Cynthia Corbett | Cynthia Corbett Gallery, London, United Kingdom
Gallerist Talk, Saturday, February 17 at 5pm
Cynthia Corbett Gallery, a London-based Contemporary art gallery, was established by American former economist, art historian, and curator Cynthia Valianti Corbett in 2004. This international nomadic art gallery represents emerging and established contemporary artists. They also provide a broad annual exhibition program that includes international art fairs and collaborative projects worldwide. Gallery-represented and guest artists from British, American, and international backgrounds have had their work acquired by major museums, institutions, and private collections.
In 2009, Cynthia Corbett proudly launched the Young Masters Art Prize, a unique, not-for-profit curatorial platform supporting emerging international artists. The Prize celebrates artistic skill and innovation with awareness of the Old Masters and art of the past. The work is reviewed, and the winners are selected by an independent judging panel of renowned art historians, collectors, curators, and art professionals. Three years later, the gallery launched an inaugural Young Masters Emerging Women Award. Following that, the fifth edition and 10th Anniversary Exhibition of the Prize were held. In 2021, the Focus on the Female curatorial platform was developed as an artistic and philanthropic antidote to the disproportionate impact of the COVID pandemic on women. The 6th edition of the Young Masters Art Prize successfully coincided with the 2023 Frieze London art fair held in Marylebone, London. In 2020, Cynthia was the recipient of the 2020 Tufts University Alumni Award with a Career Service Citation in recognition of her achievements and contribution to the international art world.
This Gallerist Talk will focus on Cynthia’s exciting and varied career and path, which includes working at Citi as an international economist specializing in emerging markets and based in New York and London. The discussion will include insights into how her experience around the world has influenced her work in the fine art world, and how she selects the artists she represents.
Joining the conversation will be two distinguished artists: Klari Reis and Nicole Etienne.
Klari Reis is renowned for her discerning integration of scientific tools and methodologies into the fabric of her artistic endeavors. Unceasingly committed to exploration, Reis adeptly maneuvers through a panorama of inventive techniques, perpetually unveiling novel applications of materials. Driven by an insatiable curiosity and a profound inclination to scrutinize the organic and the surreal, her artistic expression is imbued with an ineffable sense of wonder and joy.
American-born and Henley-upon-Thames-based artist Nicole Etienne, whose mixed media compositions explode with vibrancy and sensuality. Blending painting and photography, Etienne captures romantic settings during her extensive travels, manipulating each image for a mystical entry point. Printed on glitter or natural canvas, her images transform with thickly layered paint, gold leaf, glitter, and Swarovski crystals. The result is a powerful blend of movement and opulence, inviting viewers into an intimate and unexpected moment within an extraordinary environment. Etienne's work graces public and private collections worldwide, showcasing her skill and beauty. With an MFA from the New York Academy of Art and a BFA from the University of California Santa Cruz, she has held solo exhibitions in global art hubs like New York, Aspen, London, Dublin, Tokyo, and Saint Barthélemy. Nicole Etienne continues to captivate audiences with her exquisite creations.
Cynthia Valianti Corbett (b, Marlborough, MA, USA) holds a BA (Magna Cum Laude) in Political Science from UMASS Amherst and a MALD from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. She was the recipient of the 2020 Tufts University Alumni Award with a Career Service Citation in recognition of her achievements and contribution to the international art world. She trained as an art historian at Christie’s Education before establishing her gallery in 2004. Prior to this, she had a high-profile career as an international economist, which she began at Citibank in 1982 specialising in emerging markets based in New York and London. Cynthia launched the Young Masters Art Prize in 2009, a unique not-for-profit initiative which celebrates artistic skill and innovation with awareness of the art from the past. The Young Masters Ceramics Prize was created in 2014 and 2017 saw the addition of the Young Masters Emerging Women Artist Award. She curated the post-pandemic art project, Focus on the Female in London during the summer 2021. This platform was designed to support women artists at a critical moment in art history. Most recently Cynthia co-curated with Daisy McMullan the 2022/23 Young Masters Exhibition at The Exhibitionist and Gainsborough Hotels in collaboration with Vestalia Chilton to raise funds for the Young Masters Art Prize 6th edition.
In 2023, Young Masters Art Prize 6th edition took place in Marylebone, London coinciding with the prestigious Frieze Art Fair and it was a record-breaking year, awarding a total of fourteen prizes and awards.
