Barry Kamen Estate Fundraiser

Aim

The Barry Kamen Estate is seeking funds to catalogue, archive, research and exhibit the work of artist Barry Kamen (1963-2015).

About Barry Kamen 

Born in Harlow in 1963, into a family that had emigrated from Colonial Burma, and the youngest of 8 children, Barry Kamen was an artist, stylist and model who came to prominence as a member of the ground-breaking Buffalo movement in Eighties London, led by Ray Petri. Buffalo was a real mark in British fashion and it’s fair to say that it’s impossible to understand the trajectory of British fashion now without referencing Buffalo. 

In 1989 Barry Kamen began to dedicate himself almost uniquely to his work as an artist although, after a hiatus, he always continued to style, collaborate and consult with many fashion brands internationally. He passed away suddenly in 2015. 

Kamen had an extraordinary range as an artist and notable inspirations throughout the years came from artists such as Cy Twombly, Gerhard Richter and Ellsworth Kelly, as well as Titian, da Vinci, Rembrandt and other Old Masters. Kamen was a participant, and in some cases a precursor, to many important artistic movements and moments in contemporary art since the 1990s. With the unique flair, killer style and eye for juxtaposition that characterised all Kamen did, he was also an exquisite draughtsman and colourist. This natural technical skill, combined with an irreverent, playful and utterly original spirit makes his work really extraordinary. 

Barry Kamen Estate

In 2022 The Barry Kamen Estate was founded by Tatiana Strauss (Kamen’s wife and muse) alongside his longstanding friend Glen Erler to document, research, preserve and exhibit his work.  Artworks held by the estate span a period of almost 30 years, encompassing paintings, drawings, film, collage and prints as well as original artwork for album covers for artists including UB40, Nick Kamen and Diana Ross, as well as photography and sculpture.

It is almost unbelievable that his work was not exhibited more that it was during his lifetime, and the Estate is now dedicated to making visible the work that Kamen kept largely private. The Estate is seeking funds to create an archive for all of Barry Kamen’s works, which will first involve cataloguing the works fully. A catalogue will be published with selected key works and a full catalogue raisonné will be produced and kept digitally by the Estate. We will then organise a major retrospective of key works - the first time works from all major series in his oeuvre will be exhibited together. 

The Estate also needs to ensure the safe storage and insurance of the works, and in some cases restoration and cleaning. There is so much research to be done and so many connections to be made to ensure that Barry Kamen’s works find the place they deserve in the canon of contemporary art in Britain and worldwide. 

Thank you for helping us to honour, research and preserve his legacy and we ask you to share this with anyone you know who was in turn influenced or touched by his work. 

It is now time to show the world this extraordinary oeuvre which hasn’t yet been exhibited or explored to its full potential. Barry Kamen works can already be found in the personal collections of some of the greatest cultural icons of our age - but there is much work to be done in recognising the importance and originality of his oeuvre in what is such a rich and experimental period of British art history which inspires interest worldwide. 

Barry Kamen Estate Team

Executive Director: Tatiana Strauss-Kamen

Director: Glen Erler

Curator: Florence Woodfield Morais

Florence is a curator, writer and art historian. She cut her teeth as a curator in 2011 at ROOM Gallery, Shoreditch, coordinating and curating exhibitions both in London and in Rio de Janeiro, where she also worked as an art critic for Time Out magazine. She worked for Christie’s Impressionist and Modern Art Department in London from 2012 to 2017. From 2017 to 2019 she was Gallery Manager at Stern Pissarro Gallery in St James’, run by the descendants of Impressionist master Camille Pissarro. She has an MA (Distinction) in Art History from Birkbeck, London and has written various published catalogue essays and texts for independent art books since 2013.

A full project budget is available on request.

Contact: [email protected]

Instagram: @barry_kamen_estate

Barry Kamen's website: www.barryboyart.com

Video Editor: Gary Tarn 2022

This project successfully funded on 16th September 2022