Sandy Nairne
Encyclopedia
Alexander Robert "Sandy" Nairne CBE
(born 8 June 1953) is a British
museum director and writer. Since 2002, he has been the director of the National Portrait Gallery.
, and studied at University College, Oxford
in the early 1970s and rowed for the Oxford University second crew Isis.
Nairne came into contact with Nicholas Serota
working at the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford in 1974–76.
After a period as an Assistant Curator at the Tate Gallery
(1976–80) Nairne was appointed Director of Exhibitions at the Institute of Contemporary Arts
(ICA), a position he held until 1984 - exhibitions included "Brand New York," Robert Mapplethorpe
, Mary Miss, "Women's Images of Men," and "About Time."
In 1987, Nairne wrote the television documentary series "State of the Art" for Channel 4
. The series and Nairne's accompanying book acts as a follow on to the Robert Hughes
series The Shock of the New
and provides a critical survey of contemporary visual arts from America and Europe through the 1980s.
In 1988, Nairne was appointed as the director of the Visual Arts Department at the Arts Council
. In this capacity, Nairne oversaw the re-invigoration of the British Art Show
, the establishing of the Institute of International Visual Arts (InIVA
) as a permanent organisation to promote culturally diverse projects, the furtherance of Percent for Art and the creation of the Curating Contemporary Art Course at the Royal College of Art.
In 1996, Nairne co-edited with Reesa Greenberg
and Bruce W. Ferguson the book Thinking about Exhibitions (1996), a review of international practice in contemporary art exhibitions.
Nairne became Director of Programmes for the Tate Gallery
under Nicholas Serota. In this capacity, Nairne was responsible for the restructuring of the Tate's collection administration in preparation for the opening of Tate Modern
and the redevelopment of the original Tate Gallery
in Millbank as Tate Britain
.
Nairne was responsible for the successful recovery of two late J.M.W. Turner paintings, stolen
in Germany in 1994, and put back on display at Tate Britain in early 2003.
Nairne became Director of the National Portrait Gallery in 2002.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2011 Birthday Honours
for services to the arts.
, is the executive director of Arts Strategy at the Arts Council England
. His other brother, James Nairne, Andrew's twin, is head of Art at Abingdon School
in Oxfordshire
.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 8 June 1953) is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
museum director and writer. Since 2002, he has been the director of the National Portrait Gallery.
Life and career
Nairne is the son of a senior civil servant, Sir Patrick NairnePatrick Nairne
The Rt Hon Sir Patrick Nairne, GCB, MC was a senior British civil servant. He was formerly Permanent Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Security and Master of St Catherine's College, Oxford ....
, and studied at University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
in the early 1970s and rowed for the Oxford University second crew Isis.
Nairne came into contact with Nicholas Serota
Nicholas Serota
Sir Nicholas Andrew Serota is a British art curator. Serota was director of the Whitechapel Gallery, London, and The Museum of Modern Art, Oxford, before becoming director of the Tate, the United Kingdom's national gallery of modern and British art in 1988. He was awarded a knighthood in 1999. He...
working at the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford in 1974–76.
After a period as an Assistant Curator at the Tate Gallery
Tate Gallery
The Tate is an institution that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of British Art, and International Modern and Contemporary Art...
(1976–80) Nairne was appointed Director of Exhibitions at the Institute of Contemporary Arts
Institute of Contemporary Arts
The Institute of Contemporary Arts is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. It is located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch...
(ICA), a position he held until 1984 - exhibitions included "Brand New York," Robert Mapplethorpe
Robert Mapplethorpe
Robert Mapplethorpe was an American photographer, known for his large-scale, highly stylized black and white portraits, photos of flowers and nude men...
, Mary Miss, "Women's Images of Men," and "About Time."
In 1987, Nairne wrote the television documentary series "State of the Art" for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
. The series and Nairne's accompanying book acts as a follow on to the Robert Hughes
Robert Hughes (critic)
Robert Studley Forrest Hughes, AO is an Australian-born art critic, writer and television documentary maker who has resided in New York since 1970.-Early life:...
series The Shock of the New
The Shock of the New
The Shock of the New is a 1980 documentary series by Robert Hughes that was broadcast by the BBC in the United Kingdom and by PBS in the United...
and provides a critical survey of contemporary visual arts from America and Europe through the 1980s.
In 1988, Nairne was appointed as the director of the Visual Arts Department at the Arts Council
Arts council
An arts council is a government or private, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing events at home and abroad...
. In this capacity, Nairne oversaw the re-invigoration of the British Art Show
British Art Show
The British Art Show is a major survey exhibition organised every five years to showcase contemporary British Art. The current exhibition in the series, referred to as BAS6, is touring a number of major cities within England in 2005 and 2006. Each time it is organised, the show tours to three UK...
, the establishing of the Institute of International Visual Arts (InIVA
InIVA
Iniva is the Institute of International Visual Art, an arts institution that represents artists, curators and writers. It consists of exhibition spaces and the Stuart Hall Library, and together with Autograph ABP is housed in Rivington Place, a visual arts centre in Shoreditch, in the heart of...
) as a permanent organisation to promote culturally diverse projects, the furtherance of Percent for Art and the creation of the Curating Contemporary Art Course at the Royal College of Art.
In 1996, Nairne co-edited with Reesa Greenberg
Reesa Greenberg
Reesa Greenberg is an independent scholar, museum consultant, and writer with an intense interest in cultural theory and the theory of exhibition and museum practices...
and Bruce W. Ferguson the book Thinking about Exhibitions (1996), a review of international practice in contemporary art exhibitions.
Nairne became Director of Programmes for the Tate Gallery
Tate Gallery
The Tate is an institution that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of British Art, and International Modern and Contemporary Art...
under Nicholas Serota. In this capacity, Nairne was responsible for the restructuring of the Tate's collection administration in preparation for the opening of Tate Modern
Tate Modern
Tate Modern is a modern art gallery located in London, England. It is Britain's national gallery of international modern art and forms part of the Tate group . It is the most-visited modern art gallery in the world, with around 4.7 million visitors per year...
and the redevelopment of the original Tate Gallery
Tate Gallery
The Tate is an institution that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of British Art, and International Modern and Contemporary Art...
in Millbank as Tate Britain
Tate Britain
Tate Britain is an art gallery situated on Millbank in London, and part of the Tate gallery network in Britain, with Tate Modern, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It is the oldest gallery in the network, opening in 1897. It houses a substantial collection of the works of J. M. W. Turner.-History:It...
.
Nairne was responsible for the successful recovery of two late J.M.W. Turner paintings, stolen
Frankfurt art theft (1994)
Three famous paintings were stolen from the Kunsthalle Schirn in Frankfurt in 1994. This case of art theft is unique in that the paintings were recovered by buying them back from the thieves; the people responsible for the theft were never brought to justice....
in Germany in 1994, and put back on display at Tate Britain in early 2003.
Nairne became Director of the National Portrait Gallery in 2002.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2011 Birthday Honours
2011 Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours 2011 for the Commonwealth Realms were announced on 7 June 2011 in New Zealand and 11 June 2011 in United Kingdom to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 2011.-Privy Councillors:...
for services to the arts.
Personal life
Nairne's wife is the art historian Lisa Tickner with whom he has a son and a daughter. His brother, Andrew NairneAndrew Nairne
Andrew Nairne , is Director for Arts Strategy at the Arts Council England.Nairne graduated with an art history MA from the University of St Andrews in 1983. He was the Visual Arts Director at the Scottish Arts Council and for eight years he was the Exhibitions Director at the Centre for...
, is the executive director of Arts Strategy at the Arts Council England
Arts Council England
Arts Council England was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three separate bodies for England, Scotland and Wales. It is a non-departmental public body of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport...
. His other brother, James Nairne, Andrew's twin, is head of Art at Abingdon School
Abingdon School
Abingdon School is a British day and boarding independent school for boys situated in Abingdon, Oxfordshire , previously known as Roysse's School. In 1998 a formal merger took place between Abingdon School and Josca's, a preparatory school four miles to the west at Frilford...
in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
.
External links
- New Director at the National Portrait Gallery
- Article from the 24 Hour Museum24 Hour MuseumCulture24, originally the 24 Hour Museum, is a British charity which publishes two websites, Culture24 and Show Me, about visual culture and heritage in the United Kingdom, as well as supplying data and support services to other cultural websites including Engaging Places.It operates independently,...
- Sandy Nairne books from Amazon.comAmazon.comAmazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
- Independent article, 'Wikipedia under the microscope over accuracy'
- Sandy Nairne photograph
