Art beyond the museum and the gallery
Five-day intensive summer course
1 July 2019 10am - 5pm2 July 2019 10am - 5pm3 July 2019 10am - 5pm4 July 2019 10am - 5pm5 July 2019 10am - 5pm
Wolfson British Academy Room, Burlington Gardens, Royal Academy of Arts
£1,800. Includes all materials, light refreshments each day and drinks receptions throughout the week.
Terms and conditions
An intensive, expert-led summer course, in which art world professionals and academics explore the range of opportunities for engaging with art outside museums and galleries.
Although today many of us come into contact with art in the context of museums and galleries, there are many more opportunities to engage with art in an exciting range of contexts, places and spaces.
From the early wunderkammer of the 16th Century to the display of fine and decorative art in private homes as a symbol of wealth and power, art has always been consumed in private as well as public spaces.
With the birth of museums in the 18th century and their expansion throughout the 19th century, there has been increasingly democratic opportunities to view, buy and consume art. The art world today is characterised by an incredible diversity in the ways we can see and be surrounded by art - from carefully curated spaces to unexpected encounters in the street.
This course will provide participants with an opportunity to learn about cutting edge and innovative ways to display, curate and consume art.
The course highlights include:
• A site-visit and private guided tour of art fair, Masterpiece London
• Exploring display at Sotheby’s London auction house
• Understanding the art of reciprocal memberships with private members club, Groucho
• A private art tour of world famous department store, Fortnum and Mason
• A talk from Nando’s and their art advisory team on their extensive South African art collection
• Learning how public and civic art is commissioned with Art on the Underground
As well as the above, the course will explore the history and context of museum and display spaces with leading art historians; the opportunity to meet international art advisors and curators; a talk with a top interior designer; private tours and site-visits to both private collections and corporate collections and an in-depth discussion on the pros and cons of digital art.
The course is aimed at those with a serious interest in the art world and curating or with some experience in the art and/or the museum sector, who want to gain an historical overview as well as contemporary debates and cutting-edge practices of display, exhibition and trade.
The course aims to provide not only the theoretical groundwork but also a friendly forum within which to discuss different opinions and approaches, and is such it encourages diverse viewpoints and considerations.
The course will last five full days and is designed to produce well-rounded arts professionals with a global perspective who not only understand the language and ideas behind curation but can also apply those ideas in a variety of real-world contexts.
For more information about the course timetable, and for any enquiries, please contact Anna Pojer, Academic Programmes Manager, at anna.pojer@royalacademy.org.uk or on 020 7300 5641
£1,800. Includes all materials, light refreshments each day and drinks receptions throughout the week.
Terms and conditions
About the course
The intensive summer course provides a unique opportunity to learn about different forms of curation, led by guest speakers and cultural leaders from across the art world.
This course will be delivered through lectures, site visits and case studies and will encourage participation and discussion from participants.
The course is suitable for all levels of experience who are willing to be open minded and enjoy a challenge.
It is a unique occasion to explore key issues in curating with support and supervision from industry experts.
Please note that this course will include a number of site visits and a certain amount of walking. Please get in touch if you have any particular access requests.
The course is aimed at those with a serious interest in curation who want to gain knowledge and practical experience.
This course is for you if:
• You have curatorial experience in a museum or gallery but would like to grow your skill set into different curatorial fields
• You are interested in pursuing a career as a private curator or art advisor
• You would like a new perspective in your approach to exhibiting and displaying objects
• You are a gallery or auction house professional and would like to expand your understanding of how to sell to a different set of collectors
• You are an interior designer or architect who would like to learn how to incorporate art into your practice
• You would like to create or curate your own private art collection
• You want to know about the diverse selection of curatorial practices in the art world
• You want to participate in a friendly forum of discussion and debate with feedback from leading industry experts
Minimum age 18
The number of participants is strictly limited to enable detailed feedback from the course tutors.
£1,800
Monday 1 – Friday 5 July 2019
10am-5.30pm each day
This course provides:
• A comprehensive introduction to the curatorial practices in a diverse array of public and private spaces
• The opportunity to learn and reflect within a peer group, with discussions facilitated by experts in the field
• The opportunity to socialise and network with peers in a friendly environment
• All materials and equipment
• Light refreshments provided each day
• Drinks receptions throughout the week
• A certificate of participation upon course completion
About the Speakers
Founder and Principal, Martin Brudnizki Design Studio
Martin Brudnizki is the founder and principal of Martin Brudnizki Design Studio (MBDS). Having gained a degree in Economics at the University of Stockholm, Martin enrolled at The American University in London to study Interior Architecture where he was deeply inspired by architects and designers Carlo Scarpa, Paul Dupree-Lafon and Dorothy Draper. Following a number of successful positions at renowned interior design firms, Martin established his eponymous studio in London in 2000 and a New York Studio in 2012. MBDS is now an internationally acclaimed interior architecture and design practise with a team composed of over 70 interior designers, architects, lighting designers and product designers and experience creating hotels, restaurants, bars, private members’ clubs; alongside residential developments and helping a select number of people design their dream homes. The Studio works across the world with notable clients including: Four Seasons, Rosewood Hotels and Resorts, Six Senses Luxury Resorts, Soho House Group, The Birley Group, Caprice Holdings, Sydell Group, The Royal Academy of Arts, Nobu Matsuhisa and Daniel Boulud. In 2015 Martin established And Objects, a separate product design studio built on his experience in interior design. Recent collaborations include collections with George Smith, Porta Romana, Christopher Farr Cloth, Drummonds and The Urban Electric Co. Martin is listed within Who’s Who, House and Garden’s Top 100 Leading Interior Designers, London Evening Standard’s Progress 1000, Debrett’s 500 Most Influential People in the UK and Wallpaper* Magazine’s Power 200, with the latter describing him as ‘one of the best restaurant and hotel designers of his generation’.
Head of Art on the Underground
Eleanor joined Art on the Underground in 2014 to head up the team, leading Art on the Underground’s ambitious series of projects bringing art to millions of people every day. Since 2014, Eleanor has commissioned work from a wide range of leading international artists including Laure Prouvost, Heather Phillipson, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Denzil Forrester and Linder. In 2017, Eleanor oversaw the completion of Diamonds and Circles, works in situ by internationally renowned artist Daniel Buren, a permanent artwork at Tottenham Court Road station and is developing new opportunities for major permanent artwork across the city. Eleanor joined Art on the Underground in 2014 from Tate Modern, where she led the curatorial management of The Tanks Art in Action programme, delivering a changing live programme of commissions from acclaimed artists including Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, Tania Bruguera, Hito Steyerl and Boris Charmatz. Prior to this, Eleanor worked in a number of roles at Tate, notably in the office of Tate Director, Sir Nicholas Serota. Eleanor is a member of the Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group, sits on the Crossrail Art Programme Advisory Group and the Pitzhangar Gallery Exhibitions Committee.
Art Advisor and Mobile Gallerist
Head of the International Market for the Daniel Templon Gallery from 1986 to 1989, Head of the Art and Architecture Program at the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations from 1990 to 1991, Director of the Thaddaeus Ropac Gallery Paris from 1992 to 2002 and Director of Christie's Contemporary France from 2002 to 2006, Caroline Smulders created her company in 2007, representing a small selection of artists that she exhibits every year systematically, in France or abroad. The association with galleries of different backgrounds allows a dynamic that opens up horizons to the collectors that are not limited to artists represented by Caroline Smulders. She works on several specific projects with artists not represented by the gallery. At 4 rue Martel, Caroline Smulders opens a living space, a place of exchange for artists, a place of reflection with collectors and institutions - a mobile space that opens up to the organization of large-scale exhibitions in larger venues and other events related to major international events. As an office, a laboratory and a living space, the Caroline Smulders showroom is a structure that stands out from more traditional galleries. Flexible and responsive it evolves over the meetings, experiments and appointments.
Curator and Writer
Francesca Gavin is a curator and writer based in London. She is the Art Editor of Twin, editor-at-large at Kaleidoscope and contributing editor at Good Trouble, Beauty Papers and Semaine. She was the co-curator of the Historical Exhibition of Manifesta11, and has curated exhibitions internationally including The Dark Cube (Palais de Tokyo), E-Vapor-8 (Site Sheffield), and The New Psychedelia (Mu). She put together the Soho House group collection for seven years, amassing over 3,000 artworks. Gavin has written six books including Watch This Space, The Book of Hearts, 100 New Artists and Hell Bound: New Gothic Art, and contributes to numerous publications including The Financial Times, Cura, Mousse, Dazed and AnOther. She has a monthly radio show Rough Version on NTS Radio on art and music.
Head of Sale and Director, Middle Eastern and Contemporary Art, Sotheby's
Ashkan Baghestani grew up in Geneva, Switzerland, and has travelled extensively to study and work in Paris, New York, and London. Before joining Sotheby's in the summer of 2012, he studied Design and Management at Parson’s, The New School for Design, USA, earning a BBA Degree in 2009 and later a diploma in Middle Eastern Art from Sotheby’s Institute in 2011. He actively worked for the Jameel Prize at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Mr. Baghestani joined Sotheby's Middle East Department in 2012, focusing on the Contemporary Doha auctions and developing this increasingly important art platform. His in-depth knowledge of the market for Modern and Contemporary Arab, Iranian and Turkish works, his fluency in Persian, French and English, and his contacts in the region have been invaluable in cultivating this important collecting field at Sotheby's, which resulted in many auction records for artists from the region. In 2017, Mr. Baghestani headed Boundess: Dubai, the first international auction held in Dubai. He also headed the first single owner Middle Eastern sale entitled Alchemy: Objects of Desire in 2016 and the first non-selling exhibition from the Estate of American Iranian Artist Manoucher Yektai in 2019. He constantly travels across the Middle East region, establishing a continuous educational programme and directing Sotheby’s numerous travelling exhibitions.
Deputy Director, Valuation Manager, Sotheby's
George North joined Sotheby’s in 2012. He is a Deputy Director and Valuation Manager, whose role is focused on short and long-term business development opportunities for Sotheby’s through valuations for sale and collection management. For the past five years he has managed the valuations of some of the UK and Europe’s most important collections, including high profile valuations for sale. Recent notable examples of these include the sale of artworks from the Estate of David Bowie in November 2016 totalling £32.9m and the sale of The Schlumberger Collection in November 2014 with sales totalling in excess of $80m. He has also been instrumental in bringing to auction this September The Vivien Leigh Collection. George works closely with the UK Chairman’s Office on historic collections and is frequently involved in valuations led by the Impressionist, Modern and Contemporary Art departments. George graduated from the University of Exeter with a BA in English Literature.
Property Director, Nando's UK
Michael joined Nando’s in South Africa as a Project Manager in 1996 before relocating to London in 1997 to help grow the burgeoning UK business. He has led the Property team since then, consistently acquiring and opening around 20 new restaurants a year for 20 years; he has also been a board member for the last 15 years. Michael has been the Nando’s art buyer and a champion of Southern African art within Nando's UK business since the inception of the collection in 2002. Of the programme Michael says, "It has been a privilege to have been part of a project that has grown from acquiring a few paintings to seeing art become a focal point for many our restaurant designs. It is an important part of heritage and to be a patron of contemporary art in Southern Africa is hugely rewarding and beneficial for us."
CEO, Spier Arts Trust (South Africa)
Mirna spent the bulk of her career in market research operations management. She then decided to change course following a period of introspection and took an MBA at the University of Cape Town. Upon graduating, she started at Spier Arts Trust as Supply Chain Manager where she’s worked with major social enterprises like Nando’s. Now CEO of Spiers Arts Trust, Mirna is passionate about fostering safe spaces for artists that encourage authentic, challenging work.
Chief Curator, Spier Arts Trust (South Africa)
Tamlin Blake is a South African mixed media artist and holds a Master's Degree in Fine Art from the University of Stellenbosch. She has exhibited extensively at home and abroad, has had eight solo exhibitions to date and is an associated artist with the Everard Read Gallery in Johannesburg. Tamlin is the chief curator for the Spier Arts Trust where she is responsible for the acquisition of new work for various collections. Her role includes conceiving and administering artist career development programmes supported by shared value partners, like Nando’s. This includes reviewing applicants for participation in these programmes and engaging directly with artists about their current practice, providing feedback and constructive criticism, and looking for opportunities that we might be able to offer them at their current level of experience. She is also responsible for signing off on artwork production quality at Spier Artisan Studios.
Head of Fair Development & Exhibitors, Masterpiece London
Craig Brown is Head of Fair Development & Exhibitors at Masterpiece. Having been co-Director of a commercial gallery in South Africa for 12 years, Craig relocated to London in 2010 to complete an MA in Art Business from Sotheby’s Institute of Art. Since then he has held senior positions in the creative industries, including publishing and art fairs in London and Hong Kong.
Founder, Artist Residence
Justin fell into the hotel industry back in 2008, when he left university and his finance degree to help with his family business - a tired B&B on Brighton seafront - whilst his mother recovered from an accident. With little experience and no budget, Justin needed a creative way to revamp the business, and came up with the idea of posting an ad for artists to decorate in exchange for board. He soon had hundreds of artists descend on the building, painting every inch of the floors, walls and ceilings, and so, Artist Residence was born. Joined by his wife Charlotte, the pair have developed this concept over the years and have expanded to Cornwall, London, Oxfordshire and, soon, Bristol, where they continue to collaborate with artists and independent designers to create eccentric places to eat, drink and sleep.
Founder, Wedel Art Advisory
Amelie von Wedel graduated with a double Master's degree in Art History and Economics from Edinburgh and Berlin Universities. Before setting up Wedel Art Advisory in 2006, Amelie von Wedel worked for various high profile art institutions and galleries, including the Zeughaus museum in Berlin and Kunstmanagement Judith Betzler in Munich, as well as running the education and exhibition programme of The Red Mansion Foundation. As a curator, art consultant and gallerist, Amelie von Wedel has run an exhibition programme that includes the first UK exhibitions of Zeng Fanzhi, Ai Weiwei and Theaster Gates to name just a few, as well as many critically acclaimed themed exhibitions. Collaborative museum projects include the commission of a Peter Liversidge performance at the Whitechapel gallery in London among other performance art commissions. With Ute Grosenick, Amelie von Wedel co-edited a survey book on Chinese contemporary art, published by DuMont and future book projects are in planning. She has also lectured extensively around the world on contemporary art. In 2009, she co-founded Intelligence Squared Asia with Yana Peel and in 2012 joined Intelligence Squared Group as Group Executive Director.
Head of Academic Programmes, Royal Academy of Arts
Dr Anna M Dempster is Head of Academic Programmes at the Royal Academy of Arts in London and is a College Research Associate at Wolfson College, University of Cambridge. She has written extensively on the creative industries and visual arts with a long-standing interest in Risk and Uncertainty in the Art World, publishing a book of this title. Dr. Dempster was previously Associate Professor in Art Business at Sotheby’s Institute of Art, running the Art Business, Finance and Management Unit. She was Director of Research, Creative Industries Observatory, University of the Arts and Founding Director of the MSc/MA in Creative Industries at Birkbeck College, University of London. She has worked in leading academic institutions including the University of Cambridge, London Business School and Rotterdam School of Management. She holds a BA and MPhil in History from the University of Cambridge, and a PhD from the Judge Business School, Cambridge, UK.
Director of Art, The Groucho Club
Nicky has curated the work at the Groucho Club since she started waitressing there 30 years ago while studying Fine Art and Art History at Goldsmiths. She first installed an Angus Fairhurst piece and some works by Damien Hirst, Marc Quinn and Rachel Howard, kickstarting the whole collection. The collection now includes pieces by the likes of Sir Peter Blake, Polly Morgan, Mat Collishaw, Joseph Kosuth, Michael Landy, Rachel Kneebone, Harland Miller, Tracy Emin and younger artists like Hayden Kays and Nettie Wakefield. The collection consists of both female and male artists in equal measure.
Head of Loyalty & Partnerships Development, Royal Academy of Arts
Clare Taylor has over 20 years’ experience in customer focused and fundraising roles in the arts and media sector. Nearly nine years of this has been a in her current role at the Royal Academy of Arts where she holds the position of Head of Loyalty and Partnerships, running several membership schemes around loyal audiences. She has previously held senior management positions as Global Commercial Director of PA Sport, the sports division of the Press Association. She was a Board Director of PA Sport and PA Sport Asia and worked closely with Football DataCo.
Customer Experience Director, Fortnum & Mason
Zia Zareem-Slade’s role influences all aspects of Fortnum & Mason; she is a custodian of the brand strategy, determining where, how and with whom the brand shows up, whilst delivering commercial success and ensuring Fortnum’s unique charm and wit is brought to life is all in a day’s work. Whether it’s hosting a major British art exhibition to the transformation of the Fountain restaurant into the award-winning 45 Jermyn St, or most recently, taking Fortnum’s to the City with a beautiful destination shop and restaurant in the centre of the Royal Exchange, Zia carefully balances the innovation and service demanded by customers in today’s world, whilst maintaining the tradition and heritage of a 300-year history. With a background in creating multichannel experiences for many of the UK’s leading brands, such as Selfridges, John Lewis, and Virgin Atlantic, Zia places brand experience design thinking at Fortnum's core.
Archivist, Fortnum & Mason
Dr Tanner has been the Archivist for Fortnum & Mason since 1990, after initially joining as a weekend volunteer. Fortnum’s original archive was almost entirely destroyed by bombs in the Second World War, and during her time with the company Dr Tanner has repopulated it with hundreds of artefacts collected from the UK and around the world. She continues to track down evidence of Fortnum’s rich past – particularly thanks to an inordinate amount of time spent on eBay – and discovers something new each day. Dr Tanner first became interested in history after listening to stories of the suffrage movement from her grandmother – which went on to be the topic of her first dissertation in Glasgow. After moving to London in 1977, she went on specialise in the city’s history, and has contributed to leading academic publications on the subject ever since. She has also undertaken archival research projects for Kensington Housing Trust, Henry Huntsman of Savile Row, the Wellcome Trust, Hunter Wellingtons, and many more. In addition to her work with Fortnum & Mason, Dr Tanner is an Honorary Archivist of the Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Art Historian
Dr Chantal Brotherton-Ratcliffe graduated from Edinburgh University with an MA in History of Art, and completed her PhD at the Warburg Institute, University of London. She trained briefly as a paintings conservator, but her utter ignorance of Chemistry drove her to the more forgiving embrace of Art History. She has worked for 30 years at Sotheby’s Institute of Art, and for a number of institutions in London as a lecturer, teaching a wide range of topics within 15th, 16th and 17th-century European art. Her interest is in the approach of the traditional connoisseur, teaching the analysis of those stylistic features of a painting or work of art, that can sometimes tell us the identity of the artist, and when a painting is a copy, good or bad. An interest in historical techniques and materials is an integrated aspect of this approach.
Art Advisory and Curator
Tamar Arnon, along with Eli Zagury, is a freelance curator and highly experienced art advisor who has worked in the contemporary art world for over 20 years. Zagury and Arnon have curated over 50 exhibitions in private galleries, corporate spaces and museums. Zagury and Arnon set up the Franks-Suss Collection in 2003 and curated an exhibition of Highlights from this collection at the Saatchi Gallery in 2010. They have also been the curators of several charity projects including She Inspires Art exhibition and auction for Women for Women International in 2015 and 'The Venus Project' an exhibition raising awareness of hereditary cancers which toured in 2016 and 2017. Zagury and Arnon have been the curators of the Deighton Collection for the past thirteen years. Working closely with the Deighton family they have helped create an international collection which includes hundreds of works by emerging, mid-career and established artists. Since 2017 Zagury and Arnon have been the curators of the Vannucci Artist Residency (VAR) which they helped The Deighton Foundation to set up. VAR is a unique artist residency for emerging and mid-career artists and is dedicated to advancing the work of visual artists at crucial stages of their careers, to expanding their networks and opportunities and to promoting cultural and artistic exchange.
Founder, Cole Projects
Camilla Cole is the Founder of Cole Projects; a London based curatorial dealership that discovers and exhibits international emerging and mid-career artists. She draws upon over a decade of experience in the industry working in commercial galleries and advising private art collections and reverses the traditional model of producing exhibitions to sell work. Instead, she sells work to curate exhibitions, creating a flexible and sustainable model that has responded to our new socio-economic environment. Working outside of the traditional gallery context, instead choosing to collaborate with other institutions and off-site spaces, Cole Projects discovers and exhibits artists from all over the world. In the event of a sale we have the split of 20/80 to the artist, believing in transparency and non-exclusivity.
Co-Founder & Managing Director, Hottinger Art
Melanie Damani joined Hottinger Group in 2018 as Co-Founder and Managing Director of Hottinger Art Ltd. Prior to joining Hottinger Group, Melanie was Head of Art Advisory at Edmond de Rothschild Group. She worked within the Wealth Solutions Department, which aims to assist clients with protecting, increasing and transferring their wealth over generations. Melanie was presented with an award for Excellence in Business Development at the 2019 City of London Wealth Management Awards. Melanie is Swiss and Italian and practices in English, Italian, German and French.
Our courses and classes programme
Our programme of short courses and classes offers the opportunity to explore a range of subjects, led by expert tutors and practising artists
Give this course as a gift
All of our courses can be purchased as a gift for a friend or family member – giving the gift of education and a remarkable experience. To arrange a personalised Gift Voucher, please contact Anna Pojer, Academic Programmes Manager, by calling 020 7300 5684 or email anna.pojer@royalacademy.org.uk
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