Philanthropists Rory and Elizabeth Brooks discuss their reasons for supporting arts and cultural institutions and why they believe Tate is “at the top of the tree”.
How did you first get involved in philanthropy?
Rory: “We went to work in the US when we were 24, and giving was very much a cultural thing. I joined a large bank where everybody had been to college in the US. They were passionate about their colleges, and to see that their college experience was such a vital part of their social capital made a big impact on us. Realising that contributing back to your alma mater was an integral part of that did profoundly impact the way we expressed our ‘re-contribution’ to society.
We were also both brought up in schools where Christianity was present. While we are not of faith, I don’t think you can go through a process like that without being introduced to ‘faith, hope and charity’. I think that’s something a lot of people underestimate: many of the major religions have something at their core about compassion for humanity, and seeing oneself as part of a holistic society in which everybody has to help out. While it hasn’t been explicit in our dialogue about our own philanthropy, I think it must have entered the DNA somewhere... Keep reading on Coutts
How did you first get involved in philanthropy?
Rory: “We went to work in the US when we were 24, and giving was very much a cultural thing. I joined a large bank where everybody had been to college in the US. They were passionate about their colleges, and to see that their college experience was such a vital part of their social capital made a big impact on us. Realising that contributing back to your alma mater was an integral part of that did profoundly impact the way we expressed our ‘re-contribution’ to society.
We were also both brought up in schools where Christianity was present. While we are not of faith, I don’t think you can go through a process like that without being introduced to ‘faith, hope and charity’. I think that’s something a lot of people underestimate: many of the major religions have something at their core about compassion for humanity, and seeing oneself as part of a holistic society in which everybody has to help out. While it hasn’t been explicit in our dialogue about our own philanthropy, I think it must have entered the DNA somewhere... Keep reading on Coutts