MTArt Agency, the London based artist talent agency founded by Marine Tanguy, has been named a finalist in The Social & Sustainable Impact Award at the Lloyds British Business Excellence Awards 2026.
The agency was built around a single conviction: that art should sit in the middle of everyday life, in streets, parks, hospitals and schools, where everyone can access it, rather than behind gallery doors.
The business argues that public art and visual storytelling help shape cities that are more inclusive, more democratic and more reflective of the communities they serve. Over the past 11 years the agency reports it has delivered more than 300 public art projects, work it describes as transforming the visual public realm from a site of passive consumption into a living infrastructure of community, culture and care.
Reclaiming the public realm
MTArt’s case starts with a critique. The imagery filling shared spaces, it argues, is increasingly dominated by commercial interests, with streets, transport hubs and urban environments saturated by messaging that treats people primarily as consumers. According to the business, these messages often promote consumer debt or harmful beauty standards, deepening existing power dynamics rather than addressing challenges such as social cohesion and environmental sustainability. The company contends that advertisers profit from spaces that belong to everyone, while communities bear the social and environmental costs, from eroded local identity to declining wellbeing.
Art, the agency believes, changes this. Its answer is a participatory model that places community voices at the heart of decision making, fostering collaboration among artists, local authorities, cultural agencies, businesses, schools and civil society so that cities can co-create visual environments that celebrate shared values, reflect local histories and tell the authentic stories of their people. Public art, in this vision, becomes a catalyst for social and political renewal, challenging dominant commercial narratives while amplifying marginalised voices.
Credentials beyond the canvas
There is verifiable substance behind the mission. MTArt Agency appears in the official Certified B Corporation directory with a B Impact score of 93.5, and the company states it was the first in the UK art sector to gain B Corp status. Founder Marine Tanguy has also taken the argument to print: her book The Visual Detox was published in March 2024 by Square Peg, a Penguin Random House imprint, examining how the images we consume shape us.
The road to Grosvenor House
MTArt Agency now joins the other finalists contesting The Social & Sustainable Impact Award, a category recognising organisations that align profit with purpose across society, environment, economy and governance. Winners of the Lloyds British Business Excellence Awards will be announced at Grosvenor House, London, on 10 November 2026, where the agency will discover whether its decade long campaign to democratise art earns one of UK business’s most prestigious honours.
