Interview Paul Smith’s Foundation Director, Martha Mosse
THE WICK: Who is your personal Monday Muse, and why?
MARTHA MOSSE:
It’s not very imaginative but I would say my mum, Kate Mosse – a former Monday Muse! She is an extraordinary writer, campaigner, all round ‘doer’ and truly an exceptional influence on me, my brother and by-extension, plenty of friends and family.
TW:
Congratulations on your new position Martha! What is your vision as the inaugural director of Paul Smith’s Foundation?
MM:
Paul has been a patron and philanthropist forever – scholarships, internships, advice and more. The work that I’m doing at the Foundation is intended to harness and structure the very real and authentic support that Paul already gives to so many people, and in this structure, we can then increase reach, have greater impact, build our network of founding patrons and then expand our programmes nationally and internationally.
TW: What do you see as the role of a fashion house art foundation within the art world ecosystem?
MM: It depends on the foundation. They each have different agendas, founding objectives and budgets. Prada and Louis Vuitton have extraordinary exhibition programmes, others focus on commissioning, and Paul’s foundation supports early career creative people through programmes that deliver advice, access, opportunities and funding.
TW: You come from an artistic creative family, how did your upbringing influence your career trajectory and in which ways will Paul Smith’s Foundation look to impact the careers of others?
MM:
I am the only one of my immediate family who works in art (my mum, dad & brother are all writers of books and plays) but being raised in a family that appreciated culture in all its forms – art, literature, dance, theatre, food and music has no doubt had a huge impact on me, including that working in this industry was considered a viable career choice.
Paul’s foundation is creating opportunities for early career creative people working in visual arts, fashion and design. More specifically, we are building programmes which focus on business skills training, from legal, finance, production, marketing and more, with the aim to equip people with the knowledge they need to sustain a career for the long term. We’re already working with an incredible group of industry experts who are donating their time to support our programmes, including Charlie Casely-Hayford, Henry Holland, Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn, Ekow Eshun and Laura Wier to name a few!
“Paul’s foundation is creating opportunities for early career creative people working in visual arts, fashion and design.”
