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Singulart Collectors – Meet Anne de Kerckhove

Singulart is proud to showcase its collectors, who not only give artworks a new home, but also support the art market and thus help us in our mission to empower artists. This week is the turn of Anne de Kerckhove.

Meet Anne de Kerckhove, the Belgian-Canadian entrepreneur who currently lives between Paris, London and Uppsala in Sweden. She is a business angel investor and current CEO of Freespee, a Swedish company that analyzes and optimizes conversations between companies and their customers. We had the pleasure to speak with her on her love of art and the way she started her collection.

Tell us about the first artwork you owned.

I purchased my first painting in Russia at the age of 15. I still own it because it still evokes the same feeling in me after all these years. That is why I have never thought of giving it away. It’s a portrait of a lady. It’s not a great painting but it captured a sadness I associated with that period in Moscow.

I purchase art if the piece speaks to me in the first few seconds I see it – only then. It was as true then as it is now.

What is the style of your collection?

Eclectic to say the least. I love large pieces and sculptures. I love photography. I love deep and sad art and I love street art. I guess they are always very expressive pieces. They speak to me in the first few seconds that I see them.

How do you display your collection?

In the different places where I live, in each room. Even in my corporate flat in London. I cannot bear empty beige walls.

What is your favorite place for art?

There is no single place. I have bought art in over 12 countries. It’s a way for me to discover a country, a city or a continent. By visiting its galleries, you visit its soul, its history, its future and social fabric. 

When you have all the money in the world – which artist would you like to add to your collection?

Anish Kapoor.

Which artist have you discovered lately?

My latest purchases were photographs of Greenland by Philippe Alexandre Chevallier from the collection memoires de glace. My kids each chose one. It was their first piece of art and a good way to embed in them the need to act against climate change. The photographer spent an hour explaining his journey to them. It was so impactful.

Examplerary Image chosen from the above mentioned collection.
PHOTOGRAPHIE SCORESBY SUND VII – PHILIPPE ALEXANDRE CHEVALLIER

Choose three artworks you like on Singulart.

A great thank you to Anne for her insights into her life as an art collector. If you are looking for artworks that reflect Anne de Kerckhove’s love of nature, you can browse Singulart’s collection on The Environment and Art.