Lori Hotz, global managing director in Christie’s postwar and contemporary art department since 2012, is leaving the house amid dropping sales, she tells Bloomberg.
The auctioneer has seen declining sales, as it indicated in a July 20 report showing a 33 percent decline in sales from the previous year in the first half of 2016, owing to a drop in high-value consignments.
Hotz was previously chief operating officer at Lazard Wealth Management, before which she served in the same position at Barclays Wealth Americas Product Office and at Lehman Brothers’ hedge fund business, managed account platform, and portfolio advisory group, according to her LinkedIn page.
“I have had a wonderful four-year run at Christie’s, where we have built a leading global postwar and contemporary art department and achieved significant growth,” Hotz told Bloomberg. “It’s now time for me to help build and develop other opportunities.”
Last month, three other Christie’s executives—Paul R. Provost, senior vice president and director of trusts, estates & appraisals; Nicholas Hall, international head of old master paintings and 19th-century art; and Cathy Elkies, head of Christie’s 20th- and 21st-century design—all departed.
Christie’s main rival, Sotheby’s, has also seen an exodus of high-level staffers since turmoil roiled the board and a new CEO Tad Smith took over in March 2015. The 272-year-old auction house was also reeling this month when Chinese insurer Taikang took on a 13.5 percent stake—the largest of any shareholder.