Artist Lead (Account & Project Lead)

An Artist Lead is personable and marketing-savvy, with organisational skills and the ability to work across multiple teams. Reporting into the Head of Artist team, this role puts the Artist Lead in charge of Avant Arte’s important artist relationships.

CORE ROLE ELEMENTS

• ARTIST RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT (ARM)
• Account management & artist engagement
• Act as primary contact for a roster of artists, building strong, trusted relationships that maximise engagement, streamline project execution and create long-term value for both the artists and the business.
• Proactively manage accounts, ensuring consistent communication and smooth delivery.
• Build meaningful relationships with artists, studio managers and galleries.
• Gain a deep understanding of each artist’s ambitions – market positioning, career trajectory and long-term legacy to shape effective collaboration.
• Drive engagement in content, promotion, collector referrals and project deliveries.
• Become an expert in each artist’s market and practice, combining relationship skills with analysis of demand dynamics and sharing insights internally.
• Collaborate with internal teams to advocate for artist needs while balancing business priorities.
• Strengthen relationships through studio visits, introductions and profile-building opportunities beyond individual projects.
• PROJECT MANAGEMENT
• End-to-end ownership of all projects, ensuring they meet milestones and deadlines and are delivered with an exceptional artist experience.
• Work closely with Marketing, Creative Production and Sales to develop long-term strategy and release plans for top artists, spotting opportunities to grow reputation, collector base and commercial value.
• Ensure all project ideas are data-based, properly researched and commercially viable.
• Work with the legal team to draft artist agreement contracts.
• Share full breakdowns with artists, including production costs and profit scenarios, with a clear break-even point.
• Set up project trackers, liaise with Marketing & Content for content requests, ensure Production is on track with cut-off dates, and run meeting cadences with artists and galleries/studios.
• Develop comms plans with Marketing & Content and share with artists before launch.
• Conduct sales check-ins 4 weeks before launch and another 7 days before launch.
• Share artist breakdowns within 24 hours of release and ensure payment ASAP.
• Prepare artist editions roadmap, conduct internal and external retrospectives, and produce post-launch report within 7 days.
• Pitching
• Deliver pitches for new projects.
• Lead pricing research, concept reviews and documentation, pulling input from Creative Production, Sales, audience and market analysis; oversee outcome and next steps.
• Lead pitch deck creation and meetings, pulling input from the broader team as required.
• Report against pitch targets weekly and quarterly, keeping trackers up to date in Airtable with status and projected revenue.

KEY SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

• Operational & Project Management – exceptionally organised, delivering projects to budget and on time.
• Account management – combining relationship management with strategic, forward-thinking planning for long-term artist programmes.
• High-quality execution at pace and with attention to detail – use analytical thinking and data insights to evaluate performance and plan future actions.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration – work with a wide range of stakeholders across different functions.
• Strong Communication – simplify complex topics, communicate clearly across audiences, and write with clarity and tone.
• Commercial Awareness – comfortable working with numbers, commercial models and performance tracking to inform artist-facing decisions.
• Problem-Solving Mindset – resourceful and pragmatic, identify challenges early and unblock issues quickly.

DESIRABLE EXPERIENCE

• 7+ years in project or account management (high-growth or creative environment is a plus).
• Comfortable with project management and account management tooling such as Airtable, Wrike, and understanding operational ways of working.
• Background or strong interest in contemporary art, artist management or cultural production.

BENEFITS INCLUDE

• Salary range approximately £60-75k dependent on experience.
• Generous equity allowance.
• Private Healthcare (UK).
• Enhanced pension contributions and parental leave policies.
• 25 days holiday plus four extra company-wide days.
• L&D budget €1,000 per year per employee.
• Regular company socials.
• Art loan scheme for employees.