Louise Nicholson (born 1 May 1954) is a British arts journalist, author, and lecturer who focuses on the art and culture of India and London. Her many books are mainly about India and London.
Nicholson is the chair of the charity Save a Child. She and her husband Nicholas Wapshott live in New York City.
Early life
She is the daughter of Royden Joseph Nicholson. After attending The Furs and Halstead primary schools in Woking, her high school was St Michael's Burton Park at Petworth. She graduated with an MA honours degree in History of Art from the University of Edinburgh in 1976.
Career
Nicholson wrote for The Scotsman from 1973 to 1976, and for The Times from 1976 to 1983. She started working in 1976 at the Victorian Society. London; She later co-founded the Twentieth Century Society (at first named The Thirties Society) with Clive Aslet, Gavin Stamp and Bevis Hillier in 1978. She contributed to Aslet's The Best Buildings in Britain project (1980), searching the Church Commissioners' records for Grade A churches in England.
In 1978 Nicholson joined Christie's Auction House in London, London, to specialise in Indian and Islamic art. From 1981 she worked for The Times newspaper as an arts, culture, and travel journalist; she also wrote for The Observer in London (1984–1994) and was a bi-weekly columnist for The Telegraph in Calcutta (1985–1993).
In 1985 Nicholson began her India consultancy and lecture tours, later founding Louise's India for this work. She lectures on aspects of India's and London's art, history, and culture. In 1990, she was Executive Producer of the six-part TV documentary The Great Moguls made for Channel Four, screened in the US on PBS.
Nicholson writes for Apollo art magazine, specialising in interviewing collectors and reporting on fine art events. She is a senior feature writer for Fine Art Connoisseur. She also contributes to Country Life, Conde Nast Traveler, Travel & Leisure, and Departures. She was a contributor to Gourmet magazine.
Save a Child
In 1985 Nicholson founded Save a Child, a charity UK supporting disadvantaged children in India through long-term sponsorship. Over 300 children are supported, living in residential homes in and near Kolkata and New Delhi; the homes include Ramakrishna Vivekananda Mission, Barrackpore; All Bengal Women's Union, Kolkata, and the Institute for the Blind and S D Jain Mahila Ashram, both in Delhi.
In 2011 Nicholson founded the US chapter of Save a Child: Save a Child (America) Inc. is a non-profit separately organised, under the legal and regulatory framework of New York State, also chaired by Nicholson. Save a Child, UK and US, are sponsors of the All Bengal Women's Union.
Bibliography
Nicholson is a prolific travel author. In 1985 her guide to India was published; her guide to London followed in 1988. She has published over 25 books, and her National Geographic Guides to India and London are in their 3rd and 4th editions, respectively.