Expert Advice
for Lasting Impact
With wide-ranging experience in arts management, philanthropic strategy, and collection advisory, we support thoughtful decision-making, whether you’re stewarding a legacy, launching a campaign,
or planning your next project.
Art Advisory and Management:
Tailored Expertise
We provide a full suite of services for both private and public collections. From collecting strategy to conservation, documentation, and the eventual transition or disposition of collections, we understand the art world and how collections function across generations, institutions, and borders. Our work honours the full lifecycle of an artwork and the values behind it.
Private Collection Advisory: Stewardship, Strategy, Discretion
Every art collection carries more than monetary value: it holds stories, relationships, and meaning. Whether you're planning for the future, navigating a transition, or simply unsure of what to do next, we offer high-level strategy, analysis, and customized plans for your private collection now and into the future. We go beyond the role of traditional art consultant to consider the full spectrum of your collection’s worth in a way that reflects your personal and financial goals and its value to the larger arts ecosystem.
Services include:
Curatorial strategy, research, writing, and acquisitions
Conservation and technical care
Inventory, documentation, and cataloguing
Appraisal coordination and management
Insurance, storage, and art transit planning
Representation for loans, sales, and negotiations
Collection disposition planning
Artist estate planning and management
Coordination of specialist services
Special projects
Public Collection Advisory:
Help for High-Stakes Projects
We support public institutions with tailored advice on operations, strategy, and special projects. We bring extensive sector knowledge, hands-on experience, and big thinking to ensure maximum impact.
Services include:
Strategic planning and board governance
Stakeholder relations and operational review
Program development
Special projects
Loans management
National and international partnerships
Canadian Cultural Property Review Board (CCPERB) file management
Arts Philanthropy:
Gifts to Grow
We guide donors and institutions through the strategic and relationship-driven aspects of arts giving. Our approach integrates philanthropic values with practical support, from concept to execution.
Services include:
Giving strategies for individuals, families, and foundations
Major gift planning and donor relations
Representation and relationship management
Canadian Cultural Property Review Board (CCPERB) applications.
Integrated fine art philanthropy planning with legal and tax professionals
Coordination and management
Estate Planning and Family Office Support:
Part of Your Team
Art collections are unlike any other asset class. Along with financial value, they can have significant emotional, cultural, and philanthropic weight. For legal, tax, and wealth management professionals, navigating these dimensions requires a trusted partner with serious sector knowledge and strategic experience.
With certified expertise in Family Enterprise Advising, we work alongside family offices, legal teams, and financial advisors to integrate an understanding of collections and the art world into broader estate, tax, and transition planning. We understand the sensitivities, and our guidance reflects both the collector’s goals and the collection’s complexity, bridging the worlds of art and finance with discretion and clarity.
Services include:
Subject matter expertise
Board and executive support
Collection governance, strategy, management, and disposition
Next-generation training
Legacy publications, private exhibitions, and special projects
Collaboration with your advisors in developing social enterprise investment strategies
Art trustee services
Board and Leadership Support:
Set Up for Success
We offer individualized coaching, executive search guidance, governance advice, and interim leadership support. Our clients include senior leaders, artists with leadership roles, and board members seeking confident direction.
Board Support:
Building Excellence
We support institutional leaders with tailored advice on strategy, fundraising, governance, and special projects, bringing in-depth art world knowledge and hands-on experience.
Services include:
Executive search support
Interim executive support
Governance support
Coaching for Arts Leaders: Grounded in Experience
Karen offers personalized, one-on-one leadership support for arts professionals, board members, artists, and senior professionals navigating leadership in creative environments.
Services include:
Strategic planning and board governance
Stakeholder relations and operational review
Program development
Special projects
Loans management
National and international partnerships
Canadian Cultural Property Review Board (CCPERB) file management
Get in Touch
It all starts with a conversation. Book your complimentary 30-minute discovery call.
© 2025 KCS ArtCounsel Inc. All rights reserved.
+1 343 998-5506
[email protected]
222 Sherwood Dr.
Ottawa, ON K1Y 3V8