History of Art is the door to artistic, cultural, historical and personal enrichment. With motivation and effort it can also lead to truly interesting career opportunities, most notably as far as I am concerned, fine art auctioneer. It is one of the most appealing and diverse subjects you can work with as it expresses itself through various supports. It allows you to gain access to cultures throughout the world, their beliefs and history through a single still image, a sculpture or even a white canvas. Art is an uncompromised, satirical and beautiful gateway to the world and the history of mankind.
Art is not only beautiful, choking, impressive or esthetical, Art is a testimony of historical patrimony, and this is one of the main reasons I want to study History of Art. My interest in the subject started in my school years during which I obtained outstanding grades in History, Art and Literature. My passion for the subject flowed out into my social life as I attended weekly cultural seminars organized by “Les Amis des Arts et de la Culture” in Monaco. For personal reasons I decided not go to university after completing my Baccalaureat but this did not affect my interest in Art.
In my spare time I developed a great enthusiasm for photography. My grand-father taught me how to develop pictures when I was 13 and I was at once attracted to the mixture of art and information as captured by the legendary Cartier Bresson. Furthermore, being able to step away from the world and become more than a spectator was a welcome relief from a hard day’s work. During my professional experience I was fortunate enough to be involved in the “Dali a Monte-Carlo” exhibition organized in Monaco during the summer of 2005, by contributing to the research and drafting of the Press Book.
This was a challenging and demanding task, which involved to compiling and summarizing the content of the exhibition/show. I thoroughly enjoyed carrying out an in-depth study of the artist as revealed by the photographs exposed to the public, which were taken during the autumn he spent in Monaco. Recently I have been fortunate enough to work as assistant to Walera Martynchik two nights a week, which I believe, will greatly expand my artistic horizons. Outside of Art I very much enjoy music including blues, folk, rock and jazz.
During my professional career I have had the good fortune to be involved in various radio and music magazine based projects, culminating in an interview with Frank Black over a cup of tea after the Pixies concert in Six-Fours-les-Bains. I try to attend concerts as often as possible as I enjoy combination of the enthusiasm and spectacle with the music that create ‘the show’. I am also very much a travel enthusiast and recently traveled around South America. On my travels I learnt Spanish, giving me a firsthand insight into the various foreign cultures.
All this considered, I would like to make Art a greater part of my life and turn my passion for the subject into a career. I aim to work in an auction house, as a Fine Art specialist. As a mature student, I can truly benefit from the cultural background I acquired through my personal and professional activities and become a successful student. I realize I still have so much to learn and discover and I believe that an undergraduate course in History of Art presents me with the perfect opportunity to achieve my goals.