About /
From an early age, Rebecca was drawn to museums founded by extraordinary collectors: The Frick Collection in New York, The Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum in Boston, The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, The Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. Reading the biographies of their often-eccentric founders, she became fascinated with the psychology of collecting, captivated by why people collect what they collect. For four years, she explored this interest through co-authoring the “100 Top Collector’s List” for Art and Antiques magazine. She also wrote more in-depth profiles of important collectors, museum collections and contemporary artists for Art in America, Art on Paper, Art & Auction, Art Review, Flash Art, Frieze, and Sculpture Magazine.
Simultaneously, she honed her knowledge of contemporary art while working at the Jack Tilton Gallery in New York, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, and the Atlanta College of Art Gallery. In 2004, Cochran was able to explore the creation of a collection from the inside when she became the curator for Sue and John Wieland. In her fifteen years at the Wieland Collection she handled the acquisition of new work, cataloged and maintained the collection database, researched and provided insurance values for the work, wrote and published a 350-page catalog, oversaw three traveling exhibitions, and designed the installation of the collection in the wareHOUSE, a 21,000 square foot exhibition space.
She launched Cochran Arts to provide similar services to collectors throughout the Southeast. In 2019, she added appraisals to her list of skills with the completion of the CASP Program at the Appraisal Institute of America. Cochran also holds a Masters Degree from the Royal College of Art in London, a Certificate in the Fine and Decorative Arts from Sotheby’s Institute, London and a Bachelors of Fine Art from the Maine College of Art. She has taught courses on Collecting and on Modern and Contemporary Art for the High Museum of Art, the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center and the Continuing Education department of the Atlanta College of Art.
“100 Top Collectors,” Art & Antiques, March 2006, pp. 87-119.
“100 Top Collectors,” Art & Antiques, March 2005, 97-119.
“100 Top Collectors,” (co-author), Art & Antiques, March
2004, pp. 85-107.
“Americas Top 100 Collectors,” (co-author) Art & Antiques,
March 2003, pp 75-97.
“A Fine Focus: Paul and Gloria Sternberg Cultivate a Photography
Collection that Clicks,” Art & Antiques, November 2002, p.
62-66.
“Art Intuition: Linda Pace,” Art and Antiques, May 2002, pp.
64-69.
“Art Patriot: Jack Warner,” Art and Antiques, March 2002, pp.
104-109.
“Krista Clarke: Change of Plans,” Sculpture</em >, July/August 2023, p. 25.
“Al Taylor: What Are You Looking At?” ArtPapers, Winter
2017/2018, p. 77.

“Mark Lewis at the Art Gallery of Ontario,”</a >
Art in America, November 2017, pp. 114-115.

“Tracey Snellings at the Frist Center for the Arts,”
Artforum.com, October 2011.
“Stella Lai and Iona Rozeal Brown at Saltworks,”
Art in America, November 2006, p. 214.
“Luis Gonzalez Palma at Lisa Sette,” Art in America, October
2004, p. 164-5.
“Pat Steir’s New Drawings,” Art on Paper, March 2003, p. 69.
“Radcliffe Bailey,” NKA: Journal of Contemporary African Art,
Fall/Winter 2001, p. 84.
“Cai Guo Quang,” Sculpture Magazine, February 1998, p. 65-66.
“Skulptur. Projecte in Munster 1997,” Art Papers,
November/December 1997, p. 70.
“Anselm Kiefer: Anthony D’Offay,” Art Papers, May/June 1997, p.
84.
“Juan Munoz: Palacio de Velasquez,” Art Papers, March/April
1997, p. 81.
“Tacita Dean: Tate Gallery,” Art Papers, January/February 1997,
p. 69.

Art Papers, January/February 1997, p. 69.

“Reflections and Refractions: The House as a Mirror of Contemporary
Society,” in
Homeward: Selections from the Wieland Collection (Atlanta: the
Wieland Collection), 2016 pp. 12-19.
“Lord of the Art Manor: The Barnes Collection,”
Art & Antiques, November 2007, pp. 171-174.
“Out of the Box: Seattle’s New Olympic Sculpture Park,”
Art & Antiques, April 2007, pp. 100- 101.
“Time Travel in the Boardroom: The Paris offices of AXA Group,”
Art & Antiques, March 2007, pp. 108-116.
“Discoveries: Sculpture Central, Dallas’ New Nasher Sculpture Center,”
Art & Antiques, October 2003, pp.72-74.
“Site: The Charles W. Ireland Sculpture Garden, Birmingham Museum of
Art,” Sculpture Magazine, July/August 2002, pp. 22-3.
The Rise of the Private Museum, Tiger 21,
Thursday, November 21, 2024Collecting in the South (panelist), Atlanta Art Fair, Pullman
Yards, October 4, 2024Collecting Conversations (moderator), Virginia Museum of
Contemporary Art, September 14, 2023The Contemporary Art Market, Homrich
Berg Private Client Group, March 23, 2023

The Rise of the Private Museum, Forward Art Foundation,
April 14, 2022

Demystifying</em > the Insurance and Appraisal Process, Hambidge Center for the
Arts, April 12, 2022

A Career in the Arts: Notes from a Hampshire Alum, Hampshire
College, January 29, 2018 Guest Lecturer, Professional Practices, Graduate
School of Art and Design, Georgia State University, November 12, 2018
“Guest Critic”, Graduate School of Art and Design, Georgia State
University, March 22, 2016 “OFF/Center: Art Writing from the Regions,”
three day symposium organized in conjunction with the American Association
of Art Critics and Emory University, Atlanta, September 20-22, 2013 “Guest
Critic, Leap Year Awardees,” The Goat Farm, Atlanta, November 20, 2011
“Contemporary Art Criticism,” Nashville Cultural Arts Project, Nashville,
April 13, 2011 “Female Photographers: Is there a gender voice?” Panelist,
Hagedorn Foundation, Atlanta, April 7, 2011 “Art and Censorship: A
Screening of David Wojnarowicz’s
A Fire in My Belly and
Panel Discussion,” Panelist, Emory University, Atlanta, February 17, 2011
“The Art of Collecting,” Davis Waldron Fine Art, Atlanta, July 12, 2007
“Collecting Now,” Four-part seminar on collecting contemporary art, taught
with Stuart Horodner at the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, Atlanta, Jan.
8, 15, 22, and 27, 2007 “Art Criticism,” Guest Lecturer, Kennesaw State
University, GA, October 17, 2006 “Local Heros: Public Art from the Private
Realm, ” sponsored by Fulton County Arts Council,City of Atlanta Bureau of
Cultural Affairs and the Metropolitan Public Art Committee, Hill
Auditorium, High Museum of Art, Atlanta, May 18, 2006 “Guest Critic,”
Drawing and Painting Graduate Seminar, Georgia State University,
Atlanta,November 29, 2004 “Opportunities for Artists in Public Art
Programs,” Moderator, Atlanta Center for Contemporary Art, Atlanta, March
2004 “The Art of Collecting,” Trinity School, Atlanta, February 2004;
Wesleyan School, Atlanta, May 2004 “Conversation with Ross Bleckner,”
Atlanta College of Art, Atlanta, March 2000 “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall:
Reflections of the Self in Contemporary Art,” Atlanta Center for
Contemporary Art, Atlanta, May 1999 “Joseph Beuys,” High Museum of Art,
Atlanta, November 1994 “Bridging the Gap: Trends in Post-World War II
American and European Art,” High Museum of Art, Atlanta,
September-November 1994 “Ray Smith,” High Museum of Art, Atlanta, October
1993 “Studio Artists’ Critique,” Atlanta College of Art, Department of
Continuing Education, Atlanta, September-December 1993 “Dennis Oppenheim,”
High Museum of Art, Atlanta, March 1993 “Faces and Facets of
Multiculturalism,” Atlanta College of Art, Department of Continuing
Education, Atlanta, September-December 1992 “The New York Art Market,”
Hampshire College, Amherst, MA, December 1991 “David Hammons,” Hampshire
College, Amherst, MA, December 1991

“The Wieland Collection would never be what it is today without the 15
years of guidance from Rebecca. She understood our vision of creating a
collection that is totally unique, and she pursued it with passion,
using her extensive gallery and art contacts plus her own very good
judgment when it came to installation. She was also extremely diligent
in the mechanics of making sure that all pieces were documented properly
and that items of interest at auction were thoroughly researched before
we bid. Rebecca is an absolute professional in all aspects of the Fine
Art world.”
– John Wieland
“As a result of my decision to downsize my residence, I found myself
with some with an excess of large 18th and 19th century fine paintings.
Fortunately, I knew of Rebecca who did an outstanding job of locating
and negotiating for the successful liquidation of these pieces. I doubt
if the outcome would have been nearly as successful without her
expertise.”
– Russ Chandler, Atlanta