Insider tip: 8 Art collections by fashion players
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Culture
Collaborations between luxury fashion houses and artists are often projects that benefit everyone involved. Just think of the collaboration between Louis Vuitton and artists such as Yayoi Kusama, Takashi Murakami or Jeff Koons - they have all long since become legendary, and the accessories they created have become collector's items. But even in private life, designers and entrepreneurs who have made their money with fashion like to surround themselves with art. Some of them then exhibit their collections to the public. While some of these museums are known all over the world; others tend to stay under the radar. FahionUnited has put together some of the most exciting art collections of the fashion world.
Yves Saint Laurent Museum, Marrakesh
Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Bergé loved this Moroccan city, fashion and art. They spent much time in their home in Marrakesh and its Jardin Majorelle. The museum in the "Red City" has been open since October 2017. The building, designed by French architectural team Studio KO, adjoins the botanical garden and houses the collection of the Fondation Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent, which includes 5,000 items of clothing and 15,000 accessories as well as photographs and drawings.
Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow
Russian-American entrepreneur Dasha Zhukova was editor-in-chief of fashion magazine Pop until she founded her own fashion and art magazine: Garage. Her museum, founded in 2008 and called Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, was designed by Rem Kohlhaas. It is located in Gorki Park and is considered the Russian Tate Modern. Zhukova studied in the USA and was married to Roman Abramowitsch. She is also on the Board of Trustees of the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art (LACMA). Her museum houses paintings by Julien Freud and Francis Bacon, among others.
Fondazione Prada, Milan
Miuccia Prada needs no introduction. In a former distillery, the Fondazione Prada houses the Prada Collection, which mainly comprises works from the 20th and 21st centuries. These include works by artists such as Louise Bourgeois, Thomas Demand and Anish Kapoor.
Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town
German manager Jochen Zeitz is the youngest Chairman of the Board. At the age of 30, he put Puma back in the black and became a member of the Board of Directors following the takeover of Puma by PPR (now Kering). Privately, he has a passion for Africa and speaks Swahili among other languages. He collects contemporary African art and has given his collection on long-term loan to the museum.
Collection Pinault, Venice and Paris
François Pinault, whose Kering Group includes fashion houses Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci and Balenciaga, was also looking for a new home for his art collection in the French capital. The billionaire, who also owns Christie's auction house, found it in the Bourse de Commerce near Les Halles in Paris. Tadao Ando will renovate the building and Pinault will bring part of his collection to the Seine from Venice at the end of 2018, where it can be seen in Palazzo Grassi, including works by artists such as Mark Rothko, Damien Hirst, Maurizio Cattelan and Cindy Sherman.
Museum Frieder Burda, Baden-Baden and Berlin
Frieder Burda is the son of publisher and printer Dr. Franz Burda and Aenne Burda, who founded Burda-Verlag. In 2004, Frieder Burda had New York architect Richard Meier build the Frieder Burda Museum in his hometown Baden-Baden in Germany’s Black Forest region, which houses his collection of 20th-century paintings. Since 2016, the Salon Berlin has been a branch of the museum in the German capital.
Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris
The two fashion magnates Bernard Arnault and François Pinault are not only competing when it comes to luxury conglomerates; their art collections and galleries are also part of a gigantic billionaire competition. Bernard Arnault is chairman and CEO of the Louis-Vuitton-Moet-Henessy Group, which includes fashion houses such as Louis Vuitton, Celine, Fendi, Christian Dior and Givenchy. In 2014, with the Fondation Louis Vuitton he had a major project built in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris by architect Frank Gehry. Among the artists on exhibition are works by Gerhard Richter, Thomas Schütte, Pierre Huyghe and Frank Stella.
Aishti Foundation, Antelias, Lebanon
Lebanese businessman Tony Salamé and his wife Elham have been collecting contemporary art for more than ten years. In 2015, the entrepreneur, who earned his living with a fashion retail empire, opened the exhibition space for his Aïshti Foundation in Jal el-Dib, Lebanon, which was designed by British architect David Adjaye. The collection includes works by influential contemporary artists such as Lucio Fontana, Alberto Burri, Sol LeWitt and Cindy Sherman.
The Goetz Collection
The Goetz Collection in Munich is an internationally renowned collection of contemporary art, which has its own dedicated exhibition space in a separate building for the collection designed by Herzog & de Meuron and completed in 1993. Collector and gallery owner Ingvild Goetz is the daughter of entrepreneur Werner Otto, founder of the Otto mail order business.
KRC Collection, Voorschoten, The Netherlands
The KRC collection in Dutch Voorschoten belongs to entrepreneur Rattan Chadha. Born in India, the son of a wealthy family of steel producers, Rattan Chadha began importing garments to the Netherlands in 1971. In 1986, he founded clothing brand Mexx and sold most of the company in 2001. In addition to established artists such as Gilbert & George, Paul McCarthy and Marlene Dumas, the KRC Collection also presents promising young talents such as Folkert de Jong and Roger Hiorns.
Marciano Art Foundation, Los Angeles
The Marciano brothers founded denim label Guess in the early 1980s, which is when their commitment to contemporary art began as well. In 2006, they started collecting works from the 90s. In 2012, they reached a point where they wanted to share their love of art with the public, which led to the founding of the Marciano Art Foundation. In 2013, they bought the Scottish Rite Masonic Temple on Wilshire Boulevard with the vision of transforming it into a contemporary art foundation. There, they now show their collection of contemporary art, which includes 1,500 works by over 200 artists, including Cypriots Gaillard, Doug Aitken and Tracey Emin.
Maramotti Collection, Reggio Emilia, Italy
Achille Maramotti founded the Max Mara fashion group in 1951. In the 70s, he had the idea of creating a public collection of contemporary art. Until 2000, parts of the collection were exhibited in the corridors and common rooms of the Max Mara manufactory building, which was later converted into an exhibition space. English architect Andrew Hapgood was entrusted with the reconstruction of the building.
If you want to discover more private art collections around the world, you can find them in the BMW Art Guide by Independent Collectors, published by Hatje Cantz Verlag.
Photo by Thomas Loizeau on Unsplash
This article was originally published on FashionUnited DE. Edited and translated by Simone Preuss.