By enrolling in the Christie's Education Contemporary Art Business Certificate program, you will join a community of like-minded individuals passionate about the arts. The program provides you with networking opportunities, exposure to real-world scenarios, and a chance to learn from leading experts in the field. Whether you are starting your art career or looking to make a career transition, the Contemporary Art Business Certificate program at Christie's Education equips you with the knowledge, skills, and connections necessary for success in the art world today.
As the only educational institution wholly owned by an auction house, Christie's Education provides unique access to experts and specialists in the art world, giving you unparalleled insights and opportunities.
The program covers major themes in contemporary art, providing you with a deep understanding of how the art world works. You will learn about art investment, advisory, appraisals, collections management, emerging technology, and more, giving you a well-rounded skill set to navigate the dynamic art market.
In addition to the core curriculum, the program offers special workshops that focus on practical skills such as CV development, interview preparation, and philanthropy in the art world. These workshops are designed to enhance your professional development and give you a competitive edge in the art industry job market.
A Christie’s Education certificate of participation is offered upon completion of the full year course.
Format of the Program
The 10 courses are delivered virtually. The sessions are recorded so that you can follow along live or at your leisure.
Supplement your virtual program with in-person classes at Christie’s in New York throughout the year. The in-person supplement at Christie's New York offers a well-rounded and immersive experience to complement your virtual learning. It provides unique opportunities to gain practical insights, develop professional skills, and build a network of contacts in the contemporary art world.
Please see the In-Person Supplement tab for more information.
Learning Outcomes:
Gain an insider’s understanding of the structure of the art world
Develop transferable career skills for the art world today
Be able to identify key artists and trends in contemporary art and the market
Understand the ongoing interplay between art history and the market
Supplement your virtual learning with 3 in-person short courses at Christies New York designed to enhance your connoisseurship skills and offer professional development and networking opportunities.
September Orientation Workshop at Christie’s New York
Begin the program at Christie’s and learn about the New York contemporary art scene. Learn how to look at art and set personal goals for the program.
This special 3-day program is designed for Contemporary Art Business students to gain an inside view of the auction house. Spend time at Christie’s with specialists in a behind-the scenes experience, while also learning about the various business roles within the auction house.
May – Commencement Workshop at Christie’s New York
Reflect on your goals in the program and network with arts professionals. Visit local galleries, collections, artist studios, and navigate the New York contemporary art scene armed with art market and historical knowledge.
Veronique Chagnon-Burke, PhD (Mapping the Art World) Independent Scholar, Co-Founder of WADDA [Women Art Dealers Digital Archives]
Throughout her career, Véronique Chagnon-Burke has taught a wide range of subjects in art market studies and art history at Queens College, Parsons School of Design, and Hunter College, among other institutions. Her museum and research positions have included work at the Museum of Modern Art and the College Art Association, and she has also worked at the Hôtel Drouot in Paris. From 2002 to 2021, she was the Director of Christie’s Education in New York, where she also taught the history of the art market.
A specialist in the history of nineteenth century French landscape painting, her fields of expertise also include nineteenth century art criticism and the art market and the role of women in the art world. She received her Ph.D. from The Graduate Center of the City University of New York, her M.A. from the Institute of Fine Arts of New York University, and her Licence from the Université Paris-Sorbonne. She is also a graduate of the Ecole du Louvre in museum studies.
Most recently she has been focusing on organizing academic conferences which bring together art history and art market studies, such as Celebrating Female Agency in the Art in June 2018, and Women Art Dealers 1940-1990 in May 2019. Her current collaborative project is the Women Art Dealers Digital Archive (WADDA), a digital platform that maps the role women art dealers played in the institutionalization of modern and contemporary art. She is one of the editors of an upcoming book Women Art Dealers, Makers of the Modern Art Market, 1940-1990, to be published by Bloomsbury in 2023. She is founding member of the New York chapter of The International Art Market Studies Association [TIAMSA] and a section editor for the upcoming Art Market Dictionary to be published by De Gruyter, in Berlin in 2021.
“The Market for Contemporary Art,” Grove Art Dictionary (2018)'
Lizy Dastin (A Survey of Modern and Contemporary Art)
Lizy Dastin is an art history instructor at Santa Monica College and UCLAx with a specialty in contemporary public art and urban practice. She has previously taught at Chapman University, Mercy College, the School of Visual Arts and the American Jewish University and has facilitated public art related programs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art and the International Center of Photography. Lizy is the founder of Art and Seeking, an interview and digital lecture platform that bridges the gap between the mainstream artworld to the unorthodox world of street art, and co-hosts a popular art and art history podcast called Art Attack with urban icon, Justin BUA.
Corey d’Augustine (Fakes, Frauds and Forgeries: Issues in Authenticity)
Corey D’Augustine is a conservator of modern and contemporary art and a technical art historian. He regularly works for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and lectures on art history and art conservation at New York University, Pratt Institute, and the Museum of Modern Art. He is a specialist in American and European Post-war art and his research interests include 20th century painting materials and techniques and the conservation of monochrome paintings.
Amy Goldrich (Art, Money and the Law)
Amy Goldrich's practice focuses on counseling, transactions, dispute resolution, and general private client representation in the contemporary art world, both domestically and internationally, where her clients include artists, collectors, galleries, arts organizations, as well as other creative businesses beyond the art world.
Amy has spoken at conferences and art fairs in the United States, Europe, and South America. Her article, "Is a Right of First Refusal an Offer You Can't Refuse?," appeared in the September 2011 edition of Spencer's Art Law Journal and has been cited in other academic papers and journals. "Much Ado About New York Museum Deaccessioning" appeared in the Spring 2011 Arts, Entertainment & Sports Law Journal of the New York State Bar Association. She has also been quoted in publications as diverse as The New York Times, Art & Antiques, Tendencias del Mercado de Arte, espn.com, Registered Rep Magazine, and Artnet News.
A committed collector of work by emerging and more established contemporary artists, serves on the Executive Committee for Friends of Education at the Museum of Modern Art, and on the Board of the National Academy of Design. She is also a member of the Board for Project for Empty Space in Newark, New Jersey.
After earning her AB from Bryn Mawr College, a J.D. from Washington University in St. Louis, and an LL.M. in Trade Regulation from New York University, Amy was a Dean Acheson Fellow and stagiaire at the European Court of Justice, Court of First Instance, in Luxembourg. She is admitted to practice before the courts of the State of New York, the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, the State of California, and the Central District of California.
Elizabeth von Habsburg (Appraisals and Art Advisory)
Elizabeth von Habsburg is Managing Director of Winston Art Group, the largest independent art advisory and appraisal firm in the US. The firm’s 75 specialists cover all areas of fine and decorative art through US offices in New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Palm Beach, Chicago, Denver and Houston, and worldwide representation in London, Geneva and Tel Aviv. Prior to Winston Art Group, Elizabeth was President of the US operations of an international appraisal firm for 18 years, and before that, she was Vice President of Habsburg Auctioneers. She started her career at Christie’s as Assistant Vice President in charge of the Appraisal department. She was a Board Member of the Appraisers Association of America from 2003-2015, and was a 2008-2015 Trustee and 2014 Chair of The Appraisal Foundation in Washington, DC. Elizabeth is a Fellow of the Morgan Library and of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, and a member of ArtTable, Inc. She is a Director of the Albert Kunstadter Family Foundation, and was on the Board of Trustees of Christie’s Education through 2020. Elizabeth has qualified as expert witness in Fine Art and Decorative Art in the New York, Palm Beach, FL, Philadelphia, PA and Texas courts, and lectures worldwide on all aspects of art. She is Certified by AAA in Modern and Impressionist art and European Furniture and Works of Art, and is compliant with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). She revised four Antiques Hunters Guides (2000-2001), contributed to “Fine Art and High Finance” (2009), to the Appraisal Handbook (2012), and to “Regulation of Art Investments” (not yet published). In 2015, she was named one of the Fifty Most Influential Women in Private Wealth, by Private Asset Management.
John Melick (Attention Seekers: Art World Public Relations)
John Melick has more than twenty years of visual arts, travel, and publishing marketing and public relations expertise. John is the founder of Blue Medium Inc., a public relations company serving the visual arts and culture communities. Based in New York City, Blue Medium represents national and international art museums, cultural organizations, foundations, traveling exhibitions, arts associations, architecture and design studios and projects, corporations operating in the art and design fields, public and private sponsors of the visual arts, academic institutions in the visual arts and design, art fairs, and art galleries.
Prior to launching Blue Medium in 2000, he was a consultant at Fitz & Co, a visual arts public relations company in New York (October 1997-February 2000). Prior to his work at Fitz & Co, John was the Managing Director of Boom Communications, Inc. (1993-1997), a public relations and events company specializing in cultural tourism and the visual arts. John also developed a cultural tourism division at International Marketing and Representation (1990-1993).
In 1987, John received a Bachelor’s degree from The University of Sydney. In 1990, he earned a Master’s degree in Communications from Boston University. In 1996, HarperCollins Publishers commissioned John to write a travel book on Sydney, Australia, which was released in summer 1999. John currently serves as a Trustee of the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture and sits on the boards of the Esopus Foundation. John has also lectured on visual arts public relations at New York University, Christie’s Education, the New York State Council for the Arts, and the Shelley and Donald Rubin Foundation.
Michael Plummer (Investing in Art: Art as an Asset Class)
Principal, Artvest Partners LLC
Mr. Plummer is a Principal and co-Founder of Artvest Partners LLC, which counsels Private Collectors, Museums, Foundations, Dealers and Fortune 500 Companies on strategies and investments related to art businesses, art financing and art collections. In addition to its creation of the TEFAF New York Art Fairs, Artvest has guided clients and partners from around the globe on projects of lasting economic and cultural significance.
Formerly Chief Operating Officer of Christie's Financial Services, Mr. Plummer was responsible for the structuring and development of an opportunistic art fund. The fund, designed as a private equity style offering, was the first developed by a major auction house in partnership with a leading investment bank. Additionally, Mr. Plummer was responsible for developing art-lending facilities for Christie's, overseeing global loan underwriting practices, creating specialized art indices, and comprehensive art market sector analysis.
Prior to Christie's, Mr. Plummer created one of the earliest US art funds and conducted pioneering research on art as an asset class. He remains one of the industry's leading speakers, and has lectured at New York University, Christie's Education, Sotheby's Institute of Art, and The Wharton School. Additionally, Mr. Plummer's observations on the art market have been quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Bloomberg, NPR, Fox Business News, the Financial Times, and The Art Newspaper, among others.
Previously, Mr. Plummer was the acting Chief Operating Officer of Sotheby's International Realty and was instrumental in the profitable restructuring critical to the parent company's highly successful IPO in 1989. Having started his career in Sotheby's Treasury Department, Mr. Plummer oversaw one of the industry's first significant art loans.
Mr. Plummer is a co-Founder of the Luxury Marketing Council. From 2012 to 2014, he was Chairman of the American Friends of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), where he reinstituted a Fulbright Scholarship providing full scholarships to deserving American students.
Mr. Plummer received a BS in Economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Katja Zigerlig (Curating and Managing a Collection)
Katja consults with collectors as well as insurance and financial advisors on the physical and financial protection of passion investments. With more than two decades of experience in the art world, she has insured private collections, museums, galleries and exhibitions for HUB International, AIG Private Client Group and AXA Art Insurance.
Katja is also a guest lecturer at Christie’s Education Department. Throughout her career, she has presented on art and wine collecting in the context of alternative investments, asset protection, trust and estate planning and has lectured at The College Art Association, University for Applied Arts in Vienna, the UBS Arts Forum in Wolfsburg, and the Swiss Embassy in Washington, D.C. Katja has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Reuters, Worth Magazine, Barron’s, ARTnews and appeared on CNBC’s Power Lunch.
Katja has a B.A and M.A. in Art History. She is a board member of The Foundation of the American Institute of Conservation, and a member of The Friends of the Swiss Institute Committee.
All virtual courses are delivered over Zoom with high quality sound & video. There will be an interactive Q & A with the academic as well as time for a group discussion through the lecture.
Recordings will be available to watch with unlimited playback for 14 days. Registrants will receive the viewing link following the class.
Payment plans are available, please email us to inquire
Contemporary Art Business Program FAQs
Who can sign up for the Contemporary Art Business Program?
This course is offered to anyone who is over the age of 18.
How long is the Contemporary Art Business Program?
The Contemporary Art Business Program is 9 months long, starting in September and ending in May. The Program is composed of 2 semester contemporary art courses (2 months each) and 6 short professional development courses (5-6 weeks each) with additional elective opportunities. Please refer to individual course pages for more information about the length of the course you are interested in.
What is the difference between the Virtual and Virtual + In-Person options?
Virtual: All courses are delivered over Zoom. There will be no in-person courses included in this option. To see a list of courses included in the Virtual option, click on Virtual Courses.
Virtual + In-Person: The Virtual + In-Person option has a combination of virtual and in-person courses. This option contains all of the courses included in the Virtual option and adds exclusive in-person courses which are all located in New York City. To see a list of courses included in the Virtual + In-Person option, click on Virtual/In-Person Courses .
What languages are the courses delivered in? Are there language requirements? All courses in the Contemporary Art Business Program course are offered in English. There are no formal language requirements however it will be expected of you to have a good comprehension of English.
Are there any prerequisites for taking a course? There are no prerequisites for taking any of our courses. Courses are structured by our expert educators to provide students with all they require to rigorously develop their understanding of the field of study.
Can I participate in the virtual courses on my phone or tablet? Yes, our courses can be viewed on mobile devices via the Zoom app.
Are the courses delivered live or pre-recorded? Most short courses are conducted online via live Zoom meetings. Links to Zoom meetings will be sent out one week prior to the start-date of the course. All classes held on Zoom are recorded. These recordings are shared with all registered students shortly after the class is finished so that you can attend these classes live or at your leisure. Some short courses are held in person. The location and timing of these courses will be communicated in advance of the class.
Do I need to be in New York to take the Contemporary Art Business Program? For the Virtual option, no: the Virtual option allows students to take class completely remotely. The Virtual + In-Person option has several in-person courses which take place in New York City. If you sign-up for the Virtual + In-Person option, you will need to be in New York City when those events happen.
Are the courses assessed? There are no assessments for the Contemporary Art Business Program or for any short courses within the Contemporary Art Business Program.
Are the courses accredited or credit-bearing? No. The year-long and short courses are not accredited and do not carry credits that can be carried over to other programs. The purpose of our courses is to allow students to share Christie’s Education’s unique access to the art market in a supportive learning environment.
Will I receive a certificate or diploma upon completion of a course? Students who complete the Contemporary Art Business Program can receive a letter of attendance upon request. To request a letter of attendance, please contact the Continuing Education Coordinator at: shortcoursesus@christies.com.
What is the time weekly commitment of the courses? The time commitment varies depending on the how many courses are happening at any particular time. Students will have an average of three hours of courses per week.
Are all of the courses in the Contemporary Art Business Program required? Students are encouraged to attend as many of the class sessions as possible or watch class recording.
How much does Contemporary Art Business Program cost? The Contemporary Art Business Program comes in two options: Virtual & Virtual + In-Person. The Virtual option which does not include any in-person courses costs $7,200 or £5,722. The Virtual + In-Person option which does include all in-person courses costs $8,600 or £6,834.
How do I pay for the course? Please register and pay for short courses online using our dedicated course pages. Christie’s Education process payment through PayPal. You do not need a PayPal account to make a payment – you can pay by credit card or debit card through PayPal.
How do I sign up for the Contemporary Art Business Program? You can sign up online through our website. The registration form can be found by clicking register here or on the Contemporary Art Business Program course page.
What happens once I have registered and paid for my course? You will receive a registration confirmation email in your inbox. Please note: Sometimes these emails get routed to your Spam or Junk folder; if you have not received your registration email please check this folder.
For short and semester courses, a week before the advertised opening date, an email with course information will be sent out to all registered students. At this stage you will receive the details and instructions on how to access the course.
What are the terms and conditions for taking an online course? All of the information concerning our terms and conditions can be found in Terms and Conditions.
Who can I contact for further information? Please email our dedicated United States short courses department at: shortcoursesus@christies.com.
“The Contemporary Art Business Program at Christie’s helped me understand and synthesize all aspects of the art market. The different classes teach a focused and direct approach to important aspects of pursuing a career in the art world.”
Nikki
Student of the Contemporary Art Business Program 2021
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