Conversations on Collecting: Living with Art
With Andrew Booth, Ann and Marshall Webb, moderated by Dr. Karen Tam
Griffin Art Projects is excited to present this ongoing series, which embodies our mandate to make privately held art collections accessible to the public. Join us for engaging conversations that bring together art enthusiasts, collectors, and experts in an exploration of contemporary art and collecting practices.
In this upcoming in-person event, Griffin’s adjunct curator, Dr. Karen Tam, will moderate a conversation with three Vancouver-based art collectors who will share their invaluable experiences and passion for art. We are thrilled to welcome Ann and Marshall Webb, and Andrew Booth to this discussion. Seasoned art collectors, Anne and Marshall will talk about acquiring and living with art for over thirty years. Andrew Booth, curator of the renowned Vancouver Art Blog, an Instagram account devoted to promoting and showcasing Vancouver's vibrant contemporary art scene, will bring his perspective as a collector who embarked on this journey just a few years ago.
Together, Dr. Karen Tam, Andrew Booth, Ann, and Marshall Webb will delve into various topics surrounding contemporary collecting practices. Their extensive knowledge, experiences, and personal insights will offer a unique glimpse into the challenges, joys, and rewards of building and maintaining an art collection. Join us as they discuss the evolution of their collections, their collecting strategies, the importance of community, and the transformative power of sharing their collections.
Andrew Booth
Andrew Booth is an art collector and curator of the Vancouver Art Blog, an Instagram account devoted to promoting and showcasing Vancouver’s contemporary art scene. Andrew lives and works on the unceded, traditional and ancestral xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish), and səl̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) territories.
Andrew Booth accompanied by his cat, Archie. Courtesy of Andrew Booth.
Ann and Marshall Webb
have been collecting Canadian and international contemporary art together for over 35 years. Initially their collection focused on German artists, in particular the Dusseldorf based photographers which then led to works by many Vancouver lens-based artists. Over the years their collection has evolved to include art in all media including film, video, audio works, works on paper, sculpture and painting. Selected works have been included in exhibitions in museums and galleries across Canada, the US and Europe and the collection has been the focus of two public art gallery exhibitions. They have been actively involved in the visual arts both personally and professionally. They met in a contemporary art Gallery in 1985 and have been together ever since.
Born and raised in Toronto, Ann and Marshall moved to Vancouver 6 years ago and now divide their time between Vancouver and Berlin.
Ann and Marshall are grateful to live and learn on the unceded traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Image: Anne and Marshall Webb, courtesy of Anne and Marshall Webb.
Karen Tam is a Tiohtià:ke/Montréal-based artist and curator whose research focuses on the constructions and imaginations of cultures and communities through her installations in which she recreates Chinese restaurants, karaoke lounges, opium dens, curio shops and other sites of cultural encounters. Since 2000, she has exhibited her work and participated in residencies in North America, Europe, and China, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, He Xiangning Art Museum, and Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. She has received grants and fellowships from the Canada Council for the Arts, Conseil des arts du Québec, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Tam was the winner of the Prix Giverny Capital 2021 awarded by the Fondation Giverny pour l'art contemporain, and was a finalist for the 2017 Prix Louis-Comtois, a finalist for the 2016 Prix en art actuel from the Musée national des beaux-arts de Québec, and long-listed for the 2010 and 2016 Sobey Art Awards.
Image: Dr. Karen Tam, courtesy of Dr. Karen Tam