Ivan Massow - Contemporary Art

Contemporary Art

In 1999, Massow became Chairman of the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London. He was brought in by Director Philip Dodd to increase sponsorship and patronage for the organisation. Dodd claimed that Massow was a "mass of contradictions, just like the ICA. He's a risky choice for us, but the ICA should always live dangerously." However the working relationship between Massow and Dodd subsequently proved to be not wholly successful, as Dodd increasingly disliked Massow's knack for self-promotion and perceived him to be taking over the role of being the organisation's public face. The situation deteriorated irreparably when in January 2002 Massow wrote an article in New Statesman magazine, attacking the predominance of conceptual art in the art world. He described modern concept art as "pretentious, self-indulgent, craftless tat" and "the product of over-indulged, middle-class, bloated egos who patronise real people with fake understanding". He called the ICA a "pillar of the shock establishment". He attacked Tracey Emin saying she "couldn't think her way out of a paper bag", though he admitted this comment was "a little below the belt".

In February 2002, Massow resigned as Chairman of the ICA, after the board unanimously requested him to. Board member Ekow Eshun was quoted in The Guardian as saying "I have no problem with Ivan bringing up this debate. But Ivan has been ramping up the story all week. I think he's been a little bit of a pillock.". There was speculation that Massow had deliberately been as provocative as possible in order to engineer his own sacking. Massow claims he spoke out in order to redress the imbalance between the promotion of conceptual and more traditional art in the British art scene. His views have engendered strong feelings about him amongst the art world; a year after his resignation one artist commented that "they treat him like the Black Death round here", although Massow has received less vocal support from many artists who fear they will never achieve recognition unless they follow the conceptual route.

Massow collects figurative contemporary art and claims that he visits art colleges and artists' studios regularly. In a 2003 interview he stated that "I visit at least one a week, quietly, on my own. It helps to see how people work. How they define themselves. I rarely buy from galleries." Massow has had his portrait painted nearly 30 times, including a double nude diptych by Jonathan Yeo, son of Conservative MP Tim Yeo. Massow has personally provided regular financial support for some artists, to assist them in their lives and work.