Collector Profile: Britta Hanson On Bringing Happiness Into Your Collection
Britta Hanson — author, traveler, brand consultant, and deep appreciator of all things art and culture — is an art collector we absolutely adore. Growing up in an artistic family gave her a natural eye for not just for beauty in art, but also for joy. This intrinsic sense shows through abundantly in her personal collection, which she invited us to visit at her Miami Beach home. We asked about her love of Miami, her collection, and advice for first-time buyers.
Art: Joaquin Trujillo, Mal de OJO tomates
SF: How did you get your start as a collector?
BH: My parents were always into art and design. My father designed and built all of the furniture in our home and he is still designing Scandinavian-inspired furniture today. Art was always a part of my life; I started out as an art student, and collecting art was just a natural extension of wanting to be around beautiful and interesting things that made me think and feel.
“Dancing Shoes” by Jordan Grace Owens and “Britta” by Justin Rabuck (made just for Britta!)
SF: What was the first piece of art you bought?
BH: It was a Tiguan oil painting that was painted on stretched leather depicting an indigenous festival. It was bright and colorful and made me happy.
SF: How many pieces do you currently own?
BH: Probably over 200 photographs, paintings, and sculptures and more than 500 pieces of textiles, tribal jewelry, amazonian basketry, and artifacts.
Judy Dater, Imogen and Twinka at Yosemite 1974, Valdir Cruz, James Miille, Ruth Bernhard, Alvin Booth, Michael Kenna
From left all the way down to right all the way down: Ruth Bernhard 1967, Joaquin Trujillo (Mal de Ojo), Robert Mapplethorpe 1885 (Ken and Lydia), Valdir Cruz (Girl from Mokarita-teri 1997), Ralph Gibson, Alvarez Bravo (Good Reputation Sleeping 1938), Tommy Neese
SF: How do you decide whether or not to buy a piece of art?
BH: For me it has to be love at first sight. If I walk away from a piece of art, sleep on it and continue to think about it it is probably something worth taking a second look. The piece has to be something that speaks to me personally. I have to like the artist or the story around the artist. The artist’s energy is always part of their art and if it is in your home, that energy is part of your home as well.
“Renovation with Frida and Diego” (Britta’s upstairs bathroom is currently under a very raw yet photogenic renovation!).
Frida, by Lucienne Bloch and Diego Rivera, by Edward Weston
Frida, by Lucienne Bloch
SF: What advice would you give to first-time art buyers?
BH: I would say trust your instinct. Block out the noise of what and who you are supposed to like and figure out what it is that YOU genuinely like. Learn about the artist and their story and the process of how they made the piece. Don’t feel intimidated to ask a million questions. Art should bring you joy. It should make you feel. I also want to add that anything that you think is beautiful, unusual, funky, cool, inspiring, or just makes you happy is art and can be worth framing. I am a firm believer that you can hang a $40 litho or a pressed leaf next to an Andy Warhol or Cindy Sherman. Life is short, you are the boss and there really are no rules.
Robert Matta
“La Rosa” by Luis Gonzales Palma
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