Past Collectors, Their Collections And The Art Market

Speakers

• Roger Keverne
  Roger Keverne

  Roger Keverne was educated at Worksop College. At 18 he joined Henry Spencer & Sons, auctioneers, and during his four years there he completed the Victoria and Albert Museum’s diploma course as a student at the Museum.

  Thereafter he joined Spink & Son Ltd, the largest antique dealing house in the world and the crown medallists. He worked initially in the European Ceramics and Glass Department, after two years joined the Oriental Department and at 28 years of age became Director of the latter, subsequently serving on the Executive Board with the Vice-Chairman, Adrian Maynard. On Mr Maynard’s retirement Roger Keverne became responsible for the Chinese, Japanese, South-East Asian, Tibetan and Nepalese Departments at Spink, totalling fifteen members of staff, including eight dealers.

  He was appointed Vice-Chairman of the British Antique Dealer’s Association, which represents over 400 of the best dealers in the United Kingdom, in 1990, served as a Council Member of the BADA, Chairman of the BADA Publicity Committee and Chairman of the Oriental Vetting Committee of the Grosvenor House Antiques Fair, and recently was President of the BADA.

  He has participated in antiques fairs in London, Paris, Maastricht, Tokyo, San Francisco, Basel, Hong Kong, New York, Chicago and South Africa, and has organised and produced many exhibitions with fully illustrated catalogues, including Blue and White porcelain from the Collection of Mrs. Alfred Clarke, 1974; Bamboo & Wood Carvings of China and the East, 1979; and Ivories of China and the East, 1984.

  Roger wrote the chapter on the Far East and South-East Asia in Ivory: A History and Collector’s Guide, Thames & Hudson, London, 1987. He was editor of Jade, Letts & Anness Publishing, London, 1991 (published in the USA by van Nostrand Reinhold), which is the most definitive book produced on the subject as a whole, with 19 authors, 376 pages and over 400 colour photographs. He has lectured to museums, antiques societies and graduate students on Oriental art.

  He participated in the Winter Antiques Show, New York, for many years. He was also Chairman of the Asian Vetting Committee for the Winter Antiques Show. He was Chairman of Asian Art in London between 2005 and 2010 and again between 2015 and 2017. Roger Keverne was a Governor of the Compton Verney House Trust, an outside lecturer for Sotheby’s Education and an outside assessor for West Dean College of Arts and Crafts for several years. He also served on the Asian Vetting Committees of the Paris Biennale, the Brussels Art Fair and PAD London.

  In September 1992 Roger Keverne established the Oriental Art Gallery Limited, and co-owned Roger Keverne Ltd with his wife, Miranda Clarke, until the closure of the business in 2022. Roger and Miranda now live happily in the West Sussex countryside.

• Henry Howard-Sneyd
  Henry Howard-Sneyd

  Henry Howard-Sneyd is Chairman of Asian Art, Europe and Americas based between London and New York. He is Sotheby’s lead Auctioneer globally in Asian Art.

  He joined Sotheby’s London in 1987 and went on to become a member of the Chinese department of which he was named Head in 1997. Henry pioneered the Asiaweek series of sales held in Sotheby’s London and was a founding member of Asian Art in London, a citywide group that promotes all aspects of Asian Art.

  In 2000 he assumed the role as Managing Director of Sotheby’s Asia, based in Hong Kong, where he oversaw the early stages of the dramatic growth of the business in that market. In 2007 he moved to New York as Executive Vice President with a focus on ‘New’ markets spearheading the opening of offices in Istanbul and Doha as well as leading the company’s first auctions in the Middle East before taking on the role of Vice Chairman of Asian Art and managing the Asia Division in New York. During his time in New York, he managed the sale of the remaining collection of JT Tai and Co as well as founding a new department focused on Classical Chinese paintings and acting for two years as Chairman of Asiaweek New York.

  In 2015 he returned to the UK to take up his current role while continuing to travel and lead auctions internationally.

  Mr Howard-Sneyd was educated in the United Kingdom at Eton College and Pembroke College, Cambridge University where he earned a joint Master of Arts degree in Biochemistry and History of Art.