About

Michael Spender

Having saved up his pocket money, Michael bought his first John Piper when he was 17, and went on to be generously mentored by the artist. So started a life of collecting, curating and writing about British art and artists, and also sporadically trying to be an artist. After graduating from the Courtauld Institute, where he specialised in 18th and 19th century British art with tutors Michael Kitson, Sir Alan Bowness and Anita Brookner, he went on to work for Sotheby’s. He went on to become secretary of the Royal Watercolour Society and Royal Society of Painter-Etchers and Engravers (later Painter-Printmakers), curating their collections and running the Bankside Gallery, next to Tate Modern. Here, he curated many exhibitions from Turner and De Wint to contemporary art, and represented 200 watercolourists and printmakers. 

Michael wrote The Glory of Watercolour about the RWS collection, and Visions of Venice, a journey and collaboration with a group of artists, including Patrick Procktor and John Ward, and was invited by Leslie Worth, Ken Howard and Pamela Kay to write books on their art. He has recently completed the text of a book about Tom Coates.  After being national director of the Embroiderers' Guild at Hampton Court Palace, Michael ran Poole Museum, continuing to co-curate exhibitions, such as Augustus John with David Boyd Haycock, and then became Head of Culture for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole until 2024. 

Michael is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, an Honorary Member of the Royal Watercolour Society and a member of the British Art Network. He is a trustee of the Anteros Arts Foundation and the Poole Museum Foundation. He lives in a Norfolk village with textile artist Clare Spender and Starla the cat.

Spender Fine Art

After a lifetime of collecting, studying and curation, Michael wanted to share his enthusiasm, experience and passion for 19th and 20th century British watercolours, drawings and prints (and some paintings) by offering such work for sale as the core of his current stock of British art. Each available work has been carefully and personally chosen to make high-quality, well-drawn classic British art widely available, with transparent pricing. This is an online gallery only, although arrangements can be made to view work in person as required. Please contact us for further details.  

You can buy directly from the website by checking out as you would from any shopping site. For UK buyers, the costs of secure packing, delivery and insurance door to door are included in the purchase price. For overseas buyers, we have to add on the additional cost above the amount it costs to make a UK delivery, and you will see the amount when you check out, although we do not cover customs or other taxes you may be liable for. We are not (as yet) VAT registered, so there is no VAT charged at present.

As well as your statutory rights, we will refund your purchase price within 30 days if we have wrongly attributed an artwork. Further information about artwork descriptions is in the Terms and Conditions Quick Summary, which you can find with the Full Terms and Conditions via the link at the bottom of this page.

All content and images on this website are copyright Michael Spender and Spender Fine Art.