about

Kelsey Reed Leonard is a New York-based specialist in Modern and Contemporary Art. Over eight years on the Sotheby’s Contemporary Evening Sale—where she advanced from Cataloguer to Specialist to Head of Sale—she developed extensive expertise, market insight, and industry relationships that span art across all price points and movements. From blue-chip Postwar masterworks to today’s leading emerging artists, Kelsey combines art historical perspective with transactional experience and innovative marketing to present significant artists and artworks in fresh and engaging ways. 

The experience of collecting art should be as rewarding as the financial investment itself. Driven by the needs of her clients, Kelsey’s work bridges scholarship and commerce to maximize returns for seasoned and emerging collectors alike. With varied experience supporting private collections, museums, estates, galleries, advisors, corporations, and artists themselves, Kelsey serves as a curatorial resource for all those wishing to navigate the art market with greater strategic insight. 

Kelsey graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Williams College in 2015 with a double major in Art History and English. Prior to joining Sotheby’s, she held positions at Christie’s, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Williams College Museum of Art, and as a personal assistant and archivist for Thomas Krens.