Muse as well as partner, Chatto is also quite the artist himself. Having found himself “completely uninspired by my three-month job in the commercial art market,” Lady Sarah Chatto’s eldest son took matters into his own hands, and now describes himself as “a British artist and maker currently working in clay to create functional and sculptural wood-fired ceramics from my home and studio in West Sussex.”
An accomplished ceramicist, he last year conducted an apprenticeship in Japan, under the noted potter Yagi Akira. His experience was no doubt behind King Charles inviting him to Buckingham Palace last year for a banquet held for the state visit of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan.
And his time in Japan will have left plenty to discuss with Ekserdjian, who has completed a residence with the Sokyo Gallery in Kyoto. Ekserdjian is not thought to have any blue-blooded connections, but her career has brought her in contact with royalty before. Another of her residencies was undertaken with Hauser & Wirth, the art venue where Princess Eugenie serves as director.
The couple’s relationship, which Ekserdjian confirmed to Richard Eden back in 2021, became public with outings like Tatler’s Little Black Book Party in 2022, and they often joined Chatto’s parents at events on London’s cultural scene.
Ekserdjian must fit right in with the Chattos—truly a family of artists. Chatto’s mother, Lady Sarah, is the only daughter of Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones, first Earl of Snowdon. The 62-year-old is known to submit her works (mostly florals) to the Royal Academy’s annual summer exhibition under the name Sarah Armstrong-Jones. His father, Daniel Chatto, is also an artist, and his grandfather Lord Snowdon was, of course, a lauded photographer. Now there is a new artsy member of the family circle to embrace: Isabelle de la Bruyère, the former Christie’s executive who is in a relationship with Chatto’s uncle, David Armstrong-Jones, second Earl of Snowdon. Ekserdjian recently joined Lady Sarah, Daniel, and Sam at an exhibition called “Wayne McGregor: Infinite Bodies” at Somerset House.
