What drives the next generation of art collectors? In this series, we explore how NextGen collectors are reshaping the landscape of collecting through instinct, access, relationships, and lived experience - from their first encounters with art to the values that shape what, how, and why they collect today.
In this article, meet Lars Veen Uldal, who approaches collecting as a deeply personal and curiosity-driven practice shaped by early exposure to art and long-term relationships with galleries, as well as the need for patron programmes to better reflect how the next generation engages with the art world.
Portrait of Lars Veen Uldal. Works by Tom Sandberg (left) and Andreas Eriksson (middle and right)
Courtesy of Lars Veen Uldal. Photo by Mikkel Tjellesen
When and how did you start collecting art?
I began collecting art at 19, shortly after moving to Copenhagen. My first acquisition – a photograph by Trine Søndergaard from Martin Asbæk Gallery – remains, in many ways, the work I return to most often. While my collection has grown since, few have rivalled it in emotional significance. The image depicts a young woman in traditional dress from Fanø, her face concealed by a woven mask once worn to protect against the harsh coastal climate.
Having just arrived from Norway, I was unfamiliar with Danish folk costumes, and the photograph immediately struck me for its quiet beauty and sense of historical distance. It also resonated more broadly at a time when debates in Norway around immigration, identity, and face-covering garments were highly charged.
Seeing a similar form of dress within a Scandinavian historical context made me reflect on how cultural practices shift in meaning depending on whether they are seen as “ours” or “foreign.” The photograph subtly unsettled these boundaries. This combination of aesthetic strength and conceptual depth convinced me I wanted to live with the work, and it has always had a place on my wall, which I imagine it will continue to do for a long time.
Did you grow up with art and has this influenced your approach to collecting?
Both my grandparents and my parents collect art, and I grew up surrounded by it. Although our tastes differ, I think our approach to collecting is fundamentally similar. What we share is an intuitive way of engaging with art: we buy with our hearts rather than our heads. Collecting has never been driven by investment logic, but by genuine interest and curiosity.
While we are drawn to different artists and expressions, I can see clear parallels in the broader contours of our collections. I may have absorbed certain preferences from them, such as a gravitation towards abstract work and photography, while also seeking out experiences that have shaped my own eye.
Image of Lars Veen Uldal's home. Work by Trine Søndergaard
Courtesy of Lars Veen Uldal. Photo by Mikkel Tjellesen
Image of Lars Veen Uldal's home. Work by Kristoffer Zeiner
Courtesy of Lars Veen Uldal. Photo by Mikkel Tjellesen
Where do you usually discover new artists or works - is it through galleries, art fairs, social media, or other channels?
I discover artists through a combination of channels: galleries, museums, art fairs, auctions, and digital platforms. Moving between these contexts has been important, as each offers a different way of encountering and understanding work.
Online access has undoubtedly made art more visible and more approachable, and social media has become a powerful tool for discovery. At the same time, I believe something essential is still rooted in the physical experience of seeing works in a space and in dialogue with others. Galleries, in my view, remain central not only as places to view art, but as environments for conversation and learning.
Some of my most meaningful experiences as a collector have come from spending time in museums and galleries and from developing relationships with curators and gallerists. Over time, these exchanges shape how you look, what you notice, and how your taste evolves. Digital platforms can open the door, but it is often through sustained, in-person encounters that a deeper understanding of both artists and one’s own preferences takes form.
What influences your decision to purchase work from a particular artist or gallery?
While the work itself is always the starting point, a sense of community influences how and where I collect. Building long-term relationships with gallerists has become central to my approach, and I value the trust and continuity that develop over time. Collecting is therefore not only about individual objects, but also about the networks and conversations around them, which shape my understanding of artists and the direction my collection takes.
Beyond ownership, the most meaningful aspect of collecting is connecting with others who share a similar curiosity and commitment to art, particularly collectors of my own generation. Exchanging perspectives, visiting exhibitions together, and learning through discussion have been as formative as living with the works themselves.
Through my involvement in the Patrons Program at Henie Onstad Art Centre, where I also sit on the advisory board, I engage closely with other collectors, gallerists, advisors, curators, and artists. These exchanges reinforce my view of collecting as a social and intellectual practice, not only an individual one.
Do you think you are more open to collecting different media than older generations?
It is an interesting question, because the assumption that younger collectors are inherently more open across media is, in my experience, somewhat misleading. When I compare my own collection with that of my grandparents, for example, I am struck by how early they engaged with video works, sculpture, and conceptual practices, at a time when such work was far from mainstream.
My own collection is perhaps more concentrated. I am drawn primarily to photography and more abstract art, and while I remain open to other media, this has become the central thread running through my collecting. Rather than thinking in terms of generational openness, I tend to see it as a question of individual sensibility and of the contexts one is exposed to.
How do you prioritise spending on art compared to other goods or experiences?
My engagement with art has grown gradually over time, and today I would say that I prioritise art over many other forms of consumption.
At the same time, I do not see collecting as something that has to be driven by excess. It is possible to build a meaningful collection without it becoming financially overwhelming. I often encourage friends who are curious about buying art to look towards emerging galleries and auctions. There is a great deal of strong work available at accessible levels, and much of the excitement lies in discovering artists early and learning to trust one’s own eye.
Image of Lars Veen Uldal's home. Work by Guðmundur Thoroddsen
Courtesy of Lars Veen Uldal. Photo by Mikkel Tjellesen
Image of Lars Veen Uldal's home. Works by Fredrik Værslev (left) and Wolfgang Tillmans (right)
Courtesy of Lars Veen Uldal. Photo by Mikkel Tjellesen
How do you feel about accessibility and inclusivity in the art world today?
I think attitudes are beginning to shift, but for many in my generation, owning art is still often perceived as less attainable – or less immediately rewarding – than other forms of spending. People are comfortable investing in experiences or objects that are easily shared and visible, such as travel, sports equipment, or fashion. Art, by contrast, is a more private and slower form of ownership, and perhaps for that reason it can still be associated with something exclusive.
There is also a strong social dimension to how my generation engages with the art world. Openings and events are popular meeting places, but the step from participation to collecting can feel significant.
When I first started visiting galleries on my own, I did feel slightly intimidated. In hindsight, this had more to do with my own preconceptions than with the reality of the spaces themselves. What I have consistently encountered is not exclusion, but a willingness to engage. The challenge, perhaps, is less that the art world is closed, and more that we have learned to approach it as if it were.
There is, I think, a certain irony here. We are quick to describe the art world as elitist or intimidating, yet we also tend to reproduce the very distance we claim to oppose. It is often easier to criticise institutions than to step into them with patience and curiosity. In a country like Denmark, where museums and galleries are largely publicly funded and widely accessible, the threshold is in many cases less structural than psychological. Preconceptions, rather than doors, are what most often remain closed.
If you could change or innovate one thing about the art world, what would it be?
One of the main challenges I see is the lack of durable communities for younger people who are genuinely interested in art and collecting. While many are present at openings and events, far fewer develop long-term relationships with institutions, galleries, or with each other.
Patron and supporter programmes have existed for a long time, but their formats often feel geared towards an older generation and have, in many cases, become outdated. If museums and galleries want to cultivate the next generation of collectors and supporters, they need to rethink how these spaces are structured and what they offer beyond formal membership and occasional social gatherings.
My own experience in the Patrons Program at Henie Onstad Art Centre has shown how valuable it can be to have a context where younger art-interested audiences can meet regularly, look together, and build relationships with peers, curators, and artists. More initiatives of this kind are needed, but in forms that reflect how younger generations learn, exchange, and commit.
How do you see your generation influencing the art market in the coming years?
I think my generation will influence the art market in several, sometimes contrasting, ways. On one hand, there is a visible group of young collectors who are strongly values-driven, attentive to questions of representation, social justice, and climate, and often drawn to artists whose practices engage with these themes and broaden the canon. Alongside this, there are also collectors who take a quieter, more traditional approach, focusing on established artists and historical works perceived as stable and enduring. At the same time, we are approaching a significant intergenerational transfer of wealth, which will further diversify the priorities shaping the market.
I am interested in how these positions can exist side by side within a single collection. For me, there is no contradiction between supporting emerging artists with diverse backgrounds and engaging with more established practices; placing new voices in conversation with longer artistic lineages can be both informative and enriching, and often deepens a collection’s perspective.
In that sense, I don’t see my generation shaping the market in a single direction, but rather becoming more plural, with different motivations – ethical, aesthetic, and financial – coexisting and shaping what is collected, how it is valued, and which narratives gain visibility.
Where is your collection headed - do you have an artist you wish to own a work of, or do you have a specific collecting strategy looking ahead?
Looking ahead, I see my collecting becoming more deliberate and patient. Less driven by impulse, and more by long-term engagement with artists and practices I have followed over time. Rather than acquiring the first available work, I am increasingly interested in waiting for the right piece – the one that truly resonates and feels representative of why I am drawn to an artist in the first place.
If there is one body of work I dream of owning, it would be from Thomas Struth’s Paradise series. The photographs capture the splendour and complexity of the natural world, while also quietly reminding us of its fragility and the importance of preservation. In many ways, they reflect both an aesthetic sensibility I am deeply drawn to and concerns that are central to how I see the world more broadly.
Image of Lars Veen Uldal's home. Work by Torbjørn Rødland
Courtesy of Lars Veen Uldal. Photo by Mikkel Tjellesen
"Collecting for me is not only about individual objects, but also about the networks and conversations that form around them. Working with galleries over time allows for a deeper understanding of artists and their practices, and it shapes both the opportunities I am presented with and the direction my collection takes."
Sustainability Specialist and art collector
Lars Veen Uldal is born in Stavanger, Norway, and lives in Copenhagen together with his fiancé Sunniva and dog Felix. He studied climate change and finance at Imperial College Business School in London, and now works as a Sustainability Specialist at a private equity firm in Copenhagen. Lars also sits on the board of investment firm TD Veen and on the advisory board of Henie Onstad Art Centre’s Patrons Program in Oslo.
Uldal's collection includes works by Wolfgang Tillmans, Ida Ekblad, Tauba Auerbach, Andreas Eriksson, Fredrik Værslev, Torbjørn Rødland, Ayan Farah, Trine Søndergaard, Liv Ertzeid, Tom Sandberg, Morten Andenæs, Per Berntsen, Thora Dolven Balke, Espen Dietrichson, Kristoffer Zeiner, Gudmundur Thoroddsen, Ville Andersson, Caroline Jackson, Ryan Cosbert.
@larsveenuldal
Photo by Mikkel Tjellesen
