Art / Luxury / Fashion

From the worldwide desire for luxurious exclusivity to the photoshoot and catwalk populated by new talent, learn about the fascinating history and cutting-edge intersection between art, luxury, and fashion.

 

Students enrolled in this course will survey both the historical and contemporary relationships between art, luxury, and fashion, exploring the historical, geopolitical, and practical aspects of these cross-disciplinary fields. Through a combination of lectures and exclusive site visits, the course will cover historical examples from the Bauhaus and Surrealism, to Modernist movements such as Pop, Punk, and Op Art. Students will learn about recent collaborations between celebrity artists and famous labels, such as Anish Kapoor for Bulgari; Yayoi Kusama, Richard Prince, and Takashi Murakami for Louis Vuitton; Zaha Hadid for Chanel; and Jeff Koons for Lisa Perry. Students will learn what defines luxury and what role luxury plays in these collaborations. Participants will discover how street style has always influenced high fashion and how sustainability is no longer just a buzzword in the world of luxury and style but a trend that is here to stay. To ensure broad knowledge of the fashion and luxury industry, students will also learn about influential designers such as Virgil Abloh, Karl Lagerfeld, Telfar, and Miuccia Prada. Students will get to demonstrate their newfound knowledge by curating a hypothetical ambitious exhibition, designing a unique fashion line, or creating a work of art to present to the class.

 

Site Visits

Visits will include a combination of trips to major New York City art museums and galleries, luxury brand stores, and other places related to art, luxury, and fashion.

 

In the past, site visits have included:

  • The Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  • The Museum of the Fashion Institute of Technology
  • The Museum of Art and Design
  • Fashion ateliers of emerging and established designers
  • Brooklyn Museum
  • Luxury brand stores such as Prada and Van Cleef & Arpels

 

Guest Speakers

Students will hear firsthand from fashion designers, luxury brand marketers, and industry insiders about the topics that shape our understanding of art history and contemporary art production.

 

In the past, guest speakers have included:

  • Fashion designers
  • Artists
  • Fashion industry insiders
  • Luxury brand marketers
  • Supermodels
  • Curators

 

Please note: This information is subject to change at any time at the discretion of Sotheby’s Institute of Art.

Term Dates

Term dates and course availability depend heavily on instructors’ schedules.

  • Term 1 July 6 to July 18
  • Term 2 July 20 to August 1 Limited Space

All courses are open to rising 10th – 12th graders and graduating seniors. Explore the full summer schedule.

View Summer Schedule

Course Highlights

Summer Institute enables students to dive deep into a course of study, sharpening skills for their academic and professional careers. Each course is carefully designed to suit student interests and encourage intellectual curiosity.

  • 1

    Art: Serving as the anchor for this course, students will receive a broad overview of the major modern and postmodern movements that have influenced the relationships between art, luxury, and fashion. Students will examine the careers of artists who have famously collaborated with fashion designers and luxury brands, including Salvador Dalí, who collaborated with designer Elsa Schiaparelli, Derrick Adams, who collaborated with Pyer Moss, and Damien Hirst, who worked with fashion designer Alexander McQueen. 

  • 2

    Luxury: We have seen a dramatic growth of luxury brands around the world, and the market for art and other luxury goods has evolved to answer the increased demand from sophisticated buyers, art connoisseurs, and tastemakers. Students will explore when the concept of luxury was first articulated, who the consumers historically were, who they are today, and how post-modernity has affected the production, sale, and marketing of luxury goods, such as jewelry and handbags. Artists as international brands, artists’ partnerships with luxury companies, and the patronage of the arts by luxury companies will also be discussed.

  • 3

    Fashion: From the atelier to the runway, students will explore the intersecting disciplines of fashion and art. Students will examine how artists use fashion as an element of their practice, from self-portraiture to major collaborations with fashion houses, and how (and to what end) major fashion brands commission artists. How do artists use clichéd tropes from fashion — from the photo shoot to the catwalk — to address contemporary cultural issues? We will look at fashion houses such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Prada to explore how these brands monetize artists’ work and to what effect they do so. We will also look at the role of fashion in the museum sector, analyzing how fashion is curated and displayed alongside art in blockbuster exhibitions.

Summer Institute Faculty

Our instructors are award-winning Sotheby's Institute faculty, recognized thought leaders and professional experts in the art world. Each faculty member structures their course around real-time conversations defining their professions and helps students master the unique forces at play in the art world.

Summer Institute Faculty

More Information

Looking for more information? Download the prospectus

Sign up for updates about our programs, courses and events.