Why art assessment is vital

Keeping your art collection catalogued and evaluated will help greatly in assessing its market value.

As you collect art pieces over the years, it is advisable to have a professional assessment of important works or of the entire collection. In fact, it is best to have the collection catalogued, evaluated and suitably documented. This will not only ensure that all the art is documented and its fair market value is assessed, it also helps when selling off works or in making decisions regarding new acquisitions. In addition, such documentation is useful for insurance and tax purposes.

In general, once the collection is documented, its focus becomes clearer; it becomes easier to identify works which do not fit in with the collection guidelines and to discover gaps in the art collection. Extraneous works can then be sold off and works that complete collection guidelines can be acquired. In cases, where the art collections are small and where all relevant documents exist, it might be possible to do the cataloging yourself, but it is imperative to get an independent assessment and valuation done by an expert. Valuation is a financial estimate based on several market factors and variables and there are select art specialists who are certified to provide the service, especially when it comes to authentication.

Authenticity check

When paintings, antiques and collectibles are part of an inheritance, they may lack any documentation, and in such cases, having an expert conduct the inventory and evaluation can be useful. There may also be cases where the authenticity of a work may be in question and an expert can authenticate them.

Similarly, the physical condition of the artworks contributes heavily to its market value; therefore, during the assessment any concerns with regards to restoration and conservation can be identified. Subsequent measures for preservation can then be taken. In terms of documents, it helps to retain authenticity certificates, sales receipts and letters/materials relating to provenance. It helps to maintain digital copies of all paper documents. Any prior insurance appraisals or assessments are also useful to have, all of which contribute to the overall valuation.

Documents pertaining to price history or auction figures for relevant artists who are part of the collection are also useful in evaluating the artwork. Broadly speaking, the valuation depends on several factors such as the demand for a particular artist’s work, secondary market prices, quality, authenticity, the significance of the work in terms of rarity, culture and historicity, and condition of the art. Global interest in art from a particular region can also affect art prices and hence the valuation.

It is possible that for a variety of reasons, prices of an artwork fall below the purchase price, or prices go up dramatically after the artist passes away. However, some of the price fluctuations might be temporary and could stabilise after some time.

The author is a Bangalore-based art consultant, curator and writer. She blogs at Art Scene India and can be reached on [e-mail]

Dab Hand is your fortnightly art world low-down. It will tell you all about what fresh ideas are out there, what to collect and what to admire from afar. And, of course, what not to.