ART FUND - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Founding Members
- President / Industry
Enrique E. Liberman. As one of the founding members of Art FA, Mr. Liberman serves on Art FA's Board and has acted in the role of President of Art FA since 2010. Mr. Liberman has extensive experience in the formation and governance of art investment funds and art funds of funds and regularly counsels art fund managers and investors on legal matters ranging from the structuring of such funds to the various regulatory and compliance issues arising from their operation. Mr. Liberman is currently a Partner at Bowles Liberman & Newman LLP in New York City where he chairs the law firm's Art Law + Art Funds practice group which represents prominent art market professionals and participants in a wide variety of art-related matters. Prior to his tenure at Bowles Liberman & Newman LLP, Mr. Liberman was a Partner at Tannenbaum Helpern Syracuse & Hirschtritt LLP, Vice-President & General Counsel of Egyptinfo Technology S.A.E., a prominent Egyptian information technology company, and a corporate associate at Clifford Chance Rogers & Wells LLP. Mr. Liberman attended Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA where he received his Juris Doctor in 1999. His degree at Harvard Law School was preceded by his attainment of a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations with Honors and Distinction from Stanford University in Stanford, California, USA in 1996. Mr. Liberman is certified in Credit Risks and Financial Calculus by the Association of Banks of the Republic of Argentina. Mr. Liberman is a member of the New York State Bar Association and chairs its Committee on Art Law, Art Funds and Art Investment.
Evan Tawil. Mr. Tawil joined Art FA's Board of Directors in May of 2011 bringing his extensive experience and contacts in the art market to the Association. Mr. Tawil is the principal of 9 Muses Fund Management, LLC, an art fund investment management company that advises art investment funds on acquisitions for, and dispositions of, their art investment portfolios. For over twenty years, Evan Tawil has been a noted Post-War and Contemporary art collector. Mr. Tawil was first chronicled as a collector of serious merit in 1992 at the age of 26 in ARTnews magazine. In 1997, Tawil was chronicled in ARTnews, as one of nine major American collectors under the age of 45. During his acquisition & investment career, Mr. Tawil has developed a disciplined, focused approach to collecting and investing in post-war and contemporary art, viewing the process as a value driven exercise as well as a passion. Mr. Tawil attended and graduated from the Fleming School. He subsequently attended and graduated from Riverdale Country School followed by Vassar College.
Job Titles:
- Founding Partner and Manager of BGA
Heitor Reis. Heitor Reis is a founding partner and manager of BGA (Brazil Golden Art) fund. He has over 25 years of experience in the Brazilian art market having occupied several important positions. From 1983 to 1987, Mr. Reis served as coordinator and director of the state-run organization Museus do Estado da Bahia (Museums of the State of Bahia), and between 1991 and 2007 he held the same posts at the Museum of Modern Art of Bahia (MAM-Bahia). He sits on the board of the Museum of Modern Art of Rio de Janeiro (MAM-Rio), as well as being a member of AICA - Associação Internacional de Críticos de Arte (International Association of Art Critics). Mr. Reis has organized and curated multiple exhibitions, biennales and residency programs in Brazil and abroad. During his tenure at MAM-Bahia he established the Salão da Bahia (Bahia Salon) to map out and advance the work of emerging artists from all over the country. Under the auspices of the museum, he edited and published several catalogues and put together an outstanding collection of contemporary Brazilian art. He holds a degree in Museology from Universidade Federal da Bahia (Bahia Federal University). Mr. Reis is also a film director and art collector.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Board of Directors
Javier Lumbreras. Mr. Lumbreras serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of Art FA, bringing his extensive experience as an accomplished fifth generation art collector and successful art fund manager to Art FA. Mr. Lumbreras is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Artemundi Global Fund, a diversified art investment fund with a strategic art investment portfolio covering half a millennium of universally recognized artists with consistent records of price appreciation. In addition to his position at the Artemundi Global Fund, Mr. Lumbreras is a respected consultant to private collectors, a sought after guest lecturer regarding the art market to banks, family offices and museums and a trustee to various international art institutions. He is the author of the book, The Art of Collecting Art, which has sold out of its first edition; a second edition is being reproduced by Banco Nacional de Mexico, CITIBank.
Michael Sellinger. Mr. Sellinger serves on the Board of Directors and as the Marketing Director of Art FA. He is the founder of Cottelston Advisors, a full service lifestyle marketing and management consulting company specializing in the visual arts. In addition to advising collectors, Cottelston creates integrated branding opportunities for corporations and provides clients with strategic planning and comprehensive market analyses. Cottelston also regularly produces exhibitions and art fairs. Additionally, Mr. Sellinger has organized and moderated numerous panels on art investment funds. Prior to his tenure at Cottelston Advisors, Mr. Sellinger was the executive producer of Scope Art Fairs, an international series of cutting-edge art and emerging culture exhibitions, where he helped build Scope into an international brand name. Prior to working in the art world, Mr. Sellinger held various positions in banking, real estate and internet marketing. He also serves on the board of the Columbia Alumni Arts League. Mr. Sellinger received an MBA from Columbia Business School and has been collecting contemporary art for over 20 years.
Job Titles:
- President and CEO of the SHVO Group
Michael Shvo is the President and CEO of the SHVO Group of companies, covering the gamut of real estate development and finance, venture capital investments, design and lifestyle marketing, and art acquisitions and divestitures. Mr. Shvo is a recognized leader in the real estate industry, a visionary in the field of global marketing and an accomplished art collector. His various companies have created unparalleled marketing and sales initiatives in real estate, including successful partnerships and ventures with Armani Casa, Philippe Starck, W Hotels, GHM and Aman Resorts. Mr. Shvo is also a highly respected venture capitalist known for identifying early stage commercial enterprises with unrealized intrinsic value and through his expertise in marketing, management and finance, producing significant investment returns for his investment group. Mr. Shvo is a renowned art collector and patron of various emerging artists.
Mr. Gokelaere serves on the Board of Directors of Art FA, bringing his extensive experience in Fine Art investment and asset management. He is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Art Collection Fund, a Luxembourg closed-end investment fund whose objective is to build an exceptional quality collection of Modern and Contemporary Art and Tribal Art from Africa and Oceania. Stanislas Gokelaere is an art lover and dedicated collector, coming from a family of modern art dealers. With over 15 years of experience in Fine Art investment, he has built a reputation as a rigorous and successful collector and investor. His primary fields of interest are Tribal Art, Modern and Contemporary paintings, and 20th century design pieces. Prior to founding the Art Collection Fund, Mr. Gokelaere started his career as a chartered accountant with leading firm Ernst & Young. He was a financial consultant with Coopers & Lybrand. He then went on to have a successful career in investment banking and asset management. He led the Mergers & Acquisitions team of a Fortune 500 international company. Most recently, he managed a large investment fund active in international real estate development. Mr. Gokelaere has a master degree in Business Administration from Solvay Business School (Belgium).
Witan Walczak Art Advisory helps demystify the art market for its clients by giving expert and straightforward advice on the acquisition and de-accession of art. Independent of any auction house or dealer, Witan Walczak acts autonomously and impartially on the behalf of their clients with the highest level of professional integrity. Specializing in Contemporary, Modern and Impressionist Art and when necessary, contacting established experts on a particular artist and utilizing their extensive academic contacts for further research. The firm also works regularly in the emerging and primary markets.
Having established relationships with auction houses, galleries, private dealers and private collections, coupled with constant traveling to view exhibitions, auctions and art fairs, Witan Walczak is able to find exceptional works of art that are tailored to clients' specific interests. With years of experience and collaborating with highly regarded specialists, we are able to find unique works of art that have rarely seen the market, and spot others which have been overly circulated; thereby enabling us to negotiate terms and purchase prices that might otherwise be unattainable.