Wallace Collection Trustees
The Prime Minister has reappointed Sir John Ritblat, the Chairman of the Trustees of The Wallace Collection, and also the Duke of Devonshire CBE, Jasper Conran OBE, Jagdip Jagpal, Adrian Sassoon, and Dr Richard Dorment as Trustees.
Sir John has been appointed for a further two years from 8 August 2011, and Dr Dorment has been appointed for a further two years from 15 July 2011. The Duke of Devonshire, Jasper Conran, Jagdip Jagpal and Adrian Sassoon have been appointed for a further four years, from 8 August 2011.
Biographical details
Sir John Ritblat is the Honorary President and formerly Chairman and Chief Executive of The British Land Company PLC, a listed FTSE property company based in London. He is Chairman of the Governing Body and Honorary Fellow of The London Business School, Vice President of The Royal Institution, and Honorary President of The British Ski & Snowboard Federation. He is also Deputy Chairman and Honorary Fellow of The Royal Academy of Music, Vice Chairman of The International Students House, and Honorary Fellow of The Royal Institute of British Architects. He was a Trustee of The British Library from 1995 to 2003. He holds no other public appointments.
The Duke of Devonshire, in his early career, worked in book publishing with the Michael Joseph and Thomson imprints, before devoting the greater part of his time to family businesses, including the management of the family estates. He is Chairman of the Devonshire Arms Hotel Group, and Deputy Chairman of Sotheby’s Holdings Inc. He collects modern British and contemporary painting, ceramics and sculpture, as well as in other areas. He was awarded a CBE for services to racing in 1997, and was Knighted (KCVO) in 2009 for services to the Crown. The Duke is well known in the horseracing world, and has been Chairman of the British Horseracing Board, Senior Steward of The Jockey Club, and was a Trustee of Ascot Racecourse from 1982-2011 (as well as holding the post of Chairman from 1997-2008 and Her Majesty’s Representative at Ascot from 1997 until June 2011). He is a Trustee of the Sheffield Museums Trust and a Trustee of the Storm King Art Centre in upstate New York. In October 2010 he was appointed to the Derby and Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Local Enterprise Partnership Board. He holds no other public appointments.
Dr Richard Dorment is the art critic for The Daily Telegraph, and a frequent contributor to The New York Review of Books. He has been a guest curator of exhibitions including “Alfred Gilbert - Sculptor and Goldsmith” at the Royal Academy in 1985-86, and “James McNeill Whistler at the Tate Gallery, Musee d’Orsay and National Gallery of Art in Washington DC. He was a member of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art from 1996-2002, and of the Advisory Committee of the Government Art Collection from 1996-2005. He has been a Trustee of the Watts Gallery since 1996. He holds no other public appointments.
Jagdip Jagpal is Managing Director at Anareva, the executive search and specialist recruitment agency for the fashion and retail sector in Europe. Jagdip trained as a solicitor, worked in publishing and held senior positions at BBC Radio, BBC Radio 4 and in commercial television before entering the executive search business. She is a graduate of the London School of Economics & Political Science. At present, Jagdip is a board member at The Almeida Theatre and a non executive director at Franklin Rae Communications, a public relations agency for the creative media industries. She becomes a member of the Court of Governors at the London School of Economics and Political Science in August 2011. She holds no other public appointments.
Jasper Conran OBE is the Chief Executive and Designer at Jasper Conran Ltd, the company he created in 1978. Designing in glass and china for Waterford and Wedgwood, and on a larger scale for theatre and ballet, he has a strong interest in buildings and interiors as well as collecting paintings and furniture. He was named Designer of the Year by the British Fashion Council in 1986. He is also a Trustee of the Architectural Foundation. He holds no other public appointments.
Adrian Sassoon has been an art dealer since 1992, specialising chiefly in C18th Vincennes and Sevres porcelain, and also in contemporary British studio ceramics, glass, silver and jewellery. He was previously a Director of Alexander & Berendt Ltd in London (1987-1992), and an Assistant Curator of Decorative Arts at the J Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, California. He is a widely published and respected scholar, and is also a Trustee of the UK Friends of the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg. He holds no other public appointments.
Notes to Editors
The Wallace Collection is both a national museum and one of the finest collections of art assembled by one family. It was bequeathed to the nation by Lady Wallace in 1897, and opened to the public just over three years later on 22 June 1900. Among its treasures are one of the best collections of French 18th-century pictures, porcelain and furniture in the world; a remarkable array of 17th century paintings; and an armoury. The Terms of the Bequest preclude the Trustees from adding to the collection, and from disposing of any of its objects. The Trustees are not remunerated.
The appointment process has followed the OCPA Code of Practice. Appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for recordable political activity in the United Kingdom in the past five years (if any declared) to be made public. All six Trustees have declared no such political activity.