March 23, 2009
Contact: Karen Cardinal
Accounting, Web and Marketing Manager, Mead Art Museum
413/542-2551
AMHERST, Mass.—On Friday, April 10, at 1 p.m. in the Mead Art Museum, Scott Niichel ’06 will speak about his experiences as a Russian art specialist at Sotheby’s, New York, and the current market for Russian art. Organized in conjunction with the Mead Art Museum docents’ yearlong investigation into the theories and practices of art collecting, this event is free and open to all.
Niichel joined the Department of Russian Paintings at Sotheby’s in New York in 2006. Before that, he held internships at the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia; The Metropolitan Museum of Art; and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. At the latter, he provided scholarship and publications oversight for the blockbuster exhibition RUSSIA!, which opened in 2005 and later toured Europe. He received degrees in Fine Arts and Russian Studies from Amherst, and his thesis on Russian avant-garde artist Natalia Goncharova earned honors.
“We’re delighted to welcome Mr. Niichel,” said Elizabeth Barker, director of the Mead. “His distinguished professional accomplishments provide inspiration to other recent graduates and current students of Amherst College.”
Niichel’s presentation at the Mead is made possible with support from the Julia A. Whitney Fund for Russian Art. A complete schedule of museum talks is posted on the Mead’s Web site: www.amherst.edu/museums/mead/programs.
The Mead Art Museum houses the art collection of Amherst College, totaling more than 16,000 works. An accredited member of the American Association of Museums, the Mead participates in Museums10, a regional cultural collaboration. During the academic term, the museum is open Tuesdays through Thursdays and Sundays 9 a.m. to midnight, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. For more information, please visit the museum’s Web site, www.amherst/museums/mead, or call 413/542-2335.
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