To talk to Masterworks Founder, Tom Butterfield, is to hear about his passion for Bermuda, the Island which he calls his “muse”. Tom’s belief in both Bermuda and the power of art to inspire motivated him to build, quite literally from the ground up, the stellar art collection and museum enjoyed by Bermudians and visitors alike today.

Tom was raised in Bermuda, where he developed an interest in art in high school. He ventured to Canada where he pursued a media studies degree from Ryerson University. It is there where he learned photography under the mentorship of a Guggenheim Fellow and was inspired to both create and appreciate artwork with meaning. However, in Bermuda, he found that the Island’s art scene lacked the infrastructure to support artists such as himself. Tom made it his goal to change that. It was important to him that the local art scene was inclusive of all backgrounds, regardless of race and gender, and provided people with the opportunity to make a living through artistic expression. It was with this vision in mind, as well as the acquisition and preservation of artwork that showcased the landscape and cultural heritage of the Island, that Masterworks was born.

It all began with 12 paintings. Today, Masterworks boasts Bermuda-inspired works from world-renowned artists such as Winslow Homer, Georgia O’Keeffe, Marsden Hartley and Charles Demuth. While these artists have an important presence in the Collection, Masterworks’ core values remain by leaving plenty of room for the emerging talents of local and foreign artists to shine brightly.

Before Masterworks found its permanent home in the Botanical Gardens, Tom recalls many late nights into early mornings moving paintings from one location to another. After 21 years “on the run,” what started with a 12-piece collection is now over 1,500 works of art housed in a 16,000-square-foot, purpose-built museum – the only one of its kind in Bermuda.

Over the past 35 years, Tom’s work at Masterworks has transformed the reality of art as an experience and as a career in Bermuda. Today, the Museum is a space for both locals and tourists to appreciate the “muse” of the Island. “This art collection is”, as he states, “a gift for generations to come”.