The British collector Christian Levett retired in 2016 at age 46 from his role as an investment manager to focus entirely on his passion for art and cultural heritage. During his 25-year finance career, he built Clive Capital into the world's largest commodity hedge fund, managing $5.2 billion at its peak. Several times throughout his career, he was ranked among the top performing hedge fund managers globally by percentage return. Achievements included generating approximately $1 billion per year in profits for clients of Clive Capital, for three consecutive years in a row 2008-2010.
Collecting for over three decades, Levett has more recently built what is now considered the world's most comprehensive collection of A-grade modern art by female artists. There are nearly 2,000 artworks in The Levett Collection, including approximately 600 by women, incorporating the most important collection of female Abstract Expressionist art globally. He founded FAMM (Female Artists of the Mougins Museum) in June 2024, Europe's first major museum dedicated exclusively to female artists from Impressionism to the present day. He has also been giving private tours of his palazzo in Florence (also hung entirely with artworks by women) to museum patrons groups, university groups and collectors groups, since March 2021.
Levett has sponsored over 40 exhibitions at major institutions including Tate, The British Museum, The RA, The Met, and Palazzo Strozzi for example. A Fellow of the Ashmolean Museum and Wolfson College, Oxford, he serves on committees at The Metropolitan Museum and Palazzo Strozzi, and has published three books on female artists with Merrell Publishers. In January 2025, Christie's valued just the top 100 works by female artists in his collection at €130 million, with an average annual return of 21%.
In 2011, he founded the Mougins Museum of Classical Art (MACM) in the medieval hilltop village of Mougins, South of France. The museum juxtaposed ancient art with modern and contemporary works inspired by Antiquity, highlighting how classical influences shaped art through the centuries. Upon its opening, MACM won the Apollo Magazine New Museum of the Year Award in 2011 and was nominated for the European Museum of the Year Award in 2013.
Since 2018, Levett has focused exclusively on collecting art by women artists from Impressionism through to contemporary works. In 2023, he transformed the museum into FAMM (Female Artists of the Mougins Museum), Europe's first major institution with its own collection dedicated exclusively to female artists from Impressionism to the present day. FAMM opened in June 2024, reflecting his growing focus on addressing gender imbalances in the art world and celebrating the contributions of female artists throughout history.
Levett has loaned artworks to over 60 exhibitions at major institutions, including The British Museum, The Met, The Royal Academy of Arts, Tate, Palazzo Strozzi, Centre Pompidou, and Fondation Louis Vuitton, to name just a few. He has lent over 1,500 works from his collection to exhibitions at many of the leading art museums globally, including all of those mentioned above. He has supported significant archaeological and restoration projects, such as excavations in the UK, Italy, Spain, and Egypt, and building renovations at The Met, The RA, The Soane, The Charterhouse and at three of Florence’s major churches.
His palazzo in Florence has been transformed into a private-appointment museum displaying works exclusively by female artists since March 2021, where he regularly hosts museum patrons, collectors, and university groups from institutions including Harvard, Stanford and NYU.
In 2023, he published Abstract Expressionists: The Women with Merrell Publishers, co-authored by scholars Ellen G. Landau and Joan M. Marter, offering a comprehensive look at the vital role of women in the movement. Two additional books are being published in 2025: the official museum catalogue, FAMM Female Artists of the Mougins Museum (now available on Amazon) and Women In Their Own Words, featuring quotes from 100 female artists (to be released October 2025). His entire collection is accessible online at The Levett Collection website, password protected.
An active supporter of the cultural sector, Levett has served two full terms on the Ashmolean Museum's Board of Visitors (2016-2024), serves on Palazzo Strozzi's Scientific and Exhibitions Committee, and was a member of The Metropolitan Museum's Arms and Armour Visiting Committee for over 12 years. Among his recent initiatives, Levett supports the Curart Residency at Villa Lena and the FAMM Women's Prize, launched with the Norval Foundation and the Sovereign Art Foundation, which recognizes outstanding female talent in contemporary African art. He is also launching The Levett Letter & Lounge in 2025, a monthly publication providing strategic insight into the women artists market for collectors and institutions.
Through his museum, philanthropy, advocacy, and now The Levett Letter & Levett Lounge, Christian Levett continues to contribute to the cultural landscape, promoting greater recognition of women artists and inspiring a more inclusive understanding of art history.
