Overview
Emphasizing practice over theory, the program introduces students to the foundational tools, skills and concepts of art business and art law. Through a combination of coursework, workshop, guest presentation and internship students are given the means to build their professional infrastructure. The practical skills and conceptual frameworks learned at Christie's serve our graduates well as they embark on diverse and meaningful careers throughout the art market ecosystem. The core pedagogical strategy of the Christie’s Education Art, Law and Business program is based on the premise that utilizing the lens of commerce and law and history to view art and the art market will serve to enhance our understanding of how the global art market functions. Through this non-traditional approach to the study and examination of art and art markets, students will develop uncommon insight into the dynamics that influence the markets. Our program goal is the training of students across the three disciplines of art, law and business resulting in graduates who are conversant in the languages of art and in commerce and who, therefore, will have the necessary transferable skills to make a smooth professional transition into the global art world. With unparalleled access to art market professionals working at Christie’s, students will learn from, and interface with, the current leading practitioners of the art market. As part of the curriculum, students will travel to domestic and international art destinations to meet with professionals working across the art market landscape, including: art fairs, museums, art business conferences, galleries and art advisories and investment businesses. Over 15 months of intensive study, students take a combined 40 credits to complete their degree. The program concludes with a final term that is exclusively focused on a full-time internship and an independent capstone project that are each instrumental in helping students to activate their professional careers. Who Should Apply
The program is designed for recent undergraduates as well as existing professionals from other disciplines who wish to gain access to the global art market. Our program is best suited for those aiming to start careers in the management, sales, marketing, public relations, client services, administration and strategy of commercial entities within the international art world and creative industries.
Graduates typically go onto careers in auction houses, galleries, art fairs and other art related businesses throughout the global art market.
Program Prospectus
Click here to download the New York prospectus.
For further information, please contact:
admissionsus@christies.edu
T +1 212 355 1501
Program Structure
Art Business I, II, III
One of the foundational courses in the Art, Law and Business program, Art Business (I, II and III) is intended to provide students with a strong foundation of qualitative, quantitative and analytical skills necessary to run an art business. The course is designed to provide a general understanding of the commercial and financial markets in general and the art market in detail.
Art Business provides an introduction to the main players and their interaction within the art markets; also introduced are the tools that are necessary to critically assess the markets qualitatively and quantitatively. The Art Business course investigates the dynamics of the art market(s) within the current international economy. Topics covered include: economics, finance, accounting, statistics, spreadsheet construction, marketing and strategy.
3 credits per term (9 credits total)
Language of Contemporary Art I, II, III
This course surveys the history and development of global art from the 1960s to the present. Its goal is to provide students with the necessary art historical background to understand the principles and formal components of contemporary art.
The course’s scope includes both the western canon as well as emerging art centers worldwide.
The course progresses both thematically and chronologically to introduce students to major artists and movements across the global landscape. It also includes lectures on the watershed exhibitions that define the moment as well as lectures on specific artists. Students are assessed through mid-term and final exams.
2 credits per term (6 credits total)
Art Law, I, II, III
The Art Law course investigates the role that law plays in the commercial art world. It explores key legal instruments used in transactions, the roles of national and international legislation in the governance of the art market and the effects these have on the free movement of cultural objects between key international selling centers.
These courses provide students with knowledge over a range of areas in international art business including: art law and taxation, appraisal/valuation, intellectual property rights, ethics and corporate social responsibility and use of information and communication technology.
2 credits per term (6 credits total)
Mapping the Art World
The goal of this course is to familiarize students with the institutions that have historically played an essential role in shaping the art market including private dealers, galleries, collectors, auction houses, critics, and museums.
We examine the central figures of the global contemporary art ecosystem. Students will learn about dealers and gallerists with global footprints, advisors who travel the world to attend art fairs, curators of international exhibitions and biennials, and artists who show their work around the world. Students will come to understand and contextualize the issues central to the art world as a part of what is now a global art economy.
In addition to lectures and presentations, students will attend weekly field studies in the exhibition rooms of Christie's where they will engage directly with some of the finest specialists of fine and decorative art in the world. These field studies give the students uncommon insight into the important art market issues of valuation, authenticity and evolving global collecting patterns. Specific emphasis is on the inner workings of the auction house.
The class concludes with a study trip to Art Basel Miami where students will have the opportunity to engage directly with art market professionals.
3 credits
Marketing The Art World
This course introduces students to the practical application of marketing strategies for the arts within the context of the ever-increasing competitive economic environment. Students will encounter a wide spectrum of important marketing topics and issues facing the art world in this class, including: digital and traditional branding, communication and media relations strategies, use of social media, developing and maintaining audiences, market research and segmentation and pricing issues. These important concepts are applied in practically based term-long projects as each student develops a full marketing plan for an art-focused exhibition or cultural event.
2 credits
Management in the Arts: The Art Advisory and Gallery Business
This course provides students with the opportunity to understand the processes involved in launching and successfully managing a commercial art gallery and art advisory business. In addition to reviewing the historical development of the gallery, students will study current art businesses specializing in different media and historical periods as well as galleries operating at different business levels and contexts. Guest speakers from diverse commercial venues provide first-hand art market insight into how successful galleries manage the dynamic complexity of the art market. Students will also explore the impact of art fairs and online sale platforms on the traditional brick and mortar gallery art business. A term-long project will take students through the journey of planning and preparing to open an art gallery or art advisory business. This project provides a platform upon which students are able to synthesize and apply their learning in a practical hands-on manner.
3 credits
Assessing Risk and Reward in the Art Market
Art collecting is an endeavor of passion, commitment and intellectual journey – it is, however, also fraught with risk. Through a series of in-class lectures, guest presentations and case studies, students will be introduced to the various types of risk that exist when transacting in the commercial art world. Students will learn to identify, manage and mitigate transactional risks that are important to understand when operating in the current art market. Students are challenged to view risk and reward in the commercial art market from a business operations perspective, topics include: fine art insurance coverage, gallery risk management, risk transference, collections management, art handling, condition reporting, art transport and fine art insurance claims case studies.
2 credits
Articulating and Appraising Value
The value of art is a topic of great interest in the current art market as prices climb ever higher and the stakes grow ever larger. When discussing value, however, we can speak of different types: aesthetic, art historical, symbolic, cultural and, of course, monetary. No matter the type or amount of value, the ability to articulate the conditions that have influenced the value of art is of particular importance. This course offers a methodology for engaging and interpreting works of art, with particular emphasis on the articulation of value and meaning. The course provides students an opportunity to learn to present a cogent argument for value upon which all formal written appraisals of fine and decorative art are based. Readings and case studies will be complemented by a series of intensive, hands-on individual and group projects.
2 credits
The Auction Business
This course introduces students to the inner workings of the auction business by focusing on how property is obtained for sale, how the major auction houses compete for consignments, the inter-departmental teamwork involved with bringing works of art to the auction block, and finally what actually happens in the auction sale room. Key moments in auction house history are combined with the evolution of the rules and regulations that govern the New York auction world.
Students are given an inside perspective to buying and selling at auction, the fine points of “saleroom science,“ and how private sales and online bidding have changed the auction industry. Additional insight is provided by guest speakers from Christie’s auction house who will explain their various roles in key departments.
2 credits
Capstone Project
This is the culminating independent project that allows students to develop their voice through researching and writing on a topic of their own selection. The project can take a variety of forms. The subject could be a body of work analyzing a sector of the market, a business plan, a study on the impact of a specific area of law or regulation, or another piece of commercial analytical work.
3 credits
Internship
Master’s students pursue full-time internships during their final term. Students secure internships in a wide range of sites including Christie’s auction house, commercial galleries and not for profit art institutions.
2 credits
Study Trips
All M.A. students participate in study trips to major international art fairs or other art events. Students will interact with the art and network with professionals while applying their newly acquired skills in a real-world setting.
Admissions Requirements
- Completed application form
- Non-refundable application fee of $95
- Bachelor’s degree or the equivalent international degree
- Official transcripts in sealed envelopes from all post-secondary institutions attended. All transcripts, diplomas or academic records must be official documents issued by the college or university and provided in the original language. Transcripts in other languages must be accompanied by English translations certified by official translation professionals or agencies
- Applicants who attended university outside of the U.S. must submit an equivalency report from World Education Services, WES.org
- Essay statement, 2–3 pages on why you are interested in the program
- Sample of writing, no more than 10 pages, which can be taken from undergraduate work or written specifically for the application
- Official GRE score report (optional)
- Official TOEFL scores report if applicable
- Three letters of academic or professional recommendation from writers who know the applicant’s abilities well. Letters should be sent in hard copy on letterhead with original signatures and be accompanied by the Letter of Recommendation form
- Resume
- Personal interview (by invitation only). Invitations will be sent once all application materials have been submitted
TOEFL and GRE EXAMS
Applicants to the Christie’s Education M.A. programs must be proficient in English. Applicants whose native language is not English or who are graduates of non-English speaking colleges and universities must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
The Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is optional. Students are encouraged to submit GRE scores if they believe the scores are an accurate representation of their academic ability.
The TOEFL and GRE test takers must have their scores forwarded to Christie’s Education by Education Testing Services (ETS) which administers these exams. They must enter the Christie’s Education code 9394, on the TOEFL and GRE Score Report Request Form.
For information on these exams, contact ETS at +1 609 921 9000 or consult www.ets.org.
Tuition and Fee Structure
Tuition and fees cover most educational and administrative expenses, including but not limited to orientation programs, out of town field trips, cultural institutional visits, admittance to selected museums nationwide (most major New York City museums) and access to art work in the Christie’s Education Study Collection.
The library and media fee includes but is not limited to the access to electronic research resources, computer work stations, internet access, subscriptions to major art and art-related periodicals and a comprehensive collection of auction catalogues.
The student registration and services fee includes term registration, administrative costs while students are completing their coursework and lifetime membership to the Christie’s Education Alumni Association.
Tuition Deposit
$1,000
Due one month after acceptance
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Fall Term Tuition Payment
$18,812
Library and Media Fee
$588
Student Registration and Services Fee
$727
F-1 International Student Services Fee
$95
Due August 12, 2019
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Winter Term Tuition Payment
$18,161
Due December 3, 2019
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Spring Term Tuition Payment
$19,812
Due March 4, 2020
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Fall 2 Tuition Payment
$8,255
Due August 10, 2020
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Total program is 40 credits
$1,651 per credit
Christie’s Education, New York offers financial assistance to admitted students through a limited number of Scholarships and Graduate Assistantships. These are available to students who have been accepted into a M.A. program, submitted their completed Scholarship and Graduate Assistantships application form, met the GPA requirement and paid their tuition deposits. Find out more.
Academic Calendar
2019 – 2020
Orientation Week
Fall Term
September 9 – November 8, 2019
Rosh Hashanah Observed
September 30, 2019
Yom Kippur Observed
October 9, 2019
Fall Term Exam Week
November 11–15, 2019
Winter Term
January 6 – March 13, 2020
MLK Day Observed
January 20, 2020
President’s Day Break
February 17–21, 2020
Winter Term Exam Week
March 16–20, 2020
Spring Term
April 6 – June 5, 2020
Passover Observed
April 9, 2020
Good Friday Observed
April 10, 2020
Memorial Day Observed
May 25, 2020
Spring Term Exam Week
June 8–12, 2020
Study Trips
Dates to be announced
* All dates subject to change
