Felix’s Story

Long before I began my career in the international auction trade, I was a student of the arts at home. I grew up in a house where every wall and corner held a story, surrounded by my parents’ lifetime collection of fine art and antiques. My mother also took me around the great art galleries of the world, teaching me to look intently at the symbolism and stories behind great works. I went on to develop a great appreciation for art, and studied fine art at school and university, where I obtained a BA (Hons).

My path was guided by my parents, who both shared a profound reverence for history. My mother was a preeminent art historian and served as the Academic Director at the Sotheby’s Institute, shaping the minds of the next generation of the art world. She also designed and curated the Institute’s MA in Art Business, originally affiliated with the University of Manchester, a degree that is still taught today and trains students for careers in the business of art. My father was an avid collector whose passion for the hunt never faded; upon his retirement, he turned that lifelong hobby into a second career as an antique dealer.

My professional journey in the art world began when I secured a job at the prestigious auction house Christie’s, but my obsession with the poster started with a single, unexpected moment.

I remember walking through the Long Gallery at Christie’s, where I was working. Christie’s held four to five specialist poster sales a year, each with over 400 posters. At the time, I wasn’t yet a specialist in the field; I was just someone with a deep passion for art. But as I stood in that room, I was absolutely blown away. I had never seen art on that scale, in such incredible volume, all at once. The bold colours of the travel advertisements and the elegant lines of the Art Nouveau masters didn’t just sit on the walls. They commanded the room.

That day changed the course of my career, turning me from an observer into a lifelong student and dealer of the poster.