Meet François-Xavier Trancart, Co-Founder of Artsper

We love Artsper for their vast collection of art pieces, including everything from Andy Warhol and Banksy to smaller emerging artists. The discoverability of talented artists on Artsper’s platform is neverending, making it a Spoak favorite here! It’s the perfect place for art and design lovers to spend their afternoons getting lost in their collections.

Keep on reading to learn more about François-Xavier, one of the brilliant minds behind Artsper.

Tell us about yourself and how Artsper got started.

Hello Spoak! I’m François-Xavier Trancart, CEO and co-founder of Artsper. I’m from Picardie, France, but have been based in Paris for over a decade now. In 2013, Hugo Mulliez and I created Artsper with the goal of removing the barrier to entry into the art market. The art-buying process hadn’t really been digitized in an accessible way for first-time collectors before this. We saw the need for creating an approachable marketplace that's now grown to include over 200,000 artworks from more than 1,800 galleries worldwide.

You have an entrepreneurial and business-adjacent background, but did you always have a love for art and design?

My childhood was spent surrounded by art and architecture. I spent a lot of time in museums and quickly understood the importance of art in the storytelling of everyday life. It’s a lesson I try to carry on with my children.

What does the intersection between art and design look like for you? Do you feel like one influences the other?

Art and design are entirely intertwined—one cannot exist without the other. This year, Artsper launched the design section of our site, further validating to collectors that design objects and furniture truly are art. Just as you would carefully choose a chair for your living room, you choose a painting. Each choice reflects your personal style, and each influences the other.

Tell us about an artist you love. What about them and their work are you drawn to?

It’s hard to choose just one… While it changes almost daily, I often find myself going back to Egon Schiele’s work. I love Expressionism and artworks from the Vienna Secession, and I find Schiele’s depictions of intimate moments unmatched. That said, I find new favorite artists, like Alexandre Benjamin Navet and Delphine Denereaz, almost daily in Artsper’s emerging artists section.

Where do you find inspiration these days?

I’m fortunate to travel a lot, and I find inspiration in each new place I visit. For example, I just traveled to Miami for the 20th edition of Art Basel Miami. The juxtaposition of the Art Deco architecture and bright colors of Florida to the Haussmanian neutrals of Paris is endlessly fascinating. Just as contemporary art conversates with archaic art, architecture and design do the same. The Bourse de Commerce Pinault Collection in Paris is another place I go to witness the meeting of industrial and Baroque styling.

When you’re not busy growing the Artsper brand, what do you do on your time off to recharge creatively?

I may be biased, but I think Paris is truly the world's cultural capital. I take time to go to new exhibitions with my family and wander art fairs to seek new faces in the art world. Outside of that, I spend a lot of time enjoying the city, especially Canal Saint Martin, going to indie rock concerts, and sitting at bars watching soccer matches with friends.

Do you have any upcoming events or projects that you’re excited about? What can we expect from Artsper in 2023?

I want Artsper to further democratize the art market in 2023. We’re reaching new markets and working on many exciting projects to make the platform even better for our collectors. Soon, we’re partnering with Spoak on an event in New York called Table des Artistes to bring together creatives to discuss art, interior design, and more. I hope this is the first of many events on US soil.