Maria Balshaw CBE: From Art to Zombies - & Meeting Pedro Pascal

About this episode

Maria Balshaw CBE discusses her career at Tate and her impactful contributions to the art world.

This week I really have a treat in store for you as I speak to Director of Tate Maria Balshaw CBE. Maria was the first woman to take on the role back in 2015 and for the last ten years she has used her position to introduce a broader range of artists to Tate’s various galleries as well as attracting a younger audience through the introduction of Tate Collective which offered free membership to 16-25 year olds and the creation of a £150m endowment fund to secure the group’s financial future.  Prior to joining Tate, Balshaw was director of the Whitworth Gallery in the University of Manchester for over a decade after starting her career in academia.  She recently announced that she will stand down from her role at Tate in Spring 2026 so it is a real privilege to speak to her about her career, her achievements and the stories that have resonated with her throughout her life.  Maria’s book choice is a searingly honest and raw account of love in the time of the AIDs epidemic in the UK, the film she chose was made in 1993 but set in the mid-1800s and tells the story of a woman faced with cruelty from all of those around her, the TV show is set on a popular computer game…

People in this episode

Guest: Maria Balshaw CBE

Topics covered

• art
• interview
• career
• Tate
• cultural impact

Keywords

• Maria Balshaw
• Tate
• art
• interview
• cultural impact
• AIDs epidemic
• film
• TV show

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Tate, Whitworth Gallery, University of Manchester

Books & works: Lee Miller, AIDs epidemic, 1993 film, popular computer game

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