Arts patronage runs in the family for the Canadian-born, UK-based collector Dasha Shenkman. Her late mother, Belle Shenkman, was a notable supporter of the arts and has rooms at both the Royal Academy of Arts and the Royal College of Music named after her for her philanthropy. Dasha, who previously worked as a literary agent, has for several years “supported a wide range of cultural organisations as a trustee, patron and donor”, says a press spokesperson.
She has donated dozens of works to public collections, including the Contemporary Art Society (CAS), with which she has a longstanding relationship. It is alongside CAS that Shenkman has recently launched the Dasha Shenkman Focus Fund, which helps a public institution buy a young artist’s work from Frieze London’s Focus section. “I’ve always sought to support artists during the early, pivotal moments in their career,” Shenkman says, “and I’m very glad to have developed this new fund.”
The Art Newspaper: What was the first work you ever bought?
Dasha Shenkman: A Jean Arp lithograph. I was living in Montreal and fell in love with it as soon as I saw it in a gallery called Mira Godard, one of Canada’s top art dealers. I told the gallerist I wanted to buy it but that I didn’t have the money—I had to save up for it and pay in instalments! The gallery was happy to wait for me, which isn’t so likely to happen these days.
Vassily Kandinsky’s Composition No IV (1911); Shenkman has a passion for the artist’s early works Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen
What was the last work you bought?
The last work I bought was from an open call show called Hypha Curates, a pop up in a skyscraper near Euston station in London. It is a beautiful drypoint, monotype, collage and embroidery work divided into two halves. It’s called Book of Two Ways by the artist Neil Groom, who explained the background to me when I went to collect it from him. I always aim to meet the artists whose work I collect, if possible. I was delighted to support Neil, Hypha Curates and a close friend of mine, Sarah Elson, who curated the show.
How quickly do you decide to buy a work of art?
I usually make a decision pretty quickly. It’s a gut feeling and I often know where it will live and give me pleasure.
What do you regret not buying when you had the chance?
Not much, to be honest. There are plenty of works I’ve been seriously tempted to buy—I’ll see something somewhere, meet the artist, imagine living with the work—but, in the end, I’ve learnt that I can’t buy everything I like. And that I can simply enjoy a work without having to acquire it. Therapist’s fodder, there!
If you could have any work from any museum in the world, what would it be?
I would love a fresco by Fra Angelico, who created a series of frescoes and altarpieces for the Dominican convent of San Marco in Florence in the Early Renaissance period. If it had to be from a museum, I would probably go for an early [Wassily] Kandinsky or [Egon] Schiele. I get great pleasure, however, from giving works to museums. I must have donated more than 40 now and I love knowing that they’re being enjoyed by people all over the UK. I don’t have anything in storage.
Hop on: “You’ll notice so much more” if you travel around London by bus, Shenkman says Sergii Figurnyi
Which events are you most looking forward to in London this month?
I love going to the annual Unexpected Views event at the National Gallery. The director and various curators from the gallery chat with some of the most important cultural practitioners working today about a masterpiece that they particularly love.It is fascinating listening to the artists looking at the works through the lens of their own practice. The whole event is a lot of fun, sort of like speed-dating from picture to picture, dashing from room to room for the next talk. It is beautifully organised by the team at the National Gallery, and you always see and chat with people you know.
Where do you like to eat and drink during Frieze London?
Wherever I can find an available table. It gets so busy!
Do you have any parties lined up?
If you mean have I been invited to any, the answer is yes. If you mean am I hosting any, the answer is also yes. I’m hosting a party for the Distinguished Patrons of the National Gallery of Canada.
What is your least favourite thing about art fairs?
There’s always too much to see and the crowds are inescapable. But this year at Frieze London I’m looking forward to spending most of my time in the Focus section. The new Focus Fund that I’m bringing to the fair with the Contemporary Art Society is an opportunity to put my convictions into practice: both for the museum who will receive the work and for the young artist whose work will be purchased.
We’ll be buying work for Abbot Hall in Cumbria, who are custodians of a very special collection. I had been to Abbott Hall many years ago, but we all made a visit this summer and I was reminded what a wonderful place it is. I loved meeting Niall Hodson, the keeper of collections, and Will Cooper, the senior curator there. It’s a great context for this inaugural year of the fund.
Where do you go in London to get away from it all?
Home sweet home.
What tip would you give to someone visiting London for the first time?
Walk everywhere—or take the bus. You’ll notice so much more that way.
