The Coutts art club – creating and collecting passion

On the second floor of our 440 Strand headquarters is a rendered impression of our founder Thomas Coutts with an inscription that calls on us to be ‘more than just a banker’. This motto is at the heart of our mission to help clients with every aspect of their life, whether that be through wealth creation and preservation or through unrolling metaphorical maps to discover new lifestyle journeys.

It was for those journeys that we founded the Coutts Art Club, with the objective of bringing the best of the art world to our clients. This encompasses being an interested space to listen to and engage with those already involved in the art world – from curators, to artists to dealers – as well as helping those new to collecting and art as they nurture their passions and find the right avenues to acquiring their first piece.

To this end, we’ve set out provide our members with money can’t buy events such as gallery tours, private viewings or meetings with artists. For example, we were recently granted a private viewing of work by contemporary masters including Yayoi Kusama and Jean-Michel Basquiat, at Sotheby’s followed by a champagne breakfast. The Club focuses predominantly on Fine Arts, mainly painting and sculpture, however our latitude also extends into the world of collectibles due to the various institutions we work with.

The Club is run exclusively through our 440 app which every Coutts client has access to. In this digital forum, clients have a space to connect and discuss upcoming exhibitions, favourite artists and styles as well as emerging scene shakers. The 440 Arts Club forum is also where we notify our members about forthcoming events.

Searching for Roots and Expression is our latest exhibition held in the Garden Court of our 440 Strand headquarters from 30th of September – 25th of October. Curated by Sochi Henry-Uche, the exhibition brings together seven Contemporary African artists during Black History Month to celebrate their exploration of cultural heritage and the search for belonging across generations. Please speak to your private banker to find out more.

There are no wrong answers when it comes to art. One of the most rewarding aspects of the Club is watching interests grow into passions and enjoying diverse and dynamic discussions. Each gallery we visit, each painting we see, brings new contexts and forges new opinions. Art is a way to capture the past but also to illuminate the present and project the future – and of course it can simply be a beautiful aesthetic expression.

Over the centuries we’ve been fortunate to support a number of leading artists as clients, including Sir Joshua Reynolds, Henry Fuseli, Allan Ramsay, George Frederic Watts and Sir John Everett Millais. As a cultural patron we continue to support major artistic institutions such as the Royal Opera House, and the Royal Albert Hall. Our charity, The Coutts Foundation, also works through the arts to change lives, working with theatre groups across the UK to encourage and empower young people from deprived backgrounds.

Our arts heritage also owes much to Mike Anderson who recently retired as Managing Director at Coutts after 36 years of commitment to client art journeys. A passionate collector himself, Mike founded the Coutts Art Club and has left a legacy of colleagues working as informed partners of clients. The Staff Arts Club was formed alongside the main proposition with the goal of engaging with staff already interested in the arts or wanting to explore a new passion. We aim to run quarterly events kindly hosted by top galleries and auction houses, where we look to view new exhibitions and discuss art market trends – all with the expressed aim of being better positioned to help clients.

Today, we draw on our experience of working with colleagues and partners across the artistic landscape and our extensive client network to support the ambitions of Arts Club members. We’ve been fortunate to work with some of the most brilliant galleries and artists in making a service that illustrates our commitment to our clients to be more than just at bank. A journey through the arts is one of constant discovery and one I very much hope you’ll join us on.

To get involved with the Coutts Art Club, you can join via the 440 app or speak with your banker who can let you know more.

Main image: Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Portrait of the Artist as a Young Derelict, shown at the private Sotheby’s event The Coutts Art Club attended