Museums and Deaccessioning (w/ Jill Deupi, Katie Wilson-Milne & Irina Tarsis)
May 11, 2022
About the Event
The definition of the word is simple enough. Deaccession: officially remove (an item) from the listed holdings of a library, museum, or art gallery, typically in order to sell it to raise funds. And the concept itself in practice can be relatively easy too–so why is there always fuss and drama when museums decide to deaccession a piece of their collection? What are the rules that surround the use of funds? And what are the ethical considerations that are underpinning this administrative decision?
Join the Center for Art Law in a conversation with Jill Deupi and Katie Wilson-Milne, moderated by Irina Tarsis, on the nuances and considerations regarding museum deaccessioning.
About Our Speakers
Dr. Jill Deupi is the Beaux Arts Director and Chief Curator of the Lowe Art Museum (University of Miami). Prior to assuming this position in 2014, Deupi was Director and Chief Curator of University Museums at Fairfield University, where she was also an Assistant Professor of Art History. Her prior professional experience includes work at the Royal Academy of Arts, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Snite Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art, and the Wallace Collection. The recipient of a prestigious “Rome Prize,” Dr. Deupi wrote her doctoral dissertation on art and cultural politics in 18th-century Naples. She is a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome, the Leading Change Institute, and the Getty Leadership Institute. Deupi is also a Trustee of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) and chair of this organization’s academic art museum affinity group. Additionally, Deupi serves on the Cornell Museum’s Visiting Committee and co-chairs the Task Force for the Protection of University Collections. A member of AAM, AAMC, AAMD, AAMG, ICOM, and UMAC, she has been a peer reviewer for the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), and AAM’s Reaccreditation Committee. Dr. Deupi holds a B.A. in French Literature and Political Science (Mount Holyoke College); a J.D. (Washington College of Law, American University); an M.A. in the History of Art (Birkbeck College, University of London); a Ph.D. in Art History (University of Virginia); a graduate certificate in Arts Administration (New York University); and an executive education certificate in Art and Cultural Heritage Law (Georgetown University Law Center).
Katie Wilson-Milne is a partner at Schindler, Cohen & Hochman LLP. Katie advises clients in the art, cultural and creative communities, including art galleries, other art businesses, collectors, artists, and not-for-profit organizations in the art space on transactional matters related to the purchase, sale, lending, and financing of art, as well as gallery, auction house, and museum relationships. She also represents art clients in disputes involving representation, collaborations, contracts, copyright, authenticity, title, provenance, and appraisals. As part of her practice, Katie provides general counsel services and provides a wide range of governance advice to art clients.
Katie also teaches and speaks regularly on art law topics. She is the former Secretary of the Art Law Committee of the New York City Bar Association. She also co-hosts the Art Law Podcast.
