Yana Peel | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Peel in 2021 | |
| Born | Yana Mirkin[1] Leningrad, USSR (now Russia) |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Alma mater | McGill University London School of Economics |
| Occupation | Businesswoman |
| Title | Global head arts and culture, Chanel |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Yana Peel is a Russian-born Canadian executive, businesswoman, children's author and philanthropist who is currently global head of arts and culture at French fashion house Chanel.[2][3] She was CEO of the Serpentine Galleries from 2016 to 2019, and was previously a board member.[4][5][6]
Peel is a co-founder of the Outset Contemporary Art Fund (with Candida Gertler), and Intelligence Squared Asia, and was CEO of Intelligence Squared Group from 2013 to 2016.[7]
Peel has several advisory positions, which include the Tate International Council, and also the NSPCC therapeutic board.[8][9] She has been an advisor to the British Fashion Council, Asia Art Archive, Lincoln Center, Para Site and the Victoria and Albert Museum, where she founded the design fund.[8][10][11][9]
Yana Peel was born in June 1974[12] in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), Russia. Her family emigrated to Canada via Austria in 1978.[4] She grew up in Toronto, Ontario.[13]
Peel studied Russian studies at McGill University during the 1990s. [14][4][1] In 1996,[15] while being a student she co-organised a fashion show for charity.[1][8][16] After that, Peel undertook a post-graduate degree in economics at the London School of Economics.[4][13] Peel was a member of the 2011 class of the World Economic Forum's Young Global Leaders programme.[17]
Peel started her career in the equities division of Goldman Sachs in 1997 in London, and became an executive director before leaving in 2003.[18][8][4][2]
Peel co-founded the charity Outset Contemporary Art Fund in 2003 with Candida Gertler.[19][8][13] Peel and Gertler generated a model whereby artists could be presented to potential donors in order to raise funds to purchase their work, or to fund new commissions with a view to donating them to public institutions.[8] The Fund purchased over 100 pieces for the Tate Modern, and commissioned work by artists including Francis Alys, Yael Bartana, Candice Breitz and Steve McQueen.[8][18]
In 2009, Peel co-founded Intelligence Squared Asia with Amelie Von Wedel, a not-for-profit platform for hosting live debates in Hong Kong.[20][19][21] In 2012 Peel became CEO of Intelligence Squared Group,[20][22] bringing the live events business out of its financial difficulties.[8] Peel has hosted interviews including: Olafur Eliasson and Shirin Neshat at Davos,[23] Ai Wei Wei at the Cambridge Union.[24]
In April 2016, Peel was appointed to the role of CEO of the Serpentine Galleries.[25][4] Peel said it was her "mission to create a safe space for unsafe ideas",[2] and to promote a "socially conscious Serpentine".[13] She indicated that she wanted to give artists a greater say in the development of the Serpentine Galleries, in order to give "artists a voice in the biggest global conversations".[13] Peel worked in tandem with the artistic director, Hans Ulrich Obrist.[8]
Peel furthered the Serpentine Galleries' technological ambitions, introducing digital engagement initiatives including Serpentine Mobile Tours[26] and the translation of the exhibition Zaha Hadid: Early Paintings and Drawings into virtual reality.[27][28] Peel stated that she was "committed to maintaining and open-source spirit"[29] at the Serpentine Galleries, and that it was her ambition "to inspire the widest audiences with the urgency of art and architecture".[2] The Financial Times noted that Peel "has been able to lure companies such as Google and Bloomberg as partners to help meet the Serpentine's annual £9.5m target".[26]
Peel and Obrist selected both the first African architect to work on a pavilion,[30] and the youngest architect to do so.[31] In 2018, she broadened the global reach of the Serpentine Pavilion programme by announcing the launch of a pavilion in Beijing designed by Sichuan practice, Jiakun Architects.[32]
Together with Lord Richard Rogers and Sir David Adjaye, Peel and Obrist selected Burkina Faso architect Diébédo Francis Kéré to design the 2017 pavilion.[33] The pavilion was awarded the Civic Trust Award in 2018.[34]
The Serpentine selected Mexican architect Frida Escobedo to design the 2018 pavilion. She will be the youngest architect to have participated in the Pavilion programme since it began in 2000.[31]
Peel stepped down as CEO in June 2019 as a consequence of the attention paid to her alleged co-ownership of NSO Group. However, a later clarification published by The Guardian confirmed that Peel was not involved in the management, operations or control of NSO. Peel had a less than 10% ownership of Novalpina Capital, which subsequently acquired NSO in 2019. Peel was not personally involved in the operation or decisions of Novalpina Capital, which was managed by her husband.[6]
Peel co-chaired Para Site, a not-for-profit contemporary art space in Hong Kong, from 2010 to 2015.[35] She has been involved with the project since 2009.[19]
Peel founded the Victoria and Albert Museum's design fund in 2011.[11] The fund supported the acquisition of contemporary design objects.[11]
Peel is a member of NSPCC's therapeutic board.[9] Inspired by her children, in 2008 Peel produced a series of toddler-friendly art books published by Templar, including: Art For Baby, Color For Baby and Faces For Baby.[36] These books feature works by artists ranging from Damien Hirst to Keith Haring. Proceeds from the sales of the books go towards the NSPCC.[37]
In 1999, Peel married Stephen Peel,[38] a private equity financier.[39] They have two children and live in Bayswater, London.[39][40]
