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QUICKFIRE INTERVIEW
Sotheby’s Institute of Art Rises to the Challenge: London A VIEW INTO THE WORLD OF EDUCATION DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC
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nterview with Professor David Bellingham: Program Director of the Master’s Degree In Art Business Program, Sotheby’s Institute London, with colleague Dr. Federica Carlotto, Course Leader of Art of Luxury, Sotheby’s Institute in London. The SIA professors sat down to discuss educational developments during the COVID-19 pandemic. During a critical time in the world, many have been laid off and furloughed in galleries, museums and auction houses across the globe.
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BY RACHEL VANCELET TE These actions have impacted the art world at all levels. SIA education decided to continue to rise to the occasion during this COVID-19 pandemic with transformative and creative ideas for online teaching. The global lockdown has forced SIA to redefine and reprogram the ways students, classrooms, and professors exchange ideas, interact and educate. Can you tell us a brief history on SIA? Sotheby’s Institute of Art was founded in 1969 to train auction house employees in art business together with connoisseurship, subject areas
which were generally lacking in traditional arthistorical education. In 1995 SIA was affiliated to the University of Manchester, enabling it to award undergraduate degrees in Fine and Decorative art. In 2002 SIA was sold to Cambridge Information Group who retained the Sotheby’s brand name and teaching and career connections with the auction house. The pioneering M.A. in Art Business was launched in 1998. Today we also have M.A.s in Fine and Decorative Art and Design, Contemporary Art, Modern and Contemporary Asian Art and Art World Logistics. The New York Institute was