Michael McGinnis established Phillips's Contemporary Art department in 1999. He has since built a strong team of experts who have consistently set auction records and secured Phillips's reputation at the cutting edge of the art market. Prior to Phillips, Mr. McGinnis worked for five years at another major auction house in New York, where he was involved in the sale of many important single owner collections, and prior to that, he worked at Richard Gray Gallery in Chicago. He specializes in art from the New York School and Minimalism, with an interest in art of the 1980s through today.