Astrid Ullens: From Contemporary Art to Photography, a Committed Collector

How did you begin collecting? I started with contemporary art in the 1980s, working with the Antwerp gallerist Micheline Szwajcer. She introduced me to the great sculptors and painters of the time, like Carl Andre, On Kawara, Stanley Brouwn and Alighiero Boetti. Having grown up in a highly cultured family, it was a rejuvenating experience. Before I started working, I was an obedient housewife and the mother of four children. The two realms remained apart: I didn't dare show my acquisitions at home. What brought you to photography? When I became aware that contemporary art was turning into a business, in other words when money started to matter more than the artists’ work. That’s not my idea of how things should be. I’ve never bought anything as speculation. I felt the need to do research, meet the artists and exchange ideas with them. Some were expensive—I bought certain works for €15,000, a big effort—but prices weren’t as exorbitant as they later became. I stopped everything overnight. One year, I wanted to buy a Brancusi sculpture at the Basel fair but it…