History in the making
F
rom taking over Manhattan billboards to nurturing digital artists, Leo Crane (right) is a creative producer, artist, and educator with his finger on the pulse of where fine art meets digital technology. Working with Sotheby’s Institute of Art (below) to prepare promising artists for a changing artistic landscape, he shares some of the major trends that we can expect to impact art history, today.
Leo, how would you describe your own artistic style? Everything I do is collaborative and interdisciplinary. I paint, draw and animate, and I love working with musicians, performers and storytellers - people who bring something fresh and exciting, or different to my experience - and then seeing how that comes together For example, I recently produced and animated the first ever live opera NFT, which was a really exciting project with Electrifying Opera, an opera company based in Israel. We used blockchain technology to
46
create and capture a live performance. Tell us more about your work with Sotheby’s Institute of Art? I was first approached by Sotheby’s Institute of Art in 2020 to run a Creative Leadership course. I worked for many years in museums, including seven years with the V&A, so I have an overview of how institutions run, the purpose of engaging people with collections, and understanding of what art can do in society in those big public spaces. »