Lisa Schiff

Lisa Schiff (born December 2, 1969[1] in Miami) is an American art advisor and specialist in contemporary and modern art, based in New York. In October 2024, Schiff pleaded guilty in federal court in Manhattan to wire fraud, for stealing $6.5 million from clients.

She is the founder and president of SFA Advisory (Schiff Fine Art)[2] with offices in New York, Los Angeles and London.[3] Schiff Fine Art has filed for bankruptcy.[4] Her former clients included individuals, corporations, foundations and institutions[5] and the actor Leonardo DiCaprio[6] and his Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation (LDF).[7]

Education

Born in Miami, Florida, in 1969,[1] Schiff was educated in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she completed a Bachelor of Arts degree (art history and French) at the University of Michigan. She attended Columbia University's Reid Hall in Paris, finishing her undergraduate thesis while in residence there.[8] She continued attending law school at the Faculte de Droit de Montpellier, France. When Schiff returned to the United States, she completed a Master of Arts (art history) at the University of Miami, Florida. Later, Schiff attended the Graduate Center at the City University of New York,[9] where she advanced to doctoral candidate (ABD),[10] in art history.

Career

Schiff held her first gallery position in Paris in 1991. As a graduate teaching fellow, Schiff taught at Hunter College, the College of Staten Island, and Nassau Community College. She spent several years working for the auction house Phillips, de Pury and Luxembourg in New York as assistant to the CEO and as manager of international operations.[8] Before she launched SFA in 2002[11] she directed Edward Tyler Nahem Fine Art gallery in New York.[8] Schiff also launched SFA offices in Los Angeles and London.[3] She regularly consults and fundraises for the LDF and curated several charity auctions for the foundation[12] in Saint Tropez.[13]

She is also founder and head of the LDF's Art & The Environment series,[14] which presented Andrea Bowers and Tomas Sanchez at Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM), Porky Hefer at Design Miami[15] and John Gerrard’s Solar Reserve at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).[16]

In 2013 Schiff co-founded the VIA (Visionary Initiatives in Art) Art Fund,[17] which supports individual artists, curators, and small to mid-sized nonprofit organizations that work in the contemporary arts space.[18]

In December 2017 the launch of her company One All Every was announced,[6] which produces artist environmental protest billboards.[19]

Schiff has curated numerous exhibitions including Open Source: Art at the Eclipse of Capitalism.[20] Around this exhibition a panel discussion, featuring a key note speech from economic theorist Jeremy Rifkin, was hosted at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris.[21]

As an expert on art Schiff has been quoted by the New York Times,[22] the Financial Times,[3] Bloomberg,[23] the Guardian,[20] and CNN.[24] In addition, she lectures and sits on panels[8] such as discussions on the relationship between art and environmentalism at Design Miami 2017[25] and Basel 2018.[26] Her lecturing experiences include the Courtauld Institute in London,[27] Institute of Contemporary Arts in London,[28] the Art & Business Conference in New York,[10] and Talking Galleries in Barcelona among others.[29]

Position on art advisory

"My main job is to make the art world transparent, to help empower collectors. It's such a complex world and very opaque. If you're in it every day, it becomes second nature ... When people come in, they often leave quickly because they feel threatened, make mistakes, or they're taken advantage of. So I'm trying to help people understand ... and enjoy it."[3]

Lawsuits and closure of SFA

In May 2023, Richard Grossman, his spouse, and Candace Barasch sued Schiff for the proceeds from the sale of an Adrian Ghenie painting, claiming that Schiff had only paid them a small portion of what they were owed.[30] Barasch and her husband filed a second suit, alleging misuse of funds intended for the purchase of artworks.[31]

ARTnews reported that SFA Advisory appeared to have closed its New York offices 16 May 2023,[32] and Artnet News said that a representative for the Cromwell Place gallery complex in London told them that SFA was no longer a member there.[33] By 6 June 2023, Schiff had begun liquidating her business.[34] Schiff filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in January 2024.[35]

In August 2023, documents were released revealing more claims filed against Schiff by collectors and galleries for both money and missing artworks.[36][37][38] Schiff pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud in federal court in October 2024.[39]

Family

Schiff has a son, who is of half-Danish descent.[9]

Affiliations

Publications

  • 2003: Informed Consent: Information Production and Ideology, Scarecrow Press, ISBN 9780810839038

References

  1. ^ a b "The Top Nine Trending Artists Under 40 in Miami". Artsy. 2014-12-01. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  2. ^ "LDF hosts art exhibition in partnership with Pérez Art Museum Miami during Miami Art Basel". The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  3. ^ a b c d Alberge, Dalya (2017-11-29). "Specialist advisers are helping the wealthy to build their art collections". Financial Times. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  4. ^ The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/17/arts/design/art-adviser-wire-fraud-lisa-schiff.html. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ^ "Lisa Schiff". ArtLinked. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  6. ^ a b Gerlis, Melanie (2017-12-01). "Climate change art in Miami". Financial Times. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  7. ^ "At Art Fairs, Keep an Open Mind, but Watch the Wallet". The New York Times. 2018-03-02. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Lisa Schiff | HuffPost". www.huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  9. ^ a b "Bios". sfa-artadvisory.com. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  10. ^ a b "Lisa Schiff | Art Business Conference". www.theartbusinessconference.com. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  11. ^ "Art Advisor Lisa Schiff Expands Empire". artnet News. 2016-05-03. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  12. ^ "LDF to host Fourth Annual Auction Gala". The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  13. ^ "Leonardo DiCaprio organise son quatrième gala de charité à Saint-Tropez". Madame Figaro (in French). Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  14. ^ "2017 Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Gala Auction". www.2017ldfauction.org. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  15. ^ "Featured Partners". The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  16. ^ "Jackson Family Wines and the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation announce a ..." Wine Business. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  17. ^ "The Art of Effecting Change". Alumni - Harvard Business School. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  18. ^ a b "VIA Art Fund | Apply + Contact". VIA Art Fund. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  19. ^ "ONE, ALL, EVERY". Instagram. Retrieved 2018-11-16.
  20. ^ a b Shaw, Anny (2016-03-26). "Environmental art is on the rise – with a little help from Leonardo DiCaprio". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  21. ^ "Open Source: Art at the Eclipse of Capitalism". ARTUNER | Curated Contemporary Art. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  22. ^ Reyburn, Scott (6 April 2018). "Commerce vs. Curation: Lessons From Today's Museum World". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  23. ^ "Billionaires Are Buying Art by Laura Owens. Will Everyone Else?". Bloomberg. 30 November 2017. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  24. ^ "Art Basel 2016: Life in the 'hyperfast' lane". CNN Style. 2016-06-28. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  25. ^ "LDF partners with Pérez Art Museum Miami and Design Miami during Art Basel Miami Beach". The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  26. ^ "DesignMiami/". basel2018.designmiami.com. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  27. ^ Mar (2018-04-27). "Review: The Courtauld Institute's #ResFest By Jose Walsh". Medium. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  28. ^ "Culture Now: Lisa Schiff and Gregor Muir". Institute of Contemporary Arts. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  29. ^ "Talking Galleries Barcelona Symposium" (PDF). Talking Galleries. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  30. ^ "Art Advisor Lisa Schiff Sued for $2 Million". Artforum. 15 May 2023. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  31. ^ Greenberger, Alex (17 May 2023). "Art Adviser Lisa Schiff Faces Second Lawsuit Alleging Millions of Dollars in Fraudulent Sales". ARTnews. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  32. ^ Greenberger, Alex (16 May 2023). "Lisa Schiff's New York Advisory Appears to Have Closed Amid Lawsuit Over Alleged 'Ponzi Scheme'". ARTnews. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  33. ^ Kinsella, Eileen (17 May 2023). "Art Advisor Lisa Schiff, Accused of Fraud by Two Former Clients, Has Vacated Her London and New York Spaces". Artnet News. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  34. ^ Stoilas, Helen (8 June 2023). "Art advisor Lisa Schiff is cooperating with authorities investigating her business, her lawyer says". The Art Newspaper. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  35. ^ Greenberger, Alex (January 5, 2024). "Embattled Art Adviser Lisa Schiff Files for Bankruptcy". Artnews. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
  36. ^ Nayyar, Rhea (25 August 2023). "New Documents Reveal Dozens of Claims Against Art Advisor Lisa Schiff". Hyperallergic. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  37. ^ Greenberger, Alex (25 August 2023). "Lisa Schiff Revealed to Be Facing Millions of Dollars Worth of Claims from Collectors, Galleries, and More". ARTnews. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  38. ^ Lawson-Tancred, Jo (25 August 2023). "New Court Filings Show the Magnitude of Claims Being Made Against Disgraced Art Advisor Lisa Schiff". Artnet News. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  39. ^ Nir, Sarah Maslin (October 17, 2024). "Art Adviser to the Elite Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud: Lisa Schiff acknowledges stealing millions from major collectors who trusted her to buy them fashionable art". The New York Times. Vol. 174, no. 60312. p. C6. ISSN 0362-4331.
  40. ^ "Leadership". www.newmuseum.org. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  41. ^ "Staff & Board | Swiss Institute". www.swissinstitute.net. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  42. ^ exhibit-e.com. "Staff - About - The Bronx Museum of the Arts". www.bronxmuseum.org. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  43. ^ "Rhizome". Rhizome. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  44. ^ "Triple Canopy - Publishers Circle". Triple Canopy. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  45. ^ Foundation, Dia Art. "Dia | Support". diaart.org. Retrieved 2018-11-16.