Alain Elkann Interviews

THE REGENERATION OF THE FRICK. Axel Rüger is a German art historian, curator and museum director. Director of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam from 2006 to 2019, he previously worked as a curator of Dutch art at the National Gallery in London. He led the Royal Academy of Arts in London from 2019 through 2024, and in March 2025 assumed the directorship of The Frick Collection in New York City. "You get a sense of how the Fricks lived at the time, even though we do not really talk much about their daily life." "For the first time, the Frick now also has a café and a dedicated space for education activities." "The library has always been a vital part of the museum." https://www.alainelkanninterviews.com/axel-ruger/

REINVENTING LONDON'S LEGENDARY LUXURY HOSPITALITY. International entrepreneur Paddy McKillen has a passion for the hospitality business and property development. In 2004 he was part of a group that bought four of London's 5-star hotels: Claridge's, The Berkeley, The Connaught and The Savoy.

MANIFESTATIONS OF THE VOYAGE. Simone Fattal is a Lebanese-American artist. Born in 1942 in Damascus, she was educated in Beirut and Paris, studying philosophy at the École des Lettres and the Sorbonne, as well as archaeology at the École du Louvre. Simone Fattal and Etel Adnan (1925–2021) were life partners for 49 years, artists who shared a profound creative, political, and personal connection. Their multidisciplinary work spans painting, sculpture, poetry, and publishing. "We have to ask the women prisoners to write the poems. Which they did, and I transcribed them on the surfaces of the lava." "My inspiration doesn't come from artists. When I'm working, poetic verses come to my mind." "I'm not displaced, but a traveler."

A LIFE OF HONOR. Aimone di Savoia Aosta, 6th Duke of Aosta, was born in Florence in 1967. After studying at the Naval College in Venice and beginning his professional life in London, he moved to Russia in the early 1990s. He later joined the Pirelli Group and more recently returned to Italy after many years abroad. He has also served as Ambassador of the Order of Malta to Russia. "Italian History does not begin in 1946, but March the 17th 1861, in Turin! " "The title of Duke of Puglia was given to me by Umberto II and this grant was part of the tradition of the House of Savoy" "I believe Europeans should make a greater effort to stop the war" https://www.alainelkanninterviews.com/aimone-di-savoia-aosta

BUILDING TOWARDS EQUALITY. Alejandro Aravena is a Chilean architect and executive director of the firm Elemental S.A. In 2016 he won the Pritzker Architecture Prize, architecture's highest honour, and was the director and curator of the Architecture Section of the 2016 Venice Biennale. From 2000 to 2005 he was a visiting professor at Harvard Graduate School of Design. An International Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, he was appointed Chair of the Pritzker Architecture Prize Jury as of March 2021.

CHAMPION OF ITALIAN OPERA. Alvise Casellati was born in Padua, Italy, from a Venetian musical family with important ties to the top classical music scene in the 19th and 20th centuries. He is currently serving as Artistic Director of the Teatro Massimo of Palermo, one of the most prestigious opera and dance theaters in Italy and in the world. He is the Founder and Music Director of Opera Italiana is in the Air (OIA), created in 2017 to bring superstar singers and the young talents in iconic locations in the air such as Central Park, New York, to give everyone the opportunity to appreciate Italian Opera. "The locals look at Teatro Massimo as a myth, as the centre of cultural gravity in Palermo." "We wanted to give young people and people who could not afford to go to the Met Opera the opportunity to fall in love with Italian opera" "What I adore about this theater is the investment in the young generation." https://www.alainelkanninterviews.com/alvise-casellati-2/

LUMINARY IN ART CRITIQUE. Andrew Graham-Dixon is a leading art critic and presenter of arts television in the English-speaking world. With a long history of public service in the field of the visual arts he has won numerous awards for writing and broadcasting. His book "Caravaggio A Life Sacred and Profane" is a Sunday Times Bestseller, and his recent title "Vermeer: A Life Lost and Found" paints a dramatically new picture of Vermeer. Graham-Dixon reveals many of the painter's hitherto unknown friendships, as well as his previously undetected allegiance to a radical movement driven underground by persecution. "Vermeer is the first really great religious painter of introspective post-Reformation religion." "The Dutch Golden Age is probably the worst name ever given to a period in history by historians. It's not a golden age. It's an age of blood." "I'm a profound Collegiant. There's not many of us now. I believe in universal tolerance." https://www.alainelkanninterviews.com/andrew-graham-dixon/

DAY TO DAY BRILLIANCE. ANTONIO CITTERIO is an Italian architect, furniture and industrial designer. Today his cross-disciplinary practice for architecture and interior design is known as "ACPV ARCHITECTS Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel". The firm works internationally, developing projects on all scales in collaboration with a network of specialist consultants. In both 1987 and 1994, Antonio Citterio was awarded the Compasso d'Oro ("Golden Compass") prize, the world's oldest and most prestigious industrial design award. In 2008 the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce of London awarded him the title of "Honorary Royal Designer for Industry". "Headquarters is not a speculation building, it's also part of the image." "When you build something now, you really have to think about what will happen in the next 30 years." "Nowadays, the vision is for an office chair that is self-adaptive." https://www.alainelkanninterviews.com/antonio-citterio

CONNECTING THE WORLD. The sculptor ANTONY GORMLEY is perhaps best known for his large installations in public space. A major exhibition of his work was recently held at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. His next exhibition is at Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Paris Marais.

MODERN ARCHITECT. Sean Griffiths is Professor of Architecture at the University of Westminster and former Visiting Professor of Architectural Design at Yale University. His current architecture and design practice Modern Architect was founded in 2014 and has worked largely on residential, commercial and public art projects. Previously Sean Griffiths was a founding director of the internationally renowned art/architecture practice FAT, where he won many design awards. FAT represented the UK at the Venice Architecture Biennale in 2014. "I was really thinking I would pursue a career as an artist" "The idea that you make architecture as a sort of branding jewel that you place in a city is not something that I particularly love" "We use language to help us navigate the world, and architecture also creates patterns that help us navigate the world"