Master in International Art Market - Contemporary Art

What skills does the Master develop?

The Arts and Cultural Project Administrator title validates skills directly related to the professions of the art market, exhibitions, project management, and the promotion of artworks.

Upon completing the program, students are able to:

• Defining an artistic and cultural project
• Conducting the administrative and financial operations of an artistic and cultural project
• Deploying a Marketing and Distribution Strategy for an Artistic and Cultural Project
• Leading an artistic and cultural project
• Appraising and Packing Artworks and Art Objects (Specialization)

What is the Contemporary Art Market Master program?

The International Art Market Master - Contemporary Art program is organized over 2 years. It allows students to gain expertise in contemporary art, an understanding of the international art market, and operational skills in exhibition, communication, sales, law, project management, and professionalization.

The program alternates theoretical courses, tutorials, visits, workshops, full-scale projects, study trips, case studies, and professional simulations related to the contemporary art sector.

Year 1

Unit 1 — Knowledge of Contemporary Art

• M1 orientation seminar
• Organization of the contemporary art market (19th century to today)
• Contemporary art history (from the avant-gardes to today)
• Contemporary Chinese art
• Contemporary art from Africa and its diasporas
• The emerging scene in the 21st century
• Contemporary art news
• Contemporary art theories
• Design (from Art Nouveau to today)
• Contemporary drawing
• The artist’s daily life in managing their career
• Tutorial: Galleries and exhibition venues
• Cultural policies in France
• Study trip to Madrid (March 2027)

Unit 2 — Communication and Marketing

• Traditional communication and press
• Digital communication
• Marketing fundamentals
• Contemporary art, luxury, and fashion

Unit 3 — Producing an Exhibition

• Design, plan, and budget an exhibition project
• Crowdfunding
• Exhibiting contemporary art: design and implementation
• Group PGR
• Design and edit an exhibition catalog

Unit 4 — Professional Skills

• Professional Development
• Theater and improvisation
• Write a text on an artwork
• Deliver an oral presentation on an artwork
• DTP
• Excel

Unit 5 — Law, Management, Economics

• Economics of the contemporary art market
• Managing a gallery or exhibition venue
• Copyright law
• Cultural sponsorship

UE6A — Art Market Specialization

• Secondary Market Seminar
• How an Auction House Works
• Appraising an Artwork
• Art Advisor
• Taxation of Contemporary Art
• English for the contemporary art business

Exams and Defenses

Year 2

Unit 1 — Knowledge of Contemporary Art

• M2 orientation seminar
• Overall approach to artworks
• Building a private collection
• Contemporary art news
• Contemporary art of Southeast Asia
• Contemporary art of Latin America
• Contemporary photography
• Contemporary art of post-socialist countries
• Video art
• AI, NFTs in contemporary art
• The art of the living
• The artist’s daily life in managing their career
• Tutorial: visits to institutional exhibitions
• Tutorial: Galleries and exhibition venues (Galleries, Artists Run Space…)
• Private visit of a collection
• Study trip to the Dakar Biennale (Dec. 2026)

Unit 2 — Producing an Exhibition

• Stage management, insurance, and preservation of contemporary art
• Eco-design of exhibitions / Transition and positive impact (CSR)
• PGR Coaching
• Cultural Mediation
• Scenography
• Risk management — FMEA tool
• Exhibition funding: grants, partnerships, and internal funding

Unit 3 — Professional Skills

• Professional Development
• Manage a team

Unit 4 — Law, Management, Economics

• Status and contracts of artists and exhibition curators
• Museums and foundations: new business models
• Entrepreneurship and financial management of a project
• Administrative management of a project

Unit 5 — Communication and Marketing

• Marketing and customer file management
• Community management techniques

UE6A — Art Market Specialization

• Appraising an Artwork
• Understanding Emerging Market
• Oral Sales Techniques
• English for the contemporary art business

Exams and Defenses

Assessment method

General assessments: Throughout the program, students are assessed through continuous assessment (case studies, presentations, reports, written and oral submissions) and semester exams validating theoretical and methodological knowledge.

Students also complete internships or follow the program through an apprenticeship contract. These periods in a professional setting result in an internship or work experience report, defended orally before an academic jury. This assessment verifies students' ability to apply what they have learned in real-world contexts in the arts and culture sector.

Assessment linked to the professional certification of RNCP title 42330:
The level 7 certified title “Administrator of Artistic and Cultural Projects” is awarded after validation of the 5 skills blocks. Each block involves simulated or real professional scenarios, with structured deliverables assessed by a jury of professionals.

Defining an artistic and cultural project
Professional simulation based on a real or fictional case on defining an artistic and/or cultural project.
Case study based on a real or fictional case of designing a cultural and artistic mediation proposal, including documentation on defining an artistic and cultural project.

Conducting the administrative and financial operations of an artistic and cultural project
Practical case based on a real or fictional case on conducting the administrative and financial operations of an artistic and cultural project.
Professional simulation based on a real or fictional professional situation of implementing a partnership.

Deploying a digital sales and distribution strategy for an artistic and cultural project
Professional simulation of a real or fictional case of deploying a digital sales and distribution strategy for an artistic and/or cultural project.
Practical case based on a real or fictional project to carry out in the art market and/or cultural industries sector.

Managing an Artistic and Cultural Project
Professional simulations based on a real or fictional case involving the coordination of a project’s stakeholders, and on a real or fictional case of implementing a quality system following a project closure.
Practical case based on a real or fictional case presenting challenges in optimizing project management processes.

Appraising and Packing Artworks and Art Objects
As part of a professional simulation or case study, the candidate authenticates and comments on three artworks, produces a condition report, prepares documentation, estimates the value of an artwork and determines its sale price, and selects a transport offer and an insurance policy.

Project-Based Learning

The International Art Market Master - Contemporary Art offers a program built around a teaching approach that combines in-depth theoretical courses, field exposure, and learning by doing. This approach allows students to develop both a critical expertise in the contemporary art field and operational skills directly usable in their future professional environment.

The academic courses provide a thorough understanding of contemporary aesthetics, the ecosystems of the art world, and the issues running through them: market globalization, new curatorial practices, the professionalization of artists, and the social responsibility of cultural players. This knowledge is passed on by teachers and speakers who combine an analytical approach with their own field experience.

Professional grounding is provided by a series of meetings, visits, and case studies: exchanges with artists, curators, gallery owners, art critics, or heads of institutions, immersion in exhibition venues, and participation in events on the art calendar, in France and abroad. These moments allow students to expand their network, understand the diversity of professional practices, and test their ideas in real contexts.

Experimentation is central to the curriculum. Students notably lead a group exhibition and charity auction project, in which they handle the entire process: selecting artists, producing and hanging works, seeking funding, targeted communication, and logistical coordination. This initiative, carried out in support of a social cause, anchors artistic practice in concrete commitment.

Throughout the program, reflection workshops, workshops, and research modules strengthen students' independence of thought and ability to take initiative. The teaching encourages exploring alternative formats for promoting art, including digital tools, off-site projects, and participatory approaches.

Finally, each student designs a personal project consistent with their professional positioning, which may take the form of a curatorial program, an editorial initiative, or an artistic support project. This project is supervised by an industry professional and defended before a certification jury at the end of the program.

Initial prerequisite and work-study:

• Entry into the 1st year (M1): Hold a level 6 certification, or an equivalent degree (foreign degree, etc.), or have earned 180 ECTS credits in the targeted or a related field (art history, culture, etc.)
• Entry into the 2nd year (M2): Hold a level 6 certification, or an equivalent degree (foreign degree, etc.), or have earned 240 ECTS credits, in the targeted or a related field (art history, culture, etc.)

Admission is based on the submission of an application file and an interview with the admissions committee.

Access timeframes: Admissions are open from October 2026 to September 2027 for an October 2027 start. Applications are processed within 3 weeks maximum after receipt of the complete file. Enrollment is possible until the start date, subject to available places. By exception, enrollment is possible after the program start date, following review and verification of the learner’s ability to catch up on the learning already delivered, within a maximum of two months after the start of the program.

This program can be completed as work-study. The curriculum follows an alternating schedule, with internships and/or work-study in a professional organization.

These placement periods count toward the validation of the program and allow students to test what they have learned against the realities of the contemporary art market.

Apprentice pass rate: 83.33% for the class of 2024, covering Contemporary Art and Exhibition Curation.

Apprentice dropout rate at CFA ECAD during the 2024-2025 year: 2% for the class of 2025.

In work-study, program fees under a professionalization contract or an apprenticeship contract will be covered in full or in part by the employer or by a funding body (OPCO).

The program takes place at IESA on the LE DELTA campus:16 rue Claude Bernard, 75005 Paris. It may also take place at partner cultural venues.

IESA’s premises are accessible to people with disabilities. The admission interview and the course of study can be adapted to the needs of the people concerned, who are therefore invited to state them as soon as they apply to the school. Contact: handicap@iesa.fr

As part of the validation of the RNCP title, the jury may decide on a partial validation of skills. The candidate will be invited again to submit their file and take their oral exam at the next title session in order to validate the missing skills.

Equivalences

In case of equivalence, whether through VAE and/or obtaining a skill block or an equivalent certification, it is up to the candidate to present this equivalence to the jury for validation.

Transfer options

No bridge pathway for this program.

For admission into the 2nd year, you must hold a level 6 certification, a Bac+4, an equivalent degree, or have earned 240 ECTS credits in the targeted or a related field.

The admission file, built around the program’s skill blocks, allows the candidate to be placed in order to validate their parallel admission request.