FRAN KAUFMAN Principal

Former partner in Rosenberg + Kaufman Fine Art in NYC for 17 years, a contemporary gallery known for its commitment to an international roster of artists and a dedicated center for dialogue between visual art, literature and music. After closing the gallery in 2006, she ran palmbeach3 contemporary art fair for three seasons while maintaining her active practice as an art advisor to private and corporate collections, and as a consultant to institutions such as Magnum Photo and The Open Society.

 

She has curated projects in the US, Italy and Germany, including Lucio Boschi: Una Argentina, the first solo photography exhibition at the Museo de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires. In 2011 she directed the international premiere of the Houston Fine Art Fair, developing its vision, marketing strategy, and a full VIP program. Her former consultancy, Art + Banking, was geared to working with high net worth clients at private banks and insurance companies on art acquisitions. Fran is a frequent lecturer and panelist on contemporary art issues to university, art fair and institutional audiences, and writes about contemporary art and artists for catalogues and publications. Recent curatorial projects include To Photograph A Stranger (Pesaro, Italy 2019) and Dynamic Equilibrium,  If It's Not One Thing It's Another and Wit & Vigor at 1GAP Gallery in NYC; Linda Schrank Swoop at Margaret Thatcher Projects in Chelsea; and Afterimage at Blanc Art Space

 

Fran is VP of the board of PROOF.org, whose mission is to promote human rights and peace building through visual storytelling. For the past 5 years year she has produced the annual benefit photography auction, its primary fundraiser. Fran is also on the board of Creative Cities and was a member of the Leadership Council of the Bronx Museum of the Arts. 

 

ILANA VARDY Consultant

Producer and director of modern and contemporary art fairs from 1991 until 2010, notably Art Chicago for 9 years, as one of its founders. In 2000 Vardy was tapped to redevelop the concept of and direct Art Miami, the only fair in South Florida at that time.  She remained at the helm of Art Miami through 2007, after moving its dates to coincide with Art Basel Miami Beach. She also launched Chicago Contemporary & Classic and ArtDC during her tenure with the former owners of Art Miami.

 

Vardy has maintained a longtime interest in Latin American art, beginning in the 1980s when she was writing about and curating several exhibitions in Chicago with contemporary artists from Colombia and Argentina. She is proficient in  both Spanish and French 

 

She launched Ilana Vardy Consulting in 2008 to focus on exceptional management, writing and production skills, which she continues to enjoy in her partnership with KVP. In addition to her love of all things art + culture, Ilana now maintains a working avocado farm and event space near Miami. 

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For 9 years Ilana helped organize and participate in monthly panel discussions with ARTtuesdays/MIAMI, a public forum that explored key issues for the arts and culture community of South Florida.