Tina Perry and Ric Whitney Discuss Their Art Collecting with ARTnews Editor in Chief Sarah Douglas

To kick off the second Frieze LA art fair, ARTnews Editor-in-Chief Sarah Douglas interviewed Los Angeles collectors Ric Whitney and Tina Perry-Whitney at the Four Seasons Los Angeles, exploring ways to begin collecting art. During the panel the Whitneys spoke about their interest in patronage of such institutions as CalArts, getting to know artists as individuals, and how they got involved in the art world in Los Angeles and beyond. “All this art we live with, there’s an energy emanating from it,” said Tina. “It is a privilege to get to buy this work and live with it.” Since 2012, the couple—Ric is a music publishing and talent management entrepreneur, and Tina is president of Oprah Winfrey Network—have been building a collection that is diverse not only in terms of the artists’ ethnicity and gender, but in medium, comprising sculpture, installation, painting, and photography. Among the artists whose work they hold are Charles Gaines, Genevieve Gaignard, Joe Goode, Henry Taylor, Sadie Barnette, David Shrigley, Thinh Nguyen, and many others.