British-Bangladeshi philanthropist Nadia Samdani has been named a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, media outlets reported from London quoting Samdani Art Foundation.
The Birthday Honours list recognises the achievements of a wide range of extraordinary people across the UK.
Nadia, co-founder of the not-for-profit Samdani Art Foundation, has been recognised for services to global art philanthropy and supporting the arts in Bangladesh, South Asia and the United Kingdom.
Being awarded, Nadia said, “I am thrilled that this honour comes as part of celebrations for Her Majesty the Queen’s 70-year reign, and her length of service and commitment is something I hope to emulate in my ongoing work.”
It’s an extraordinary honour to receive recognition for over a decade of supporting and nurturing artistic talent. It’s been heartening to see the huge levels of public engagement with their work, and how the Foundation has fostered new cross-cultural dialogues between Bangladesh and the rest of the world, she added.
She has brought attention to Bangladeshi contemporary artists both at home and internationally through her efforts with the Foundation, resulting in their works being included in major international public institutions and collections.
Nadia Samdani MBE is also the director of the Dhaka Art Summit. In 2011, with husband Rajeeb Samdani, she established the Samdani Art Foundation to support the work of Bangladesh and South Asia’s contemporary artists and architects and increase their exposure.
As part of this initiative, she founded the Dhaka Art Summit – the highest visited art summit in the world – which has since completed five successful editions under her leadership.
Nadia Samdani is a member of Tate’s South Asia Acquisitions Committee, Tate’s International Council, Alserkal Avenue’s Programming Committee and the Delfina Foundation’s International Council, and is one of the founding members of The Harvard University Lakshmi Mittal South Asia Institute’s Arts Advisory Council. In 2017, with her husband Rajeeb, she was the first South Asian arts patron to receive the prestigious Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award.
