We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Francesca Popescu Ife a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Francesca thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
FPI (Francesca Popescu Ife) Art Initiative was established in 2022 as an art advisory and curatorial business focusing on creating pop-up exhibitions featuring emerging and mid-career artists from countries not as widely represented in New York or other major art markets. The foundation of the FPI Art Initiative is to form partnerships with real estate, hospitality, interior designers, and public venues to host curated pop-up exhibitions throughout New York City and the Hamptons with future goals to expand nationally. Being a liaison of intersecting art, design, and real estate, FPI Art Initiative creates new possibilities for artists to be exposed, for collectors to buy exclusive works of art, and for real estate firms to expand their scope of promoting development projects and listings.
The goal to provide a platform for artists of all kinds stems from my own artistic background and understanding of the challenges facing creatives. The world is filled with so many talented artists but so many go unrecognized or underappreciated. It’s my belief that there needs to be beacons of light and door openers for these talents to be showcased in elevated and meaningful environments. I hope that FPI can be that resource to open those doors and create unparalleled experiences for artists and art lovers.
Francesca , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
After spending a decade in the fashion industry, I took a leap of faith to pursue another passion of mine by transitioning into the art world, obtaining a master’s degree in Art Business from Sotheby’s Institute. I founded FPI Art Initiative after graduating with the goal of intersecting art, interior design, real estate, and architecture. I spent time working in different galleries and felt there could be other ways to showcase art and introduce artists to new audiences. To merge interior design and real estate with art, allows the art to come alive in a space rather than being displayed in a traditional white wall gallery space. Many real estate projects, while beautifully crafted architecturally may miss the mark and play it safe when it comes to curating art for the spaces. I believe that with all the craftsmanship, design, and vision that goes into designing and developing a real estate project, there should be equally as impressive artwork to be part of the end product. Not only does this elevate the project but it provides a platform for artists to be elevated and showcased as well.
FPI is a resource for real estate professionals, interior designers, and architects to curate their spaces with distinct and boundary-pushing art pieces. We offer curatorial and art advisory services for new and established collectors and serve as a liaison for artists to be introduced to new markets. I’m most proud of bringing together groups of artists to be in spaces that may not have been available to them without someone finding ways to open those doors.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
For one of FPI’s first exhibitions, we were scheduled to curate artwork within a Penthouse unit of a new luxury condominium development in Dumbo Brooklyn. One week before the show, the developer canceled the venue due to ongoing construction concerns. I had artwork being shipped internationally for the show and artists flying in for the opening event. While this experience was first met with immense stress, I did not panic and began using my relationships to find another space. Within 24 hours, we were connected with another real estate developer who was interested in hosting a unique event for their property’s marketing launch. We were able to collaborate and curate an incredible show in one of their 4 bedroom units in Chelsea Manhattan. It’s important to be determined enough to push through obstacles when they are presented and not forget that there are many people around who want to help each other succeed in challenging times. Despite the initial disappointment of a venue pulling the rug from under us, we found there were just as many people who were there to help us find a path to success.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
The foundation of FPI is very much a pivot in my life career. My dream growing up was to move to New York City and become a fashion designer. I achieved this goal after graduating from FIT and working in the fashion industry for a decade but I always felt a desire to be part of something larger and more meaningful. Fashion being an art form in itself, made the transition easier but I found myself faced with the challenge of starting over in an industry that was not as familiar. However, once fully immersed in the art world, I found that people in the industry are extremely collaborative and come up with creative ways to develop projects together. I’ve even been able to reach back into my contacts from the fashion industry and collaborate on projects that merge my love for art and fashion.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.fpiart.com
- Instagram: @fpi.art
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/francesca-popescu/
Image Credits
PandaInk Photography