User:Yinonk/sandbox

ArtLink

Formation	April 23, 1996
Founder	Tal Danai
Headquarters	London
Owner	Tal Danai
Website	www.artlink.com

ArtLink (founded in April 23, 1996) is an art curation and provision firm for the luxury hospitality sector, active predominantly within the international hospitality industry and the cruise ships industry, alongside commercial and residential projects worldwide.

History

The company set out to develop a new market segment for young and emerging art within the international art market, trying to re-introduce art as a cultural consumer’s product. It's first step was to put together an international network of art schools that would provide the source and background for finding promising young artists. The School of Visual Arts in New York City was the first to sign on to the new program. Other institutions in several of countries followed, and within a few years ArtLink had an operative network in over 150 art colleges, academies, and universities in 44 countries.

The company was founded by its current CEO Tal Danai.

Collaboration with Sotheby's

In January 1997 ArtLink started a collaboration with Sotheby's which provided support in worldwide venues. ArtLink's international young art program was renamed "ArtLink@Sotheby's International Young Art".

In January 1998 ArtLink held the first International Young Art auction at Sotheby's Tel Aviv. The 137 works offered by 45 artists from 10 countries, all unknown to the public prior to the exhibition preceding the sale, were sold in the course of a two-hour auction, at prices well over their estimates.

In the summer of 1999 ArtLink and Sotheby’s held the world's first live-online interactive auction. Sotheby's Berlin exhibited 76 works by 35 artists from the ten countries surrounding the Baltic Sea. They were auctioned live in Rostock, Germany. The live auction was transmitted by video and audio on the internet, with pre-registered bidders participating in the auction in real time over the Web.

ArtLink decided to close the ArtLink@Sotheby’s International Young Art program in 2003. By that time 365 finalists from 44 countries had shown and sold their works at the auctions in Tel Aviv, Chicago, New York, Berlin, Vienna, Amsterdam, and Moscow.

The hospitality industry

In 2003 ArtLink completed its first hotel project. It developed, sold, and installed the art at the public areas of the Victoria Park Plaza Hotel in London. ArtLink also developed an art concept to complement the adjacent train and underground stations.

During the following decade, the company completed close to 127 hotels in 32 international cities and numerous commercial, residential, and government projects. Notable hospitality projects include the Four Seasons DIFC in Dubai, The Plaza in New York City, Jing An Shangri-La in Shanghai, Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park in London, TRYP by Wyndham Antwerp, Ritz Carlton in Herzliya, St. Regis Cairo, Waldorf Astoria in Chengdu, Steigenberger Kuraus Hotel in Den Haag and Hotel Schweizerhof in Bern.

Among the company’s clients are Four Seasons, Hilton, Sheraton, Mandarin Oriental, Shangri La, Park Plaza Europe, Ritz Carlton, Marriott, The Plaza, Steigenberger, The Schweizerhof, Radisson, Kempinski, Lufthansa Airlines, Sachsen Bank, Cisco, and CBH Bank.

Some of the better-known designers and architects ArtLink has worked with are Tihany Design, Rockwell Group, Jeffery Beers, Hirsch Bedner Associates, The Gettys Group, Champlimaud, ARA, Aedas, Giorgetti, Versace and others.

In 2016, the company completed its two first maritime projects, the art collection for Holland America Lines’ new MS Koningsdam, and for the Seabourn Encore. ArtLink is currently working on three more maritime projects that are about to set sail: Seabourn Ovation, Holland America Line MS Nieuw Statendam and Costa XL for Costa Cruises.

External links

• "Young at art" by Kevin M. Williams, Chicago Sun Times, Wednesday, January 27, 1999.
• Seabourn Showcases World-Class Art Collection Aboard Seabourn Encore, seabourn.com, Feb. 13, 2017.