There are three Masters for Experts in the Marketing and Distribution of Works of Art, allowing specialization according to the targeted segment of the art market:

Program objectives

Skills acquisition objectives:

The Masters Expert in Marketing and Distribution of Artworks are built on a skills framework common to all art market and collection management professions. Each Master incorporates the specifics of its specialty into its curriculum.

All skills are grouped into five blocks:

Administratively, legally, and financially manage an artistic organization or project:

  • Manage an organization or project financially and administratively
  • Handle legal, tax, and regulatory operations
  • Administer the production and distribution of an exhibition

Design and carry out an exhibition of artworks:

  • Define the content and scenography of an exhibition
  • Define the financial and human resources and the logistical organization needed to produce, carry out, and promote an exhibition
  • Design and implement suitable mediation pathway(s)

Communicating about an organization, a sale, or an exhibition:

  • Define a media and non-media communication policy and strategy and oversee its implementation
  • Communicate on social media and run one or more communities to promote and increase the visibility of artworks

Appraise, promote, and describe artworks:

  • Appraise and describe a work of art
  • Promote and estimate the price of an artwork

Define and implement a sales and marketing policy:

  • Characterize the object, specialty, and audience(s) to define a marketing policy
  • Increase artwork sales online
  • Building an artist’s market rating
  • Organize artwork sales at public auction
  • Sell an exhibition to a public or private authority / institution
  • Sell an artwork exhibition project.

Learning objectives

The Masters in Expertise in Marketing and Distribution of Artworks pursue the following educational objectives:

  1. The fundamental knowledge of the period studied and the expertise methodologies that will allow each student to keep specializing throughout their professional career,
  2. The essential professional skills: exhibition, communication, marketing and sales, administrative and legal management,
  3. Professional experience and network through internships, the professionalization pathway and its career meetings, contact with a network of speakers who are practicing professionals, and the group or personal projects carried out over the two years,
  4. An international outlook through study or internship experiences abroad, learning in an intercultural context with around 25% international students, and participation in the projects and specialty courses of the 4 international departments (Africa, Latin America, Asia, Europe) of the Center for Applied Research in Contemporary Cultures

Career Opportunities

They can also work as an art market legal specialist, or an insurance expert specializing in artworks.

Job placement rate:

98%
in the art sector, including

83%
in the targeted professions.

(Survey conducted in 2018 for the renewal of the certification)

Teaching approach

Teaching methods used

  • In-depth, long-term courses, mainly on the major areas of knowledge related to art history to develop critical analysis and synthetic thinking.
  • Workshops, professional case studies, and group projects to apply professional skills, develop responses to complex problems, and learn to work in a group or network.
  • Tutorials in galleries, auction houses and museums to sharpen the eye, develop curiosity and professional network, and build a database of reference artworks for all expertise and research work.
  • Completing a final-year project to develop the ability to take on a subject, build a corpus of works, conduct research, compile, prioritize, and structure data on a subject, and convey it to an audience of enthusiasts or collectors through an exhibition, a catalog, an auction, or any other action related to the marketing and distribution of artworks.
  • Acquiring professional practices and an understanding of the professional sector through internships or a long placement (apprenticeship or professionalization contract), built and personalized within a professionalization pathway overseen by a professional in the specialization.

Assessment Methods

The skill blocks are assessed through case studies and professional simulations:

In a reconstructed professional situation, based on an exhibition or sales project, the candidate must produce the forecast budget and the main contracts and legal documents related to the event

In a reconstructed professional situation, based on a given collection or body of works and a given venue, the candidate must define: an exhibition project (exhibition concept and scripting), its scenography according to the venue, and the mediation tools for one or more audiences (wall labels, exhibition presentation, web texts)

In a simulated professional situation, the candidate, based on a defined sale or exhibition and the corresponding venue and catalog, must develop: a communication plan (definition and writing of tools, definition of targets), a set of specifications and recommendations on the choice of communication providers, a partnership file, and a proposal of targeted partners.

As part of a reconstructed professional situation, in a commentary on 3 artworks: each candidate must give an oral presentation, in 10 minutes, of 3 artworks, including: the history of the work, writing a catalog entry for an auction: technical description, showcasing the work (origin, importance,特徴 etc.) and estimating the work

As part of a case study, the candidate must analyze an organization or project and make marketing recommendations (gallery specialization or not, sales and pricing policy, customer targeting, marketing policy, artistic direction, etc.) for its development. They must draw up a digital marketing plan. Oral defense: arguing the potential of the organization or project

Depending on the Master specialization chosen, other additional certifications are offered:

  • Fundamental knowledge is assessed through continuous assessment and semester exams using case studies (artwork commentaries, analyses of professional situations), research papers and group projects.
  • Professional practice during internships is validated through sector studies and internship reports defended before a jury, and the creation of a résumé that lets the learner showcase all the skills acquired during their path.
  • The level 7 (Fr) certified title, Expert in Marketing and Distribution of Artworks, is awarded by a jury chaired by an independent figure after a one-hour oral exam in which the candidate presents the contextualized appraisal of three works in their specialty and the personal project they carried out during their second year.

91%

of Master students believe that
the speakers are experts in their field
End-of-year survey 2019-2020

93%

of Master’s students say
they feel good when they are at school
End-of-year survey, 2019-2020

Degree awarded

  • The program awards the title of Expert in Marketing and Distribution of Artworks from ECAD consultants - currently being renewed.
  • The Expert in Marketing and Distribution of Artworks title is also accessible through VAE and continuing professional education, with the possibility of validating one or more skill blocks.
  • No equivalence filed as part of the certification file.
  • No bridge pathway for this program.

86,8%

Certification pass rate in 2020

Possible Further Studies

Since all of these programs prepare for a level 7 certified professional title, they are not designed with further study in mind.

On the admissions page, you will find the following information:

  • Prerequisites
  • Program Length
  • Admission Requirements
  • Program cost

Our Alumni Share Their Stories

Caitlin Elizabeth Boucher

photo étudiante - Caitlin Elizabeth Boucher

"Today I am an independent contemporary art advisor. I work on extremely varied projects. I offer my support, knowledge, and experience to collectors, gallery owners, artists, and entrepreneurs in the art world."