Janet Wolfson de Botton

Janet Wolfson de Botton
Wolfson de Botton in 2000
Born
Janet Frances Wolfson
Other namesJanet Green
Occupations
  • art collector
  • philanthropist
Spouse
(m. 1972; div. 1989)
(m. 1990; death 2000)
Parents
RelativesSir Isaac Wolfson, 1st Baronet (grandfather)

Dame Janet Frances de Botton (née Wolfson; formerly Green[1]) is a British art collector and philanthropist.[1]

Family

Janet de Botton is the eldest daughter of Leonard Wolfson, Baron Wolfson and his wife Ruth (née Sterling), who married in 1949, and a granddaughter of Sir Isaac Wolfson, 1st Baronet, founder of the Great Universal Stores family; she was previously married to the broadcasting executive Michael Green. Her late husband, Swiss financier Gilbert de Botton, sold Global Asset Management for £234 million in 1999.[1]

Career

In 1996, she presented 60 works of art to the Tate, including examples by Carl Andre, Richard Artschwager, Gilbert & George, Richard Long, Cindy Sherman, Roni Horn, Gary Hume, Nancy Spero, Andy Warhol and Bill Woodrow.[2] In 2010, she donated a ceiling painting by Twombly to the Louvre's Salle de Bronzes.[3] In June 2010, the Wolfson Foundation announced the appointment of de Botton as the new Chairman following a unanimous decision by the trustees. De Botton has been a trustee of Tate and Chairman of the Council of Tate Modern.[4]

Distinctions

Fortune

In 2007, she appeared at number 22 (down from number 18, in 2006) in the Sunday Times Rich List, with an estimated personal fortune of £285 million.[1] She is a prominent collector of modern art.[6][7] According to the Sunday Times Giving List in 2020, de Botton gave £65.1 million to charitable causes in 2019.[8]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Sunday Times Rich List 2007[dead link].
  2. ^ Tate: Janet Wolfson de Botton, "In 1996 Janet Wolfson de Botton presented 60 contemporary works to Tate..."; accessed 21 September 2010.
  3. ^ Strand, Oliver (1 April 2010). "Upward With the Arts | The Louvre's Cy Twombly Ceiling". T Magazine. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  4. ^ "New Chairman Announced" Archived 2011-07-22 at the Wayback Machine, Wolfson Foundation; retrieved 21 September 2010.
  5. ^ a b "No. 60534". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 June 2013. pp. 7–7.
  6. ^ "Life and times of Michael Green", BBC News, Monday, 20 October 2003; accessed 21 September 2010.
  7. ^ "Gilbert de Botton", The Telegraph, obituaries, 30 August 2000; accessed 17 March 2014.
  8. ^ Griffiths, Alastair McCall and Sian. "Sunday Times Giving List 2020: Stormzy breaks new ground". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 9 October 2020.