“Collecting isn’t so much about understanding the art market or what’s out there, but about understanding yourself. What’s meaningful to you? What kind of art moves you?”
From the first Chinese ink painting she bought as a newly minted MBA to the carefully-selected, intensely personal collection that now fills her Orange County home, Lucy Sun has bought the art that moves her. And, she says, nearly anyone can follow that example by going to museums and galleries and identifying the kinds of art that resonate with them. Even collectors with modest means can participate by nurturing relationships with emerging artists.
In this wide-ranging interview with Angela Dailey, WISE CEO, Lucy talks about her early days collecting contemporary Asian art while opening a Southeast Asian business for Goldman Sachs, life in finance and the art world in London and her current role in retirement serving on the boards of various art-related non-profits. She rejects the idea that art can be viewed solely as an investment, but instead sees herself as a key part of the art ecosystem. “When you buy a piece of art, you’re actually supporting an artist. You’re feeding the artist. You’re buying his materials. You’re promoting his career.” she says.
Check out Lucy’s full interview here. It’s part of the WISE Voices: Women Leading the Way podcast series, which highlight the success and career journeys of many of Southern California’s most inspiring businesswomen.
Bio
Lucy Sun is a former Managing Director of Goldman Sachs and worked in the firm’s Equity Division in New York, Hong Kong and London for over two decades. A graduate of Vassar College with a BA in Art History, she also holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, as well as an MA in Art and Archaeology from the University of London. Since retiring from the banking industry, Lucy has devoted much of her time to nonprofit board service in the arts and in education. She served 3 terms as Trustee of Vassar College (2000-2012), and was a Trustee and Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. In 2014 Lucy was appointed by Mayor Ed Lee to be a Commissioner of the Asian Art for the City of San Francisco. In 2021, she joined the Board of the Orange County Museum of Art and served as its Vice Chair in 2022, and Chair in 2023. Lucy has recently joined the Board of Trustees of the University of California Irvine Foundation, and is a member of the Steering Committee of a newly proposed museum of Asian American history and culture in Irvine. Lucy is an avid collector of emerging contemporary artists.
Lucy and her husband Warren Felson have owned a home in Orange County since 2001, while living full time in London and San Francisco, respectively. They moved their primary residence to Newport Coast in 2019. They have two grown children: Amanda who works in tech in the Bay area, and Jeremy, who is a fabrications manager for a design firm based in London, as well as a granddaughter, Imogen.
