Robert Beauclerk Loder, (24 April 1934 – 22 July 2017) was an English businessman and art collector. He was particularly concerned in developing

contemporary African art Contemporary African art is commonly understood to be art made by artists in Africa and the African diaspora in the post-independence era. However, there are about as many understandings of contemporary African art as there are curators, scholar ...

Biography

Loder was the son of

John Loder, 2nd Baron Wakehurst John de Vere Loder, 2nd Baron Wakehurst, (5 February 1895 – 30 October 1970) was a British Army officer, politician and colonial administrator. After serving in the army, the Foreign Office, and as a Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) in t ...

and his wife Margaret Tennant, daughter of

Sir Charles Tennant, 1st Baronet Sir Charles Clow Tennant, 1st Baronet JP DL (4 November 1823 – 4 June 1906) was a Scottish businessman, industrialist and Liberal politician. Early life Tennant was the son of John Tennant (1796–1878) and Robina (née Arrol) Tennant. His ...

. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. From 1957 to 1966 he was employed by the

Anglo American Corporation Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to, or descent from, the Angles, England, English culture, the English people or the English language, such as in the term ''Anglosphere''. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people o ...

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

and

Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was ab ...

. While in Johannesburg he helped run Union Artists, a black theatre group that played to mixed audiences in apartheid South Africa. In 1959 he founded the African Arts Trust, which supports black artists from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

.Geraldine Norman, "A collector who backs his own hunches: Trends mean nothing to Robert Loder. Abstract Expressionism was his great love and he wants us to share it", ''The Independent'', Sunday, 31 July 1994.
/ref> When he returned to London, Loder became treasurer of the

Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch, the ICA c ...

and later its chairman in the 1970s. From 1968 he was a Trustee and for 10 years chair of the

Mental Health Foundation The Mental Health Foundation is a UK charity, whose mission is "to help people to thrive through understanding, protecting, and sustaining their mental health." History The Mental Health Foundation was founded in 1940 as the Mental Health Res ...

, for which service he was appointed a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the 1989 Birthday Honours. With the backing of

Lord Rothschild Baron Rothschild, of Tring in the County of Hertfordshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1885 for Sir Nathan Rothschild, 2nd Baronet, a member of the Rothschild banking family. He was the first Jewish mem ...

, he built up a business with 2,000 employees in 30 countries. In 1982, he became executive chairman of the literary agency Curtis Brown. In 1980, Loder met

Anthony Caro Sir Anthony Alfred Caro (8 March 192423 October 2013) was an English abstract sculptor whose work is characterised by assemblages of metal using ' found' industrial objects. His style was of the modernist school, having worked with Henry Moor ...

who was trying to organise an exhibition of British abstract art in South African townships. In 1981, when staying in New York State, the pair developed the idea of running workshops for professional artists, which became the

Triangle Arts Trust The Triangle Network, formally known as the Triangle Arts Trust, is an international arts organisation that brings together artists from different countries to explore new ideas and expand the boundaries of their practice. History The Triangle N ...

. They held the first Triangle workshop in 1982 for thirty sculptors and painters from United States, the United Kingdom and Canada at

Pine Plains, New York Pine Plains is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 2,218 at the 2020 census. The name is derived from the geographic character of the region. The hamlet of Pine Plains is on the northern border of the county. ...

. The workshops became an annual event, and Loder later helped organise similar workshops in South Africa,

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

and

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

. From 1990 he ran a workshop at Shave Farm in

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

References

External links

National Portrait Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Loder, Robert 1934 births 2017 deaths People educated at Eton College English art collectors Alumni of the University of Cambridge Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Younger sons of barons