Infusion of art and business

Event’s partner believes art is a catalyst for positive change in the country, writes PENNY HAW

ART has been almost as much a part of the Hollard Insurance Group’s makeup as insurance has since the company’s inception in 1980. Not only were its founders keen supporters and collectors of South African art but the original owners of Villa Arcadia — which is now a central part of Hollard’s campus in Parktown, Johannesburg — Sir Lionel and Lady Florence Phillips were also great lovers of art. In fact, Lady Florrie was the founding patron of the Johannesburg Art Gallery and a vigorous promoter of local young artists and their work.

These days the Hollard Art Collection, which was formally established in 1986, is considered one of most remarkable collections of local visual art in the country. The group is the official partner of the Business Day Basa Awards. It also supports the Joburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Joburg Ballet, Wits Art Museum and, through Yellowwoods Art Consultancy, the Creative Block project.

“Art is not an add-on to business at Hollard,” says the company’s chief marketing officer Heidi Brauer. “It’s infused in everything we do at the company. The awards and Basa reflect our attitude that art is an avenue that can help us be catalysts for positive and enduring change in South African society. We don’t consider it a strategy. We don’t sit down and discuss whether we’ll support soccer (Hollard is a key sponsor of the Kaiser Chiefs Football Club) and art. Hollard has always had a passion for art. It’s rooted in what we do. Recently though, we decided to amplify our interest in art, make it more overt, more visible and pull a thread through everything we do.”

Hollard’s partnership with the Basa Awards began in 2014. It was alongside the company’s coffee shop prior to last year’s event that Basa’s #artMOVESme campaign — a movable graffiti hoarding featuring the work of artist Sindiso Nyoni aka R!OT that invites people to express how art moves them — was first presented.

“It was inspiring to see Hollardites — actuaries and all — engage enthusiastically with the campaign and share what art means to them,” says Brauer. “It showed us how conscious and appreciative people are of the art around them on our campus.”

It’s not an appreciation of the prowess of art that Basa and Hollard share — there’s further synergy demonstrated by the theme of this year’s event as well as product development by the insurance group.

“It’s amazing how things work,” says Brauer. “Among our current objectives at Hollard is a drive to transform many of our products and make them financially inclusive. Insurance shouldn’t be exclusive, that is, affordable only for the wealthy. It should be inclusive, which is why we’re developing more entrylevel products.”

Among these is Hollard’s My Life & More consolidated funeral policy aimed at people who earn R15,000 to R25,000 every month. The policy, which was launched in March, includes short-term household content cover.

“And, just as we want our financial products to be inclusive, we want art to be inclusive too. At violinist Joshua Bell’s concert with the Joburg Philharmonic Orchestra earlier this month (it was sponsored by Hollard), we presented the youngest members of the audience and orchestra with artworks from the Creative Block project. We believe that art, like financial products, shouldn’t be limited to older, wealthy people.

“Hollard’s involvement with art is like a layered chocolate cake. When you slice through it, you see all the different layers but when you bite into it, you can’t be certain which layer is the most delicious. The point is the different layers work together to make it so.”