Sir Daniel K. Winn is an internationally recognized blue-chip artist, fine-art curator, awarded entrepreneur, and highly respected philanthropist. In recognition of his direct support to humanitarian causes, having directly assisted in raising over two million dollars for non-profit aid in the United States and Asia, Winn was honored the prestigious title of “Sir” when knighted in 2018 under the Princely House of Shaumburg-Lippe-Nachod — one of only five recipients of the title in the history of the royal family. As a child refugee to the United States from Vietnam, Winn excelled in academics while at the same time supporting his younger sibling, allowing his parent to earn a living. He went on to study medicine; but during his study of reconstructive surgery at UCI medical school, he broke from family expectations and set out to pursue a life in the world of art. He went on to work with numbers artists, elevating them to blue-chip museum caliber, in addition to developing his own artistic philosophy, “Existential Surrealism.” Winn’s work has since been featured at esteemed exhibitions worldwide. Among many other distinctions, he is the Board Chairman of The Academy of Fine Art Foundation, CEO and curator of Masterpiece Publishing, Inc., and Founder of Winn Slavin Fine Art, one of the most prestigious art galleries in Beverly Hills. In 2019, the NEST Foundation in Hollywood also awarded him the “Philanthropic Artist of the Year.” We caught up with Sir Daniel to discuss his road to success and how he navigates the arts in the business world.
Your background is quite diverse. How did you find it transitioning from medicine to fine art, and then from that to business owner of your Beverly Hills art gallery, Winn Slavin?
From medicine to fine art is not as difficult as you might think, because medicine is still an art. My background is in reconstructive surgery, and I’ve always been fascinated by the anatomy, the golden ratio, and the Fibonacci. I got into the medical profession as a courtesy for my parents, to get a degree. But I’ve always wanted to be an artist. And when I got into art, it was actually very simple because I knew anatomy and composition already. As far as a business owner, I don’t feel that taking any class in a business in college will give you the same result as hands-on experience, in the same way that you could study an art for years but unless you actually paint, you’re not going to understand. So I had to jump right in, hands-on, to understand the dynamics of business. Fortunately I’m also left brain, so I learned from the people that I associated with — my investors. What I did was observe, listen, and practice what they did in order to become a savvy and, hopefully, good businessman.
You have been called the modern day Salvador Dalí. Is he someone who inspired you when you were coming up as an artist?
Dali is one of many artists that I admire. The inspiration from him is mostly because of the relationship of surrealism and how he uses the psyche of the subconscious, a very Freudian style. But in the beginning, my inspiration was not Dali; it was much more da Vinci, Raphael, and Caravaggio. The reason is that I feel they are true master renaissance artists that can do many diverse things. Not just to be a painter or sculptor, but also a philosopher, musician, doctor, writer. To me, all of these things are significant to becoming an artist, because you have to be a master of everything to truly understand what is necessary to create an art that people understand. So my first inspiration was de Vinci. And I try to emulate by becoming the modern renaissance artist. That people refer me to a modern Salvador Dali is very nice and a flattering comparison, and I like that. But I guess it’s not just the surrealism that I gravitate toward; it’s also everything else that I want to bring to the table in terms of what I’ve experienced.
What was your “a ha” moment?
Probably when I graduated medical school. I took a month off trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. Was it to focus on money? Fame? Success? My “a ha” moment was philosophical in nature: The idea that I’m only here very briefly and that I want to send a message — that I will be remembered. It was like an epiphany that my life is going to be very brief and I needed to do what I thought would be best for me, and what I could leave behind for the world and the future generations.
The old way of thinking was that one had to choose between pursuing their passion and making money. But you’ve proved that both can be done. Can you share a valuable lesson you learned in running your business?
What I advise is for people to focus on their passion. Whatever happens — when you’re passionate about it — the outcome, regardless how much money you make, is going to be priceless. If you do something that is without passion but make hundreds of millions of dollars, that is still not anywhere near putting all your passion into something, even if that doesn’t make as much. Do the things you feel can make a difference in the world, because when you leave this world, you’re not going to take any of the money with you. But the deeds, the actions, the passion that you put out there is going to be remembered more than any money you leave behind.
Any tips for other entrepreneurs and business owners on how to inspire those who work with you on your team?
You know, you asked that question and the most at the most significant time to me. As an entrepreneur and as a businessperson, it is extremely difficult to work in any group setting, whether it’s 10 people or 100 or 1000 employees or staff. I think that human emotion and the human psyche are very unique. I would say my suggestion would be to try to empathize with others, be in each of their shoes, and try to understand where their thoughts are — and that neither one nor the other is necessarily right or wrong. But rather, realize that how each person thinks is just a different way of them processing based on how they were raised, grew up, and their surrounding environment. So my suggestion is to connect with your surroundings. Empathize and put yourself in the shoes of others, not just yours. And then once you can do that and can feel that, hopefully then you can embrace their understanding and emotions, which would hopefully lead to a better connection and interaction with you. That’s my suggestion based on what I know now.
In these modern times, when we can hide behind our phones and computers, how do you connect with others on a personal level?
That’s actually a great question. There is no right answer. As technology moves forward we will lose part about humanity. We will lose part of our connection with people. There’s no doubt that there will be sacrifices. But my suggestion, because it is my business, is to look at how I can connect with those people through my art, even if it’s through social media, through whatever it may be. Images are worth more than thousands of words. And those images of paintings or sculptures will hopefully reach someone deep down and they will understand. And that’s what I’m doing now. On social media I have many followers, and of course I cannot communicate verbally or on the phone with all of them, or write to them individually, because there are thousands or tens of thousands. So what I do is try to post as much as I can to give them a connection. It will be visual language that I’m trying to communicate to them through. Since I cannot do what I ultimately want to do, I try to go with the flow of technology and give them something that I feel, hopefully, will ultimately connect with them so that they can understand what I’m trying to communicate through my philosophical ideas, thoughts, emotions, and experience.
