About

Jill Thayer is an Associate Member of Appraisers Association of America and qualified in Personal Property and Fine Art Appraisals with emphases in Post-War and Contemporary Art. She has worked in the art market over 30 years. Jill successfully completed a 15-hour course and examination on the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) established by the Apprasial Standards Board, an independent board of The Appraisal Foundation, authorized by Congress and established in 1987 as the source of appraisal standards and qualifications. Jill completed the full 40-course Comprehensive Appraisal Studies Program (CASP) gaining knowledge of in-depth practices and standards with critical knowledge and competencies to evaluate and appraise fine and decorative arts and other personal property.

In addition to her work as an appraiser, Jill is an artist, educator, art historian, curator, marketing strategist, and author. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fine Art from California State University, Bakersfield and completed a post-grad study in 17th Century lithography on Bavarian limestone at Santa Reparata Graphic Arte Centre, Florence, Italy. Her travels throughout France, Italy, and Greece expanded her studies of art history and antiquities. In 2004, she received a Master of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from CSUB combining Arts and Humanities programs in Contemporary Art, Gallery Practicum, and Arts Education with MBA studies in Marketing and Management.

In 2011, Jill received a Ph.D. degree in Cultural Studies/Museum Studies from Claremont Graduate University with emphases in Exhibition Theory, Contemporary Art History, Design Theory, and Visual Culture. She completed transdisciplinary studies in Global Strategy and Trade in context to the international art market at St. Peter’s College, University of Oxford, UK. The international exchange study through Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management was followed by independent art studies in London, Paris, and Casablanca.

Concurrent to her doctoral program, Jill was accepted to Claremont Graduate University’s CGU Art MFA program with concentration in critical art theory and studio art (painting, digital media, and installation). Her post-doctoral fellowship series, “In Their Own Words: Oral Histories of CGU Art” features interviews with alumni, professors, and professors emeritus whose careers contributed to contemporary culture. The digital narratives of her curatorial exhibition and archival findings for the series at CGU’s East Gallery and Peggy Phelps Gallery (2012) are in the collection of Archives of American Art at The Smithsonian Institution.

Jill Thayer Associates provided regional and global clientele services in visual communication, design, art consultation, and marketing strategy for 25 years. As a gallerist of 15 years, she showcased local and international artists at Jill Thayer Galleries at the Fox garnering critical review. As a contributing writer, her art reviews and catalogue essays appeared in critical art publications in Los Angeles, Miami, and the United Kingdom. She hosted The Art of LIfe with Dr. Jill Thayer, a podcast on art and culture produced for Voice of Paso Internet radio. The program showcased interviews and published writings on artists, cultural institutions, and current topics in the contemporary discourse.

As an educator, Dr. Thayer is Associate Professor teaching for colleges and universities nationally in undergrad and graduate programs online and onsite. Areas include Art History, Ancient World, Romanesque and Gothic Art and Architecture, Renaissance, Modern Art, Contemporary Art, Global Visual Culture, Art Appreciation, Art Criticism, Art Theory, Arts Management, Strategic Communications, Media Literacy, and Marketing Management.

As an artist, her work explores abstract impressionistic and landscape themes through a high-energy palette of color. She also creates complex digital media works that integrate mixed-media and multi-dimensional approaches. Jill is author of Sojourns: 100 Trails of Enlightenment Inspired by the California Central Coast published by Archway with Simon & Schuster. The book captures favorite walks from Big Sur to Oceano Dunes in a photographic essay that offers a visual narrative of discovery through exquisite trails of the region. Jill lives and works on the California Central Coast. www.jillthayerphd.com