molesworth and Nadia Samdani

Here’s what you missed:  Aaina Bhargava, Tatler’s art and culture editor, spoke to experts about how to collect art with intent, and how collectors can make a cultural and social impact with their art collections. The event marked a welcome return to Tatler’s monthly panel series in partnership with The Upper House.

The speakers were William Lim, artist and founder of CL3 Architects; Nadia Samdani, co-founder of the Samdani Art Foundation and Dhaka Art Summit; and Willem Molesworth, gallerist and co-founder of Property Holdings Development Group, who was joined on screen by his adorable toy poodle, Marmo. The panellists each spoke of their early days of collecting and how their styles have evolved over time.  

Lim, along with his wife Lavina, has spent more than a decade building the Living Collection, the world’s largest private collection of art from Hong Kong. Last year, the couple donated 90 pieces by 26 artists to M+ museum. “People would fly in from overseas to see our art collection and took notice of what we were collecting. That’s when I started to really think about what our collection was about and how it could tell a story,” he said. “As a collector, we have a responsibility—what we collect is saying something about what is considered good art and what is considered bad.”

Samdani, whose foundation supports the work of contemporary artists and architects in Bangladesh and South Asia, spoke of collecting with passion. “You have to absolutely love what you’re going to collect. If you love it, you’ll never have any regrets,” she said. “It doesn’t matter where the artist is from or how old they are: the work should speak to you. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks; it should make you happy and it should move you. Once you have that, the collection will just grow and grow,” she says. Lim agreed but warned that collectors should remain focused: “If you’re buying art just to fill the walls in your home, there’s no point. You’re only a collector when you get to the point when you’re buying things irrationally,” he said, laughing.

Questions from the audience poured in about the most unique collections the speakers have seen, sustainability in the art world and the importance of supporting local artists. Molesworth made a poignant remark about encouraging diversity in art: “[Our gallery] wouldn’t exist without the community supporting us. The word ‘group’ in PHD Group is a nod to collective thinking, in terms of the artists, curators and collectors. [Whether a gallerist or a collector], we do have an obligation to showcase art that lacks representation and needs support.”