Martha Mosse: The weight of intention

Martha Mosse is the director of Paul Smith’s Foundation, reshaping how creative support works in real terms. She leads initiatives that champion emerging voices across fashion, art, and design—not through spectacle, but through sustained, purposeful support.

The Paul Smith Foundation’s mission is built on the belief that creativity thrives when given the right tools, space, and structure. Through residencies, grants, and long-term partnerships, its work is driven by a deep commitment to supporting creative people in ways that are practical, personal, and lasting.

We caught up with Martha ahead of the Paul Smith Foundation’s showroom event, which celebrates designers Laura Pitharas and Paolina Russo, and announces the winners of the second International Art Prize in partnership with Winsor & Newton. In our conversation, Martha reflects on balancing instinct with strategy, why continuity is essential in fast-paced industries, and how meaningful change often begins—not with bold moves, but with thoughtful, intentional listening.

hube: How do you balance personal intuition with strategic priorities when selecting projects or deciding whom to support? And when they point in different directions, what guides your final decision?

Martha Mosse: Trusting your instinct is important, and if something doesn’t feel right, we won’t do it. Our priority is ensuring that all our projects support the business development of creative people… but this can present in a variety of ways.

h: When you were selecting residents for the Fashion Residency at Studio Smithfield, what truly signaled potential to you? Was it a specific quality in their work, a sense of vision, or something less tangible that stood out?

MM: We were looking for designers who had clarity of vision, knowledge of their current or desired customer and an understanding of where they sat within the market. This programme is not designed to progress the creative vision of a brand—that work needs to have been done already. We were also looking for applicants who were excited about the opportunity; those who wanted to learn about business skills: tax, IP law, marketing strategies. You get what you put in, so we were specifically looking for applicants who wanted to learn these business fundamentals.

h: Many foundations focus on outcomes—but some of the most meaningful work happens in the process. How do you build space for experimentation, failure, or slow growth into your programmes?

MM: So true! As The Fashion Residency only supports six brands per Cohort, we’re able to offer very bespoke support and development to them. Beyond the business skills teaching, we’re in contact with each brand daily to help accomplish their ambitions. This could be funding for travel to meet artisanal makers or a new factory, funding for a LFW debut, finding a restaurant that can donate a dinner for top clients, freelancer introductions and more. We’re constantly searching for paid retail and consultancy partnerships, sponsorship, investment, residency and showroom opportunities.

As it evolves, The Fashion Residency not only helps develop business skills, but also focuses on the emotional development of each brand in alignment with their specific personal and brand goals and creative needs. It takes a lot of conversation, idea-making and introductions —which is why we’ve kept the Cohort small—the programme has been designed with impact as a priority over a broad reach.

h: Mentorship isn’t always a one-way street. Can you remember a time when a young artist, resident, or collaborator shifted your thinking, surprised you, challenged you, or reminded you what’s at stake?

MM: I am learning from the designers in this Cohort daily, not least on new and very specific issues they are facing as they establish their brands. Luckily, we work with an exceptional group of industry volunteers who help me fill in the gaps.

h: When designing a new programme or residency, where do you usually start: with a thematic question, a community need, or a specific type of talent you want to engage?

MM: I always start with a community need, and the programmes—The Fashion Residency, The International Art Prize, The Archive Residency (and more)—have all been designed to address a specific issue facing creatives today. Before setting up a programme we speak to the community it will be created for, to make sure that we’re answering an actual problem they have, not one we have assumed they have.

h: Paul Smith once noted that ‘continuity is underrated’—a striking thought in an industry often driven by constant change. Do you see continuity as a meaningful part of how you’re shaping the Foundation’s long-term vision?

MM: Absolutely. Continuity and consistency are both deeply underrated attributes of long-term success. As Andy Warhol said, anyone can be famous for 15 minutes. The trick is knowing how to add value for decades. With that in mind, we’re taking our time in establishing a set blueprint for the Foundation by working on a project and partnership basis with a view to working out where we can be most useful… and then do that forever!

h: When you’re building something like a foundation, you’re also shaping its core values—around care, legacy, and purpose. What’s one principle you always hold onto, regardless of changing industry pressures?

MM: That Paul has been doing this his entire life as a philanthropist, benefactor and all-round nice person. At the Foundation we’re merely putting some structure around this legacy so that we can roll it out to support more people.

h: What role do you see the Foundation playing not just in supporting talent, but in shifting structural dynamics in the fashion or creative industries more broadly?

MM: There are lots of brilliant support programmes out there and we’re aiming to build a Foundation that complements what already exists. All Foundations have a duty to address inefficiencies in structural dynamics and work together—not apart—to create a more productive and prosperous space for creativity globally.

h: Are there any emerging voices—in any field—whose work you’re particularly interested in following right now?

MM: We are just about to reveal the exceptional winners of our second International Art Prize with Winsor & Newton. They have been selected by industry heavyweights, including New York-based curator Larry Ossei-Mensah and Marie Laurberg, Director of Copenhagen Contemporary… so, watch this space!

We have also just launched a new programme—a creative residency and grant centred around Paul’s archive in Nottingham. The first recipient is photographer Alice Poyzer, who was nominated by Julian Broad. Her work is fantastic—inquisitive, considered, and striking.