ArtOffice Information

Art Office was an art consultancy established and led by Isabel Vasseur that grew out of her activities in promoting, advising about and commissioning contemporary art during the early 1980s. The consultancy operated in various guises for more than twenty years. It has now closed its doors. This website has been created to give researchers a brief account of the type of public art projects that were commissioned during a highly productive period between 1988 and 2008 and to direct those seeking more in-depth knowledge about commissioning art in the public realm toward Isabel's complete paper archive held at the Henry Moore Foundation. The consultancy was established by Isabel Vasseur in response to the changes in artistic practice, which during the 80s became much more diverse and complex in nature. Artists' ambitions were gravitating away from traditions of painting and sculpture, toward site specific installation, performance, film and video and other disciplines. This creative diversification coincided with cultural producers waking up to the possibility that the visual arts could be an effective engine driving social change. Isabel Vasseur's Art Office archive is currently being prepared by the Henry Moore Foundation, for public access research purposes, in line with the Henry Moore Foundation's commitment to the study and enjoyment of contemporary art, particularly sculpture in the public realm.