Back in 1991, Amanda Sharp launched Frieze as a magazine for art lovers with co-founder and long-time friend Matthew Slotover. In 2003, it expanded to encompass the Frieze Art Fair, which is now considered one of the most important contemporary-art fairs in the world, with events in London, LA, New York and Seoul. Inspired by their love of food and the way in which it intersects with art, in 2021 the business partners also opened the critically acclaimed Toklas Restaurant and Bakery, just off the Strand in London. frieze.com; toklaslondon.com
The first single I bought was Atomic by Blondie. I must have been 10 years old, so even going into the record shop to buy it would’ve been a scary thrill. It may not have been the best of Blondie, but what an icon. My favourite piece of music is Glenn Gould performing Bach’s Goldberg Variations. I can listen to it any time, any place.
I’m currently reading Nathan Thrall’s A Day in the Life of Abed Salama, as well as Zadie Smith’s The Fraud, Teju Cole’s Tremor and Annie Ernaux’s The Years. I have a load of cookery books on the go, too; I read them like novels. When we opened Toklas, we took the name from Alice B Toklas – Gertrude Stein’s partner and muse.
What's everyone reading?
If I had to pick a favourite movie moment, it’d be the opening sequence of Up. It’s one of the most intense, moving love stories ever put to film: a life together in six minutes.
I’m currently watching Boiling Point, Lessons in Chemistry and The Bear. As fans, having some of the cast of The Bear come to Toklas was special – Carmy visited the Toklas Bakery for sandwiches, too!
My favourite painting is my yearly birthday masterpiece from my daughter, Esme.
I spend far too much time reading the news in bed every morning.
My favourite galleries are full of people I like, work I admire and great conversations. Frieze gave me a huge gift – wherever I go in the world, if I visit a gallery, they help me navigate the city. Gallerists know where to see the best art, but also, importantly, where to eat and what else you can’t miss.
My favourite restaurant in New York is Omen – not for the food, but for the ambience
and the memories. You can always get a table, yet it is always full. You’ll also bump into someone you haven’t seen in far too long.
The perfect bar was the original Angel’s Share in New York; you walked upstairs
through a Korean restaurant into a dark back room, where Japanese barmen cut cubes of ice for your whisky. I remember the sign on the door: ‘No standing, no groups of more than four people, no shouting’.
The best hotel room in the world is at the Hotel Il San Pietro in Positano, built into the side of a cliff, with amazing views.
The best exhibition I’ve seen was ‘Aperto 93’ at the Venice Biennale, for the raw energy of it, the artists I discovered and the fact we were in Venice with no responsibilities.
