Graduate Programmes at Sotheby’s Institute of Art - New York

For forty years Sotheby’s Institute of Art has been preparing students for distinguished careers in the international art world, offering a number of graduate-level programmes that combine professional training with academic study.

In New York we offer three graduate-level programmes in Art Business, Contemporary Art and American Fine and Decorative Art.*

Our location in New York is in the centre of Manhattan with easy access to its rich cultural and historical resources as well as to leading galleries and museums.

Through the auction house, we provide students with privileged access to pre-sale viewings, talks by experts and handling sessions. In addition, students visit the many commercial galleries, artists' studios, and museums that make New York such a unique and vibrant place to study art.

Art Business

The programme in Art Business prepares students for careers in the commercial art world. This is not a business degree, but rather a degree in the business side of art. The Art Business programme is designed for students with an art historical background who want to understand business theories and practices as well as the technical and structural elements of the art market. Relevant professional art-world practice is studied, including marketing, the media, information technology, art content production, business communications, investment, insurance, valuation, art law, and economics.

Contemporary Art

The programme in Contemporary Art places emphasis on the artwork itself and how to critically approach and interpret contemporary art. Graduates benefit from the international perspective of the programme and go on to pursue a variety of fascinating careers in the contemporary art market: They open their own galleries; become curators, editors or critics; or are employed in commercial contemporary galleries or public museums throughout the world.

American Fine and Decorative Art

The programme in American Fine and Decorative Art is taught from the perspective of an art expert, thus preparing graduates for careers in galleries, auction houses, consultancies, and museums, in which knowledge of the work of art is key. Based on Sotheby’s venerable Works of Art Course, the American Fine and Decorative Art course has been taught in New York for over twenty years and has produced graduates now active in myriad art professional careers. Students study the full range of American fine and decorative arts from 1630 — 1945.

*New York offers a non-credit Graduate Certificate based upon the successful completion of two semesters of study. The two semesters and the Graduate Certificate may be accepted in transfer by Sotheby’s Institute of Art — London. Students may then matriculate for the Master’s Degree by completing a dissertation (Master’s thesis) in a third semester of independent study under the supervision of the London faculty.

All Master's Degrees are validated by the University of Manchester (UK).

Admission Requirements

Entry onto a graduate programme requires a Bachelor's Degree with a major or minor in Art History. Exceptions to the undergraduate art history requirement can be made, based upon an applicant's experience in the visual arts or the relevance of other areas of study.

Apply

We are now accepting applications for all programmes starting in September 2009.

To apply, please download our application form and e-mail back to our admissions staff at the Institute to which you are applying, or apply on-line at www.sothebysinstitute.com/applications.

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis throughout the year until the month before the start date of each programme.

Download our brochure and application form.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact:

Joanne Algranati, Registrar
Sotheby's Institute of Art - New York
570 Lexington Avenue, 6th Floor
New York NY 10022
Tel: 212.517.2871
Email: j.algranati@sothebysinstitute.com