On this episode of the Latitudes Podcast, Refiloe Mpakanyane is joined by Justin Naylor and Carel Nolte. Justin is the CEO of iTOO ArtInsure (sponsors of the Latitudes Podcast) and Carel is the Chief Enablement Officer of EasyEquities. Both are ardent wine and art collectors whose interests have blended with their work as well.

This conversation gives an insurer’s perspective on the enduring appeal of art and most importantly how to protect one’s portfolio. Underpinned by a decades-long friendship that started in the workplace, Justin and Carel’s observations on investing & collectibles are filled with friendly banter as well as much talk of wine, friendship and family.

The abiding theme is appreciating how much the creative industries contribute to society.

Highlights Include:

• Friendship and the importance of family
• The power of art and artists: why artists move society forward
• The iTOO ArtInsure stolen art directory
• The power of marketing internally to grow and support the African art value chain
• Collecting as a long term investment

Referenced exhibitions & institutions:

• Art Basel UBS Report 2025
• Vladimir Tretchikoff
• William Kentridge
• EasyEquities

Chapter 4 (Insights from the Collectors) spans episodes 9-11 of Season 2 of the Latitudes Podcast. It takes a closer look at art collecting as both a cultural and financial practice. Featuring collectors, gallerists, and market experts, this chapter explores the nuances of taste, market influence, and the evolving role of collectors.

Powered by iTOO Artinsure

Supported by Business and Arts South Africa (BASA)

Co-curated by Art School Africa

Hosted by Refiloe Mpakanyane

Buoyancy & Belief: Inside a South African gallerists world with Emma van der Merwe

In this episode Refiloe Mpakanyane talks to Everard Read Cape Town Gallery Director, Emma van der Merwe from the dealer’s perspective, talking about the quiet contracts that hold the art world together — trust, instinct, and love for the work itself. In this conversation, she lifts the curtain on the energy and potential driving South Africa’s art scene, reflecting on the delicate balance between representing artists and believing in their long game — with buoyancy at the heart of it all.

Emma’s interests in the arts were given the go ahead by her parents with only one condition: that she not walk in their footsteps. And differentiate herself she did! Emma grew up in Switzerland and France, and studied her Bachelors and Masters in Fine Art - at the Slade School of Fine Art in London, before completing a Master’s in Art Management at City University, also in London.

In this conversation she talks about how Slade gave her access to mentors, teachers and institutions that gave her nothing short of a ‘privileged start’. Even while this same start in the London Arts scene involved no hand holding or indeed involved no blueprint to growth or success.

In 2011 Emma joined the SMAC Art Gallery as its curator when its Cape Town doors were opened. Her next notable move was in July 2014 when Emma joined Everard Read Gallery Cape Town, as their Head Curator. In July 2018 she became a Director of the Gallery.

Emma talks at length about the energy, potential and allure of South Africa’s art industry which continue to enthral newcomers to our shores.

The conversation runs the gamut of nurturing artistic talent; best practice for representing artists; as well as Emma’s insights on forging and maintaining relationships with buyers. Emma also weighs in on collector trends and gives her take on their importance.

In sharing what she knows for sure - Emma comes up with a few slogans to live and work by: The vibes have got to be right!

Highlights Include:

• Studying at Slade and being mentored by DamePhyllida Barlow
• Starting out in the London art scenes and working at blue chip Galleries
• Getting to work with the likes of Damien Hirst, Sam Taylor Wood and Jenny Saville (among so many others)
• Deciding to come to South Africa and why the Cape Town ecosystem is compelling
• The key to artist and collector relationships

Referenced exhibitions & institutions:

•  Slade School of Fine Art
• Goldsmiths
• St Martins
• White Cube
• Gagosian
• Ruth Proust
• Everard Read
• Brett Seiler

Chapter 4 (Insights from Collectors) spans episodes 9-11 of Season 2 of the Latitudes Podcast. It takes a closer look at art collecting as both a cultural and financial practice. Featuring collectors, gallerists, and market experts, this chapter explores the nuances of taste, market influence, and the evolving role of collectors.

Powered by iTOO Artinsure

Supported by Business and Arts South Africa (BASA)

Co-curated by Art School Africa

Hosted by Refiloe Mpakanyane

What does it mean to be an art critic today, in a world where attention is shrinking and art is increasingly filtered through the scroll?

Writer and curator Antwaun Sargent has spent the past 15 years championing and critically engaging Black artists, producing vital writing that has reshaped how contemporary art is understood and valued. In this episode, Sargent reflects on the shifting role of the art critic in a world shaped by algorithms, attention economies, and new global audiences. In conversation with Refiloe Mpakanyane, Sargent speaks candidly about the expansion of the critic’s role, the rise of new cultural voices outside institutions, the power and problem of visibility, and why the work of sustaining artistic ecosystems goes far beyond the market.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How the role of the art critic has expanded beyond traditional media
• The impact of social platforms on the way we experience and talk about art
• The rise of new, trusted cultural voices outside institutional networks
• Why visibility matters for artistic recognition and critical engagement
• The evolution of Black representation in galleries and museums globally
• The difference between selling art and sustaining artistic practice
• What it means to build ecosystems, not just audiences
• How collectors, curators and writers shape cultural legacy

Chapter 3 of the Latitudes Podcast explores Art Criticism in the Age of the Algorithm.

This chapter brings together writers, critics, and art professionals to examine the evolving landscape of contemporary art criticism and its new means of communication. Art writers have long played a pivotal role in steering conversations within the art world, but as their platforms and methods of communication shift, so too does the depth and scope of their influence.

Powered by iTOO Artinsure

Supported by Business and Arts South Africa (BASA)

Co-curated by Art School Africa

Hosted by Refiloe Mpakanyane