Collector Interview: Between the Aesthetics of Cruelty and Happy Pills

A European with Asian heritage growing up in a collector family, Olivier Chow is particularly drawn to African contemporary art and design. His experiences in humanitarian affairs have brought him new perspectives and insights and led him to do a PhD at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London on the aesthetics of cruelty.

Olivier shared with LARRY’S LIST about how a humanitarian crisis he had witnessed made him finally understand Picasso’s Guernica. He also talked about an African designer’s post-apocalyptic poetry and magic related to urban recycling; what “happy pills” he has through contemporary African art and design; how buying art online can be like online dating; and some emerging African artists and designers to follow.

https://www.larryslist.com/artmarket/the-talks/between-the-aesthetics-of-cruelty-and-happy-pills/