Alina Okun

I’m interested in what happens to important art collections over time.

A collector can spend decades building something remarkable, and eventually a different set of decisions begins. Does the collection remain with the family? Is it donated, sold, lent, or divided? Could it become a museum, a foundation, a university collection, a traveling exhibition, or another form of public access?

I founded Nariway to focus on those decisions, the future of significant private collections, and the different ways they move into public life.

I also publish Artobiography, an independent publication telling the stories behind the world’s remarkable collections, with deeply researched features and conversations with collectors, museum leaders, founders, advisors, and specialists across the art world.

I came to this through an unusual route. I spent more than twenty years in finance and business, from Arthur Andersen and UBS to serving as the CFO of a technology company. I hold a doctorate in strategy and innovation, and I have co-authored two books. Outside of work, I have spent years visiting museums, collecting art, and going to fairs and exhibitions.

Those two worlds now come together in my work, art on one side, and finance, organizations, strategy, and long-term durability on the other. My current interests include private collections, collector-founded museums and foundations, collection stewardship, public access, institutional durability, and alternative models for bringing privately held art into public life.