Blending Art and Business
For Karine Nguyen, the University of Richmond has always felt like the right place to grow. A native of Spartanburg, S.C., she recalls being immediately drawn to the campus community. “I fell in love with the atmosphere the moment I first stepped on campus and immediately sensed how unique the community was,” she said.
Now pursuing a dual degree in art history with a concentration in arts management and business administration with concentrations in French and international business, she has found a way to merge her academic interests in both art and commerce. This past summer, that intersection came to life during her internship with the Arts Program at Capital One.
“My fascination with art and business has grown significantly over the past year,” she explained. “Given my studies, I felt that gaining hands-on experience with a local corporate art collection would be the ideal opportunity for further exploring this interest.”
Securing such an opportunity was no small feat. After reaching out to several advisors and consultants in Richmond, she was directed to Capital One’s Arts Program, where she joined the team for a dynamic summer of projects that combined creative engagement with professional rigor.
Her days varied widely—she attended meetings ranging from operations calls to database reviews, and on Fridays, she scheduled her on-site work around exhibition installations and de-installations. Beyond that, she researched missing artworks, updated inventory records, and supported associate engagement initiatives such as art-making workshops, guided tours, and collection-related events.
Nguyen’s most significant contributions included drafting image use license agreements for artworks featured in marketing materials and conducting inventories across Capital One’s West Creek campus. One highlight was assisting with the installation of University Combine in the Town Center building, which featured paintings by her friend and fellow Richmond student, Piero Grazioso, ’25. “It was a unique experience to collaborate with him in an artist-client capacity,” Nguyen said.
The internship provided insights into a side of the art world she had never fully considered: corporate collecting. “Before this internship, I had honestly never really considered corporate art collecting as a practice, even though it seems so obvious in hindsight,” she noted. “Learning about art as an alternative asset and investment was an unexpected lesson.”
Along the way, Nguyen developed an impressive set of skills, including contract law, copyrights and insurance regulations, art consulting and valuation processes, collection management, and art handling techniques. Even the challenges—such as navigating a database that had only recently been integrated—offered valuable lessons in operations and data management.
The experience also reinforced her career aspirations. She now envisions pursuing an M.B.A. in arts management and contemporary art sales, potentially at the Paris School of Business. Her current senior thesis, which explores the growth of the French art market in the 20th century, is a direct outgrowth of her internship.
Most meaningful of all, however, was witnessing the interconnectedness of Richmond’s arts community. “It was so cool to observe how integrated the Richmond arts community is and to see how art professionals across the city collaborate to manage this collection and promote the arts,” Nguyen reflected. “This dynamic is truly unique and inspiring, and I’m so lucky to have contributed to it.”
As she considers her next steps—whether in art finance, corporate curation, law, or development—her internship has given her a strong foundation for a career that blends her passion for art with the business skills to support it. “Ideally, my future role would allow me to combine my interest in the art business with direct interactions with artists,” she said.