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Art Market Research
This page intentionally left blank
Art Market Research
A Guide to
Methods and Sources
SECOND EDITION

TOM M C N ULTY

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers

Jefferson, North Carolina
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGUING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
McNulty, Tom, 1955– author.
Art market research : a guide to methods and sources / Tom
McNulty. — Second edition.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-7864-6671-9
softcover : acid free paper♾
1. Art—Collectors and collecting. 2. Art—Economic
aspects. 3. Art literature. I. Title.
N5200.M39 2014
702.9—dc23 2013037864

BRITISH LIBRARY CATALOGUING DATA ARE AVAILABLE

© 2014 Tom McNulty. All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form

or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying
or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publisher.

A Sotheby’s preview exhibition of important Impressionist works

(courtesy Sotheby’s, New York)

Manufactured in the United States of America

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers

Box 611, Jefferson, North Carolina 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
 Table of Contents

PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

ONE. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World . . . . . . . . . . 5

TWO. Buying, Selling and Valuing Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
THREE. Researching Fine and Decorative Arts: Methods Old
and New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
FOUR . Researching Works of Art: Basic Methods and Sources . . . . . . 67
FIVE. Decorative Arts Research: Basic Methods and Sources . . . . . . 140
SIX. Market Research: Works of Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
SEVEN. Market Research: Decorative Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
EIGHT. Sources for the Study of Art Market History . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
NINE. Provenance and Art Law Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

APPENDIX A: ART MARKET JOURNALS, MAGAZINES AND “CURRENT

AWARENESS” SOURCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
APPENDIX B: APPS FOR THE ART MARKET RESEARCHER by
Erin Elliott . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295
APPENDIX C: ELEMENTS REQUIRED FOR A CORRECTLY PREPARED
APPRAISAL by the Appraisers Association of America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298
NOTES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305

v
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 Preface

It occurred to me as I began this revised and enlarged edition of my 2006

Art Market Research: A Guide to Methods and Sources that I never properly
introduced the original. As a librarian, appraiser and teacher, I have been
engaged in art market research since the late 1980s. In the process of conducting
a research project ten or so years ago, I found myself thumbing through one
of three thick folders full of printouts and photocopies of print reference works’
title pages and tables of contents. These folders included my favorite sources
for research in fine arts, decorative arts, and other “collectible” material. Each
of the three categories had become so unwieldy, that I decided to put them in
books; by “books” I mean three-ring binders intended to impose some order
on these large, and growing stacks of paper. Realizing that an index would
make the material truly usable, I decided to write Art Market Research. This
edition revises and supersedes the first.
While the desire to impose order on hundreds of bibliographic citations
was my primary motivation for the first edition, I wanted it to be more than
just another book-length bibliography. My many years of experience as an art
librarian at New York University convinced me that researchers at all levels —
from undergraduate students to tenured faculty members and professional
appraisers — could use some direction in the use of reference material, both
print and online. This edition includes much of the basic instructional material
that appeared in the first edition, but this content is supplemented by an
overview of new sources and tools that can greatly empower the contemporary
researcher of art and its markets.
During the eight years since the first edition, great advances have been
made by the so-called emerging markets for art. The expanding economies of
the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries have ushered in a new
era in which Western powers’ hold on the global art market is far less than cer-
tain. In fact, China — the world’s second largest economy — now boasts first

1
2 P REFACE

place in the market for fine art. With this in mind, Chapter One begins with
an overview of the global art world and a brief discussion of its major players
and institutions. From artists to dealers to collectors, each section is supple-
mented by a highly selective list of books that are widely held in libraries.
These statistics on library inclusion are derived from the online international
catalog WorldCat, which aggregates the inventories of more than 10,000
libraries large and small. WorldCat — a very powerful reference tool — is dis-
cussed in much greater detail in Chapter Three as it relates to research in the
fine and decorative arts.
A generalized discussion of the art world proceeds to a review of the indi-
vidual market venues for art, and the processes involved in determining the
value of individual works. Chapter Two introduces the factors that impact
value, including general popularity of the artist and/or style or period, rarity,
various physical properties (e.g., dimensions, materials), provenance and more.
The appraisal profession and its three professional associations are described
here in some detail.
Chapter Three introduces the basic tenets of research practice, including
the proper use of library catalogs, identification of research materials (primarily
online databases), and more. New research empowering tools, like “search
alerts,” are explored in detail, and the basic resources needed for both fine and
decorative arts research are presented.
Chapters Four and Five explore the more specialized methods and sources
available to the researcher of fine and decorative arts, respectively. For the fine
art researcher, specialized formats like catalogues raisonnés, exhibition catalogs
and artists’ monographs are defined, and tips are offered for their effective use.
An overview of the most important general sources (i.e., those that cover a
range of media) precedes a lengthy section comprised of media-specific (e.g.,
painting, prints) tools for the research of an array of artworks. Chapter Five
offers the same types of content, proceeding from general resources like dic-
tionaries and encyclopedias to reference materials that focus on specific object
types (e.g., furniture, pottery, glass, etc.).
Chapters Six and Seven then proceed to a review of methods and sources
that can assist one in determining the monetary value of fine and decorative
artworks, respectively. Everything from auction catalogs to published, print-
based pricing guides are considered, as are the myriad free and subscription-
based Internet sources used by art market research professionals. Note that
some of the titles included — especially in the decorative arts chapter — might
seem rather dated. Reference works that were included in the first edition were
chosen because they are particularly good, include a vast amount of pictorial
content, and are well-organized. I continue to use numerous sources that were
published twenty or more years ago, if only for object identification, and so
made the decision to retain the majority of these works in the new edition.
 Preface 3

Sources for very current price data are, however, noted as such and given par-
ticularly lengthy discussion.
Whereas any discussion of art and money was until quite recently con-
sidered distasteful in many contexts, scholars of art history, economics and
related fields have shown great interest in the art market over the past decade,
and this interest has engendered a number of interesting research tools for the
historian of the art market. Recognizing this fact, Chapter Eight offers a range
of resources that can be used to identify the monetary value of fine and deco-
rative arts produced in the years preceding 1960. Journals, books and reference
tools that record prices realized by works of art at auction are included here,
along with a selection of monographs on art market topics published by impor-
tant academic presses.
Chapter Nine offers an overview of the basic tools available to the art law
and provenance researcher. Provenance — or the record of ownership — is some-
times a powerful value driver in itself, and so methods of discovering the chain
of ownership can be central to art valuation research. Included in this chapter
are some tips for locating ownership information, along with a basic bibliog-
raphy of reference resources for general art law research.
Three appendices round out the list of resources available to the contem-
porary researcher of fine and decorative arts. Appendix A, “Art Market Journals,
Magazines and ‘Current Awareness’ Sources,” is a highly selective list of news-
papers, journals, magazines and freely available Internet-based newsletters that
can keep the art market researcher au courant. Appendix B, “Selected Apps for
Art Market Research,” lists smart phone and computer tablet apps that will be
of interest to art market researchers. Appendix B was contributed by Erin
Elliott, head librarian at the Sotheby’s Institute of Art, New York. Appendix
C identifies the elements required for a correctly prepared appraisal, reproduced
with permission of the Appraisers Association of America.
This page intentionally left blank
 C HAPTER O NE

The Big Picture: Researching

the Global Art World

In recent years, the expansion of the global markets for fine and decora-
tive arts has gained a tremendous amount of popular and scholarly attention.
In the time since publication of the first edition of this book, numerous changes
have occurred that underscore the increasingly global nature of the twenty-
first century art market. Consider the role of China’s art market which, as of
2010, managed to surpass that of the United States and the United King-
dom, two countries which had dominated the market since the 1950s. The
world’s second largest economy now boasts the first place spot in the economy
for art.1 China’s rapid rise is further underscored by the fact that of the ten
best-selling artists of 2011, six are Chinese who are virtually unknown out-
side Asia2; these include, in descending annual auction revenue order: Zhang
Daqian (1899–1983), Qi Baishi (1864–1957), Xu Beihong (1895–1953),
Wu Guanzhong (1919–2010), Fu Baoshi (1904–1965), and Li Keran (1907–
1989).
Some of the world’s major art galleries increasingly maintain an interna-
tional presence; New York–based Gagosian Gallery, as just one example of this
growing phenomenon, has branches in Rome, Paris, Hong Kong and other
cities around the world. Auction houses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s have had
an international presence for some time, but globalization seems to have ramped
up considerably in this segment of the art world in the recent decade as well.
One must look no further than Phillips de Pury’s BRIC-themed sales for evi-
dence of this transformation. In decades past, we have had many auctions fea-
turing works from multiple countries, but these were usually geographically
contiguous or otherwise related nations (e.g., Latin America, Europe, Asia).
The only unifying element of the works offered in the Phillips de Pury BRIC
sales is the fact that they were produced by artists in the emerging economies
of Brazil, Russia, India and China.
5
6 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

News media — including television, newspapers, magazines and Internet

sites — offer regular coverage of the markets, their readers and viewers marveling
at the skyrocketing prices of art. Academic interest in collecting behavior, as
well as the markets for fine and decorative arts is slowly but steadily on the rise
as well; art historians tend to focus on the history of collecting, while scholars
in fields as diverse as anthropology, sociology and perhaps most obviously, eco-
nomics, use the tools and methods of their disciplines to shed light on the
multi-billion dollar international market for art. Even in undergraduate schools,
it is not uncommon for students to pursue double majors in art history and
economics, in preparation for a professional career in the multi-billion 3 dollar
art market. The burgeoning field of art business has engendered specialized
graduate-level programs, whose graduates seek opportunity in the rapidly
expanding markets for art.
Since the publication of the first edition of this book (2006), an enormous
number of books, journal articles, websites (free and subscription), and other
sources of fine art investment information have appeared. Before proceeding
to review the most important of these resources, the following section presents
a concise overview of the so-called art world, intended for the novice researcher
of just one part of that world — the market.
While the focus of this book is on the markets for art, it should be noted
from the outset that the larger art world, of which the market is just one com-
ponent, is a complex system comprised of distinct, but highly inter-dependent
participant groups — here described as “stakeholders” and “gatekeepers.” The
former include artists, dealers, auctioneers and others whose interests have a
significant monetary component. Gatekeepers, by contrast, include scholars,
critics, and others whose writing, teaching and other activities serve to critically
evaluate artists and interpret or contextualize their works. Certain “ancillary”
professions — like appraisal — strive to maintain an objective stance in as much
as this is possible with a product as subjective as the work of art. In the fol-
lowing section, the role and recent historical evolution of each of these art
world participants is briefly described, with particular reference to its impact
on the market for art in the twenty-first century.

Stakeholders
ARTISTS
Central to any study of the art world, including the markets for art, is
the artist, without whose work we would have no object of study. Artists occupy
a unique position in the workforce; they are among that small group of workers
who “make work primarily because their identity and self-respect are defined
 One. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World 7

by their work. While they want to make money, their involvement with their
work derives from identity rather than money. They may be said to be addicted
to their work in that their reward is primarily characterized by what some econ-
omists refer to as “psychic income.”4
Psychic income, however, will not be acceptable as payment for rent, food
or other necessities of life; many artists, therefore, must supplement their “psy-
chic income” with real money derived from a job which might run the gamut
from waiting tables to teaching art in high schools or colleges. Most artists
probably view success as the ability to live off the proceeds derived from the
sale of art, but most never attain that goal.
In his frequently cited 1989 published lecture on fame in the world of
art,5 Alan Bowness, then Director of the Tate, identifies four successive, meas-
urable phases of success in the art world: peer recognition, critical recognition,
patronage by dealers and collectors and, finally, public acclaim. Today, it is
probably safe to assume that most visual artists attain the first degree of suc-
cess — peer recognition — in college or, even more likely, in a Master of Fine
Arts (MFA) program. The MFA program has a history that is short relative to
comparable degrees in other disciplines, but over the past several decades the
number of programs, and consequently, the number of graduates have seen
tremendous growth. The National Center for Education Statistics combines
the visual and performing arts, making it all but impossible to discern the full
picture on visual artists’ advanced education; but, the most recent Digest of
Education Statistics (2010) reports that in 1970-71, 6,675 Masters degrees were
conferred in the visual and performing arts; by 2008-09, the most recently
reported annual total jumps to 14,918.
Critical reception of an artist’s work—the second of the Bowness “steps toward
success”— might occur simultaneously with step three: patronage by dealers
and collectors. Most emerging artists’ first critical reviews appear as a result of
an exhibition, whether group or solo, and exhibitions lead to patronage.
There are numerous phases in the growth of an artist’s critical reception.
A short notice in a local paper might precede a profile in a national art mag-
azine, which in turn might generate enough interest in the artist to attract the
attention of a scholar/critic who is working on a lengthy, peer-reviewed journal
article. The appearance of the first actual book about an artist and her/his work
represents a significant advancement, as would, presumably, the first doctoral
dissertation or other specialized form of scholarly attention.
Public acclaim, the epitome of artistic acceptance, occurs as a result of
exposure in a wide variety of venues and media. Our most successful artists
have vast bibliographies of writing about their lives and work; they’re repre-
sented in major public and private collections; they garner high prices at auction
and in gallery sales; they might even get a lengthy profile on magazine-format
television programs.
8 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

The titles listed below offer more information on the economic and social
lives of working artists. Included are a selection of the most relevant books,
journal articles, and working papers on the topic of artists in today’s society.
Abbing, Hans. Why Are Artists Poor? The Exceptional Economy of the Arts. Amsterdam:
Amsterdam University Press, 2002. 367p.
Economist and artist Hans Abbing examines the unique economy of the arts, with
particular reference to the economic and social role of the artist. Focusing on the
peculiarities of the arts economy in Western Europe and the United States, and
employing an interdisciplinary approach, Abbing exposes some of the anomalies
inherent in the art economy in the Western world.
Bowness, Alan. The Conditions of Success: How the Modern Artist Rises to Fame. New
York: Thames and Hudson, 1990. 64p.
This frequently cited, short monograph on modern artists’ careers posits the four
steps toward success as noted earlier: peer recognition, critical reception, patronage,
and public acceptance or acclaim.
Cherbok, Joni Maya, Ruth Ann Stewart, and Margaret Jane Wyszomirski, eds. Under-
standing the Arts and Creative Sector in the United States. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers
University Press, 2008. 214p.
This collection of essays explores various aspects of the contribution of the arts
to economic development. A number of essays, notably Joni Maya Cherbo’s
“About Artists,” and Ruth Ann Stewart’s “The Arts and Artist in Urban Revital-
ization” are particularly germane to the study of the contemporary artist’s role in
society.
Galenson, David W. “The Careers of Modern Artists: Evidence from Auctions of Con-
temporary Art.” Journal of Cultural Economics vol. 24, no. 2 (May 2000): pp.87–112.
Economist Galenson analyzes auction prices of forty-two American artists. Data
reveal that the most valuable works produced by artists born prior to 1920 were
executed later in their careers than the equivalent work of artists born more
recently. Note that numerous works of David Galenson and other National Bureau
of Economic Research economists can be found free-of-charge on the NBER web-
site: www.nber.org.
Greffe, Xavier. Arts and Artists from an Economic Perspective. London: Unesco; Eco-
nomica, 2002. 312p.
Scholarly/professional level coverage of the economics of the arts, including music,
film and other performing arts in addition to the visual arts. Includes content on
both for profit and non-profit organizations, with a focus on the sociology of the
artist and the institutional framework within which he or she must operate.
Hellmanzik, Christiane. “Artistic Styles: Revisiting the Analysis of Modern Artists’
Careers.” Journal of Cultural Economics vol. 33, no.3 (Aug. 2009): pp. 201–32.
Presents a cohort-analysis of career patterns of artists born between 1850 and 1945.
Data is analyzed in terms of date-of-birth as well as style affiliation (Fauvism,
Pop, etc.).
Throsby, David. “Economic Analysis of Artists’ Behaviour: Some Current Issues.”
Revue d’Economie Politique vol. 120, no.1 ( Jan. 2010): pp. 47–56.
Describes the unique attributes of creative artists vis à vis other participants in
the overall labor market, while presenting an excellent synthesis of previous
research-based writing on the economic life of the contemporary artist.
 One. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World 9

To find additional books, articles, dissertations and other publication for-

mats on the topic of artists, consult the following databases, which are widely
available in academic and larger public libraries; all of these are described in
greater detail in Chapter Three.
EconLit. Nashville, TN: American Economic Association
EconLit … provides bibliographic coverage of a wide range of economics-related
literature. An expanded version of the Journal of Economic Literature ( JEL)
indexes of journals, books, and dissertations, EconLit covers both economic theory
and application. Updated monthly, with approximately 30,000 new records added
per year [EconLit description, Proquest website].
Sociological Abstracts. Proquest.
One of the most important subject indexes to the literature of sociology. The
database provides abstracts of journal articles and citations to book reviews drawn
from thousands of serials publications, and also provides abstracts of books, book
chapters, dissertations, and conference papers. Records published by Sociological
Abstracts in print during the database’s first 11 years, 1952–1962, have been added
to the database extending the depth of the backfile of this authoritative resource
[Sociological Abstracts description, Proquest website].

Marketing Sources Intended for Artists

As the art economy has expanded, so has the number of resources geared
toward helping new or emerging artists to succeed — or at least survive — in
this challenging profession. The following titles represent a highly selective list
of the best artists’ guides to marketing and career development. To find addi-
tional works of this type in libraries that utilize the Library of Congress system
of subject classification, conduct a search using subject headings like: “Art —
Vocational Guidance,” or “Art — Marketing.”
Bhandari, Heather Darcy, and Jonathan Melber. Art/Work: Everything You Need to Know
(and Do) as You Pursue Your Art Career. New York: Free Press, 2009. 291p.
Offers practical advice for those seeking to begin their career, as well as for those
who are in the process of emerging. Everything from crafting a web presence, to
designing business cards and identifying exhibition opportunities is explored in
this very readable primer on career development.
Carey, Brainard. Making It in the Art World: New Approaches to Galleries, Shows, and
Raising Money. New York: Allworth Press, 2011. 256p.
Excellent overview of tools and techniques for career development, including self-
promotion, traditional media, social media and more.
Crawford, Tad. The Artist-Gallery Partnership: A Practical Guide to Consigning Art. New
York: Allworth Press, 2008. 203p.
Now in its third edition, this standard reference work explains the legal ramifica-
tions of consigning art with galleries. Included are issues of warranty, insurance,
pricing, commissions and other issues related to the consignment relationship.
Individual state laws on consignment are identified and described. Appendix offers
reproducible forms and agreement documents.
Grant, Daniel. The Business of Being an Artist. New York: Allworth, 2010. 392p.
10 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

Contents: Exhibiting and Selling Art; Operating as a Professional; Expanding the

Area of Sales and Income; Developing Relationships with Art Dealers; A Web
Site; When Does Investing in One’s Career Become a Ripoff ?; Artists and the
Law; From School to the Working World; Materials that Artists Use; Getting
Ready to Handle the Pressures; Contests and Commissions; Search for Grants
and Gifts.
Lang, Cay. Taking the Leap: Building a Career as a Visual Artist: the Insider’s Guide to
Exhibiting and Selling Your Art. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2006. 251p.
The author offers sound practical advice intended primarily for the artist early in
the “emerging” phase.
Peot, Margaret. The Successful Artist’s Career Guide: Finding Your Way in the Business
of Art. Cincinnati: North Light Books, 2012. 224p.
Widely held in public and research libraries, this handy guide includes concrete
advice from artists who have found success in their career pursuits. This title is
particularly good for those seeking advice on practical issues such as finding and
financing health insurance, dealing with tax issues, and the like.
Stanfield, Alyson B. I’d Rather Be in the Studio! The Artist’s No-Excuse Guide to Self-
Promotion. Golden, CO: Pentas Press, 2011. 279p.
This artists’ “self-help” manual is very conversational in tone, but packed with
important information for emerging and mid-career artists.
Wojak, Angie, and Stacy Miller. Starting Your Career as an Artist: A Guide for Painters,
Sculptors, Photographers and Other Visual Artists. New York: Allworth Press, 2011.
283p.
This title incorporates a number of very informative interviews with art world
professionals and educators. It also identifies some often overlooked issues includ-
ing studio practice, alternative exhibition venues, advanced art education, and
more.

DEALERS AND AUCTIONEERS

Central to any market-based industry is its sales force which, in the art
world, is comprised of dealers, auctioneers and, to a lesser extent, art advisers
and consultants. A search of the database Reference USA reveals a total of 21,178
businesses classified under the primary heading “Art Galleries & Dealers.”6 Of
these, 5,332 galleries report annual sales of over $500,000, while a far smaller
number approach annual revenues in the tens of millions of dollars. It is impos-
sible to quantify commercial gallery sales with any degree of confidence, but
one market observer estimates that commercial galleries account for 18 percent
of the global art industry.7
Just as galleries range in tone from intimate and friendly to urbane and
what some would describe as “off-putting” if not pretentious, so do the dealers
who own and/or staff them. The small gallery located in a tourist area, featuring
works by local artists with price tags in the range of one to a few hundred
dollars will welcome any visitor. By contrast works hanging in major galleries
in New York City will certainly not have price tags; in fact, in many instances
 One. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World 11

requests for prices are denied the casual visitor, in violation of a New York
City “Truth in Pricing”8 ordinance. Some galleries will have a price list avail-
able, but the interested gallery-goer will have to be aware of that fact, and ask
one of the gallery staff members to provide it.
For those who are new to the art world, this lack of transparency might
seem baffling. After all, commercial galleries are, on one level, “art stores,” and
we are used to learning prices for things when we go into stores — even if we
cannot afford to actually purchase the merchandise we’re inquiring about. So
what accounts for this seemingly aggressive withholding of prices?
The truth is, gallery prices are often not set in stone and, unlike prices
paid for artworks at auction, the actual prices paid for works of art in many
galleries remain confidential information known only to buyer and seller. Some
collectors who acquire works from the gallery on anything nearing a regular
basis will often be offered a discount. In other cases, dealers might discount a
work for a collector he or she perceives as “prestigious,” knowing that this
placement might have a ripple effect on the subject artist’s prices, which will
surely affect the gallery itself. We’ll go into greater detail with this subject in
the next chapter.
While it is easy for some to dismiss art dealers as simply merchants of
paintings, sculptures and other artworks, it is important to note that many art
dealers are extremely knowledgeable, and serve an important function in the
artworld. “In recent years, historians of the art market have been taking a fresh
look at the crucial role art dealers have played as intermediaries between pro-
ducers and consumers of art. Thanks to the ever-closer collaboration between
art historians and economic historians, attention has been drawn to art dealers
acting as promoters of new styles of painting, as developers of public taste and
as disseminators of visual culture around the world in the early-modern
period.”9 In our discussion of experts in the next chapter, the important role
of the art dealer will be explored in much greater detail.
Just as the mention of the expression “art dealer” will evoke in many read-
ers the stereotypical image of a pretentious New Yorker dripping with attitude,
so the term “auctioneer” probably elicits one of two possibilities: a connoisseur
at Christie’s, Sotheby’s or other international venue, or the opposite: the rural
auction caller, whose wares are more likely to be cattle than paintings, drawings
or other works of art. Like the retail gallery world, the auction scene is enor-
mous, and the many thousands of auction houses around the globe can all be
placed somewhere along a continuum defined by size, in terms of revenue gen-
erated. Data related to sales occurring at auction are, unlike their retail coun-
terparts, recorded and made available to the public, making it the most reliable
data we have on the art market.
The titles listed below offer more information on the history and sociology
of art dealing and auctioneering. To find additional works of this type, in
12 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

libraries that employ the Library of Congress Subject Classification System,

conduct a search using expressions like: “Art Dealers,” “Art Dealers — United
States,” or “Auctioneers — United Sates.”
Bellini, Andrea. Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Gallerists But Were Afraid
to Ask. Zürich: JRP Ringier, 2009. 333p.
Structured interviews with fifty-one gallery owners from Europe, the United
States, Asia and Australia shed light on the current role of the dealer in the market
for contemporary artworks.
De Coppet, Laura, and Alan Jones. The Art Dealers: The Powers Behind the Scene Tell
How the Art World Really Works. New York: Cooper Square Press, 2002. 438p.
Beginning with Betty Parsons, this volume offers brief (9–10 page) but informative
biographical sketches on some of the most important dealers of the twentieth cen-
tury.
Feigen, Richard. Tales from the Art Crypt: The Painters, the Museums, the Curators, the
Collectors, the Auctions, the Art. New York: Knopf, 2000. 296p.
Veteran dealer recounts the evolution of various art world institutions through a
series of compelling stories and personal observations on the markets, museums,
artists and collectors of the twentieth century.
Goldstein, Malcolm. Landscape with Figures: A History of Art Dealing in the United
States. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. 370p.
Scholarly but highly readable account of the evolution of the art market in the
United States, from the early 19th century through the end of the 20th. Important
dealers and collectors are included, and well-documented with primary and sec-
ondary source materials.
Herbert, John. Inside Christie’s. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 407p.
John Herbert, public relations director for Christie’s from the late 1950s through
the mid–1980s, offers a fascinating account of the development of the auction
house on the international scene during his tenure.
Herrmann, Frank. Sotheby’s: Portrait of an Auction House. New York: W.W. Norton, 1981.
468p.
Scholarly, but very readable history of storied auction house from its earliest days
through the 20th century. Well-indexed, the many sales detailed include a good
deal of market data, making it a valuable source for the historian of the art market
in England and the United States.
Herstatt, Claudia. Women Gallerists of the 20th and 21st Centuries. Ostfildern: Hatje
Cantz, 2008. 207p.
Individual biographical essays trace the work of major women gallerists of the
twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
Polsky, Richard. The Art Prophets: The Artists, Dealers, and Tastemakers Who Shook the
Art World. New York: Other Press, 2011. 262p.
Presents a highly readable series of ten chapters focusing on individuals (primarily
dealers) who transformed the post–1950s art market in the United States. Profiles
include: Ivan Karp; Stan Lee; Chet Helms & Bill Graham, John Ollman; Joshua
Baer; Virginia Dwan; Tod Volpe; Jeffrey Fraenkel; Louis Meisel; Tony Shafrazi.
Strauss, Michel. Pictures, Passion and Eye: A Life at Sotheby’s. London: Halban, 2011.
290p.
This highly entertaining memoir presents a social history of the twentieth century
 One. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World 13

art market through the eyes of Michel Strauss, Sotheby’s (London) specialist in
modern and Impressionist art.
Taylor, John Russell, and Brian Brooke. The Art Dealers. New York: Scribner, 1969.
316p.
Presents a highly readable account of the evolution of the art trade in the twentieth
century.
Towner, Wesley. The Elegant Auctioneers. New York: Hill & Wang, 1970. 632p.
Surveys the development of the fine and decorative arts auction industry in the
United States, with particular reference to American Art Association, Anderson
Galleries, Sotheby and Company, and other major players.

COLLECTORS
Collectors represent the last link in the chain of institutional players that
comprise the art market; that is, artists produce art, dealers and auctioneers
sell art, and collectors buy art. Throughout the ages, collections have been
amassed through a wide variety of channels, ranging from theft and looting
during and after wars, to traditional patronage of individual artists, to the cur-
rent ubiquitous market-based system. While collectors sometimes acquire
works directly from artists, the typical exchange involves some sort of sales
intermediary, as noted earlier.
Collectors can be divided into two groups: individual and institutional.
The power of certain individual collectors in the art world has evolved con-
siderably over the past few decades, as evidenced by the proliferation of indi-
vidual collectors’ museums that now dot the globe. The monetary value of
works by artists (both living and deceased) can change overnight following
their de-accession from the collections of powerful collectors. Further evidence
of collectors’ enhanced power in the art world can be found in the proliferation
of media coverage of their lives and their collections.10

Resources for the Study of Collecting

The titles listed below offer more information on art collecting, with par-
ticular reference to the nineteenth century through the present day. To find
additional books of this type, in libraries that utilize the Library of Congress
Classification System, conduct a subject search using headings like “Art — Col-
lectors and Collecting”; “Art — Collectors and Collecting — History”; or “Art —
Collectors and Collecting — United States.”
Alsop, Joseph. The Rare Art Traditions: The History of Art Collecting and Its Linked Phe-
nomena Wherever These Have Appeared. New York: Harper & Row, 1982. 691p.
(Series: Bollingen Series, 35; A.W. Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts, 27.)
This extremely well-researched work provides an in-depth survey of art collecting
from its beginning through the 17th century. Most such surveys focus on collecting
in the West, but Asian and Middle Eastern areas are included here. This work’s
14 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

extensive bibliography serves as an excellent tool for further historical research on

the history of collecting. Prices for many works are included throughout, making
it also a good source for the researcher of market history.
Bellini, Andrea. Collecting Contemporary Art. Zürich: JRP/Ringier, 2008. 127p.
This fascinating series of structured interviews offers a good overview of contem-
porary collecting patterns. International in scope.
Collecting 101: Your Definitive Guide to Collecting. Artprice.com in conjunction with
Art Stage Singapore, 2013. http://imgpublic.artprice.com/pdf/art_stage_2013_en.pdf.
This handy little primer (offered free-of-charge via artprice.com) outlines the
basic factors that novice collectors should consider before embarking upon a pur-
chase. Contents: Buying on the Primary Market; Buying on the Secondary Market;
Market Players; Learning About the Artist; Learning About the Artwork; Making
Sense of Prices; About a Gallery or Dealer; Making Your Own Decision; Nego-
tiating a Lower Price; Art as an Investment; How to Care for You Artwork.
Constable, W.G. Art Collecting in the United States of America: An Outline of a History.
London: Nelson, [1964]. 210p.
Surveys the history of art collecting in the United States, with the goal of relating
“political, economic, social and cultural influences and personal predilections”
(pref.) to the development of various private collections.
Gere, Charlotte, and Marina Vaizey. Great Women Collectors. New York: Abrams, 1999.
208p.
Fascinating, well-researched and illustrated exploration of major collections of
fine and decorative art assembled by women over the last three centuries. Repre-
sentative collectors include : Catherine the Great; Madame de Pompadour;
Madame du Barry; Empress Marie Feodorovna; Empress Josephine; Duchess of
Portland; Lady Dorothy Nevill; Lady Charlotte Schreiber; Alice de Rothschild;
Queen Mary; Princess Marie Louise; Queen Alexandra; Marjorie Merriweather
Post; Isabella Steward Gardner; Louisine Elder Havemeyer; Mary Cassatt;
Gertrude Stein; Helena Rubenstein; Coco Chanel; Mrs. Abby Aldrich Rockefeller;
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney; Dominique de Menil; Peggy Guggenheim.
Holst, Niels von. Creators, Collectors and Connoisseurs: The Anatomy of Artistic Taste
from Antiquity to the Present Day [translation of Künstler, Sammler, Publikum]. New
York: Putnam, [1967]. 399p.
Encyclopedic survey of the history of collecting, museums, and the concept of
connoisseurship and taste from antiquity through the early 20th century.
Lipman, Jean, and the editors of Art in America, comp. The Collector in America. New
York: Viking, 1971. 270p.
Well-illustrated survey of major American collectors, including: Nelson A. Rock-
efeller; Wright S. Ludington; Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch; John
Hay Whitney; Joseph H. Hirshhorn; William Copley; Mary and Leigh Block; A.
James Speyer; Paul and Ruth Tishman; Philip Johnson; Roy Neuberger; Mrs.
Albert D. Lasker; James Thrall Soby; Lydia Winston Malbin; Larry Aldrich;
Alfonso Ossorio; Paul Bernat; Mr. & Mrs. Jack W. Glenn; Dr. and Mrs. Irving
Levitt; Henry P. McIlhenny.
Norton, Thomas E. 100 Years of Collecting in America: The Story of Sotheby Parke Bernet.
New York: Abrams, 1984. 240p.
Traces the emergence of Sotheby Parke Bernet as one of the most important auction
houses in the world. Each year, commencing with 1884, is briefly described and
 One. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World 15

illustrated with notable works of fine and decorative art acquired from the Amer-
ican Art Association, Parke Bernet or Sotheby Parke Bernet. Review ends in 1983.
Rheims, Maurice. The Strange Life of Objects: 35 Centuries of Art Collecting & Collectors
[translation of La Vie Étrange des Objets]. New York: Athenaeum, 1961. 274p.
Very readable overview of the evolution of art collecting over the centuries. Presents
the author’s musings on collectors’ psychology, the development of collections
throughout history, the impact of “fashion” on art and vice-versa, and the myriad
forces that have affected the value of art — positively and negatively — over the years.
Rhys, Owain. Contemporary Collecting: Theory and Practice. Edinburgh: MuseumsEtc.,
2011. 163p.
Partial contents: History of Contemporary Collecting; Contemporary Collecting
in Europe; Contemporary Collecting in North America; Survey of Curators of
Contemporary Life; Collecting the 21st Century; Contemporary Collecting Strat-
egy for History, 2009–2014
Saarinen, Aline B. The Proud Possessors: The Lives, Times, and Tastes of Some Adventurous
American Art Collectors. New York: Random House, [1958]. 423p.
Profiles the lives of major collectors from the 19th through mid–20th centuries.
Satchell, Stephen. Collectible Investments for the High Net Worth Investor. Amsterdam:
Elsevier/Academic Press, 2009. 266p.
This series of essays explores the use of high-end collectibles to diversify the invest-
ment portfolio. In addition to fine art, individual chapters explore the investment
potential of everything from stamps, coins and books to wine and classic cars.
Watson, Peter. From Manet to Manhattan: The Rise of the Modern Art Market. New
York: Random House, 1992. 558p.
Very lively, readable survey of the development of the art market in Europe and
the United States; includes a very extensive bibliography. Of particular interest
to the art market history researcher: Outroping, sales by candle and Mr. Colnaghi’s
Levee: the early years of the art market; appendixes: world record prices paid for
works of art (with their present-day equivalents); real value of paintings in history:
an index to convert prices in the past to present-day values.

Global Art Investment Sources: Monographs

The following titles represent a broad selection of print and online mono-
graphs (i.e., books) that offer analysis of the international markets for fine and
decorative arts. The inclusion of market data is noted, as are any special features
of interest to the serious global art market investor.
To find additional, or new titles on this subject, use the following Library
of Congress Subject Headings: Art as an investment; Art — Economic Aspects.
Amariglio, Jack, Joseph W. Childers, and Stephen E. Cullenberg, eds. Sublime Economy:
On the Intersection of Art and Economics. London: Routledge, 2009. (Series: Routledge
Frontiers of Political Economy, no. 111.) 316p.
For the serious investor, this collection of scholarly essays explores economic and
cultural theories of use and valuation of cultural objects. Partial contents: Tracing
the Economic: Modern Art’s Construction of Economic Value; Use, Value, Aes-
thetics: Gambling with Difference/Speculating with Value; How Aesthetics and
Economics Met in Voc Ed; Art, Fleeing from Capitalism: A slightly Disputatious
16 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

Interview/Conversation; Imaginary Currencies: Contemporary Art on the Market:

Critique Confirmation, or Play.
Art Market Matters. Helvoirt: European Fine Art Foundation, 2004. 72p.
Contents: A Licit International Trade in Cultural Objects; Art Trade and the
Museum: Marriage or Love Affair? Dealer’s Creative Power: An Historical View;
Scholars and Dealers; Artist and Droit de Suite; Practical Due Diligence for the
International Art Market.
Benhamou-Huet, Judith. The Worth of Art: Pricing the Priceless. New York: Assouline,
2001. 147p.
Examines the phenomenon of price formation in the contemporary art market;
intelligently written, in a popular tone, suitable for the novice collector in need
of basic information on the market, its processes and players.
Boll, Dirk. Art for Sale: A Candid View of the Art Market. Ostfildern, Germany: Hatje
Cantz, 2011. 199p.
This short monograph is an excellent overview of the market for art. It provides
brief but very informative surveys of the major markets and institutional players
in the burgeoning global art scene. Individual collecting categories (e.g., works
on paper) and the factors that affect artwork valuation are intelligently surveyed
as well.
Butler, John. Art as Investment. London: Economist Intelligence Unit, 1979. 85p.
(Series: Special Report, no. 74.)
Compares the “returns on investment in art, within the period 1960–79 with the
earnings from ordinary industrial shares over the same time [report summary].”
Surveys include: Old Master paintings; English 18th and 19th century paintings;
Impressionist paintings; Modern paintings; American paintings; Modern prints;
Manuscripts; Books; Porcelain and ceramics; Chinese ceramics; Glass; Antique
and Victorian silver; Chinese jades; Furniture.
_____. Art as Investment. 1984 ed. London: Economist Intelligence Unit, 1984. 106p.
(Series: Special Report, no. 167.)
Compares “the returns on investment in art, within the period 1959–1983, with
earning from ordinary industrial shares over the same years [ report summary].”
Surveys include: Old Master paintings; English 18th and 19th century paintings;
European 19th century paintings; Impressionist paintings; Modern paintings;
American painting; Portrait miniatures; Manuscripts; Books; Furniture; Ceramics;
Chinese ceramics; English silver.
Findlay, Michael. The Value of Art: Money, Power, Beauty. Munich: Prestel, 2012. 207p.
Well-researched and written handbook, full of critical insight and solid, practical
advice from veteran art dealer and market expert Michael Findlay.
Ginsburg, Victor A., and David Throsby. Handbook of the Economics of Art and Culture.
Amsterdam: Elsevier North–Holland, 2006. 1321p. [+42p. index].
Partial contents: Art and Culture in the History of Economic Thought; History
of Art Markets; Defining Cultural and Artistic Goods; Value and the Valuation
of Art in Economic and Aesthetic Theory; Economic Analysis of Art Law; Copies
of Artworks: the Case of Paintings and Prints; Copyright, Art and Internet: Bless-
ing the Curse?; Censorship versus Freedom of Expression in the Arts; Arts in the
“New Economy”; Culture and Economic Performance; Culture and Economic
Development; Empirical Studies of Demand for the Performing Arts; Creativity
and the Behavior of Artists; Artistic Labor Markets; Artists’ Careers and their
 One. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World 17

Labor Markets; Art Auctions; The Computation of Prices Indices; Cultural Her-
itage: Economic Analysis and Public Policy; Economics of Museums.
Goodwin, James, ed. The International Art Markets: The Essential Guide for Collectors
and Investors. London: Kogan Page, 2008. 360p.
Forty-three country-specific chapters follow a concise overview of art market
basics. Depending upon the country under review, specific aspects of the national
market for the visual arts might include topics like “specialty markets,” “art shows
and fairs,” “legislative aspects,” etc.
Hunter, Lisa. The Intrepid Collector: The Beginner’s Guide to Finding, Buying and Appre-
ciating Art on a Budget. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2006. 353p.
Intended for the novice collector, this handy tome offers practical advice on acquir-
ing art through a variety of sources; individual collecting categories (e.g., con-
temporary art, oriental rugs, etc.) are defined, and criteria for selection are offered.
Popular and readable in tone, but packed with excellent information.
McAndrew, Clare. The Art Economy: An Investor’s Guide to the Art Market. Dublin:
Liffey Press, 2007. 278p.
Well-written and thoroughly researched, this is an excellent primer for the begin-
ner. Partial contents: International Art Market; Economics of the Art Market; Art
as an Investment: Returns; Tax and the Art Market; Resale Royalties; Future of
Art Investment.
_____. The International Art Market in 2011: Observations on the Art Trade Over 25
Years. Helvoirt [The Netherlands]: The European Fine Art Foundation, 2012. 191p.
This concise overview of the market offers a wealth of statistical data on the market
for fine arts. Individual sectors are analyzed, as are trends in the so-called emerging
markets. The author’s analysis of macro-level trends (e.g., the relationship between
the market for art and general economic indicators) is well-argued and docu-
mented.
_____, ed. Fine Art and High Finance: Expert Advice on the Economics of Ownership.
New York: Bloomberg, 2010. 317p.
Collection of essays by experts in their respective fields present in-depth analysis
on topics of interest to fine art collector/investors. Partial contents: Art Appraisals,
Prices and Valuations; Art Price Indices; Art Risk; Art Banking; Art Funds; Gov-
ernment and the Art Trade; Insurance and the Art Market; Art and Taxation in
the United States; Art and Taxation in the United Kingdom and Beyond; Art
Conservation and Restoration; Illegal Art Trade.
McCarthy, Kevin F. A Portrait of the Visual Arts: Meeting the Challenges of a New Era.
Santa Monica: RAND Corp., 2005. [PDF available free-of-charge at www.rand.org].
Surveys the visual art world’s “infrastructure” and profiles all of the key individual
and institutional players in the growing art market. Recommended for the begin-
ning collector/investor.
Mossetto, Gianfranco, and Marilena Vecco, eds. Economics of Art Auctions. Milan:
FrancoAngeli, 2002. 243p.
Collection of original papers delivered at the 2002 international workshop held
by ICARE, the International Center for Art Economics (Venice). Professional/
scholarly essays, while now somewhat dated, offer some good background to the
current international art market. Individual chapters arranged in four Sections:
Profitability of Art Investments; Strategic Operations of Art Auctions; Internet
and Art Auctions; Case Studies.
18 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

Renneboog, Luc, and Christophe Spaenjers. “Buying Beauty: On Prices and Returns
in the Art Market.” Version: April 2012. Available: Social Science Research Network:
http://papers.ssrn.com
The authors present a hedonic regression analysis of an enormous data set com-
prised of over one million sales transactions. Note that the Social Science Research
Network (SSRN) provides access to working papers, journal articles and preprints
on a number of art market topics.
Robertson, Iain. A New Art from Emerging Markets. Surrey, UK: Lund Humphries,
2011. 208p.
Noted art market expert describes the three primary types of emerging markets
for contemporary art: the recently establishing, the maturing, and the mature.
Issues as diverse as the impact of government intervention in markets to risk assess-
ment and political/economic value drivers.
_____, ed. Understanding International Art Markets and Management. London: Rout-
ledge, 2005. 280p.
Partial contents: Economics of Taste; International Art Market; Success and Failure
of International Arts Management: the Profitable Evolution of a Hybrid Disci-
pline; Stakeholder Relationships in the Market for Contemporary Art; Managing
Uncertainty: the Visual Art Market for Contemporary Art in the United States;
Emerging Art Markets for Contemporary Art in East Asia; World Taste in Chinese
Art; Nature of Supply and Demand in the Old Master Picture Market; Art Crime;
Current and Future Value of Art.
_____, and Derrick Chong, eds. The Art Business. London: Routledge, 2008. 233p.
Partial contents: Price Before Value; Selling Used Cars, Carpets, and Art: Aesthetic
and Financial Value in Contemporary Art; Investing in Art: Art as an Asset Class;
“Chindia” as Art Market Opportunity; Authorship and Authentication; Ethics
and the Art Market.
Skatershchikov, Sergeı̆. Skate’s Art Investment Handbook: The Comprehensive Guide to
Investing in the Global Art and Art Services Market. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010.
289p.
This well researched handbook provides a wealth of information on the global
market for art. The author offers practical information on all aspects of art acqui-
sitions, from the basics of valuation to the often-overlooked costs associated with
fine art ownership. The following appendices include an impressive amount of
sales data: Skate’s Masterpieces Peer Group [Top 1000 Works of Art by Market
Value]; Skate’s Top 500 Artists by Market Value; Skate’s Index of Repeat Sales;
Paintings: Size Group Definitions. See also Skate’s Art Investment Review, the
author’s online resource, described in the following section.
Stallabrass, Julian. Art Incorporated: The Story of Contemporary Art. Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2004. 229p.
Readable, intelligent (but not overly academic) analysis of the evolution of the
current status of the international art markets; highly recommended for the novice
collector/investor.
Thompson, Donald N. The $12 Million Stuffed Shark: The Curious Economics of Con-
temporary Art. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010. 268p.
Critical, but highly readable account of the personalities, practices and phenomena
that characterize the contemporary art market. Contents: Branding and Insecurity;
Branded Dealers; Art of the Dealer; Art and Artists; Damien Hirst and the Shark;
 One. The Big Picture: Researching the Global Art World 19

Warhol, Koons and Emin; Charles Saatchi: Branded Collector; Christie’s and
Sotheby’s; Choosing an Auction Hammer; Auction Psychology; Secret World of
Auctions; Francis Bacon’s Perfect Portrait; Auction Houses vs. Dealers; Art Fairs:
The Dealer’s Final Frontier; Art and Money; Pricing Contemporary Art; Fakes;
Art Critics; Museums; End Game; Contemporary Art as an Investment.
Throsby, C.D. Economics and Culture. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
208p.
Surveys the relationship between economic and cultural theories. Of particular
interest to the collector/investor: Chapter Two: Theories of Value; Theory of
Value in Economics; Cultural Value; Can Economic Value Encompass Cultural
Value?
Velthuis, Olav. Talking Prices: Symbolic Meanings of Prices on the Market for Contemporary
Art. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2005. 264p.
Presents a thorough examination of dealers’ practices regarding the prices they place
on works in their galleries. Included is an in-depth analysis of the overall structure
of the art market, its stakeholders, and their influence relative to pricing.
 C HAPTER T WO

Buying, Selling,
and Valuing Art

The previous chapter took as its subject the increasingly global nature of
the art market. Here, we’ll consider the market for individual works, the factors
that influence value, and the various ways in which these works of art are
traded. Whether they are motivated by passion, by profit potential, or by some
combination of the two, collectors must have a good understanding of the fac-
tors that work in tandem to create monetary value in works of art. In order to
better understand these value drivers and the numerous different types of value
that can be assigned to art, it behooves us to consider the idea of value itself.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines “value” as “the material or monetary
worth of a thing; the amount at which it may be estimated in terms of some
medium of exchange or other standard of a similar nature.” We all comprehend
the idea of value in relation to certain materials or commodities. Gold, for
example, is universally accepted as precious, so much so that the expression
“gold standard” has come to be used synonymously with anything — from
objects to actions — that are considered exceptionally fine or valuable. Applying
the concept of value to the unique work of art is a great challenge, because the
relative weight of each value driver will vary, depending upon a number of fac-
tors to be described below and in the next chapter.
From artists to dealers to collectors themselves, many of the art world’s
stakeholders assign monetary values to artworks, but it is important to note
that in so-doing they are not providing “appraisals” of those works. The young
artist who decides that she will accept nothing less than $2,000 for a particular
work is certainly providing a valuation of that work, as is the dealer who is in
search of a buyer of a Picasso print for which he’ll take anywhere from $20,000
to $25,000. Appraisals, by contrast, are formal documents that not only assign
a value to a work, but also provide data (usually in the form of comparable

20
 Two. Buying, Selling and Valuing Art 21

sales), methodology, market analysis and other documentation in support of

the assigned value. In this section, we’ll take a close look at the most important
of the types of value assignable to artworks, along with the numerous factors
that work in tandem to create value. Then, we’ll examine the various fine and
decorative art market venues — including galleries, auction houses and other
markets — and note the characteristics of each.

Valuing Art
Before proceeding with this section, I must reiterate the disclaimer I
included in the first edition of this book; that is, while ever-increasing numbers
of user-friendly sources of valuation data become available on a regular basis,
sometimes the services of a professional appraiser are absolutely warranted.
The content that follows is geared toward the beginning or intermediate-level
researcher who is seeking to establish a “ballpark” value for a work — or simply
to locate the value for an item in the market. I refer, therefore, to the process
of “valuation” rather than that of “appraisal,” the latter being the purview of
the professional, and the former, as noted earlier, related to value assignment
(or discovery) that might be conducted by a wide array of professionals (includ-
ing artists) and/or laypersons. With this in mind, an overview of the appraisal
profession, including sources and criteria for the selection of qualified apprais-
ers, precedes a concise overview of the factors that work to create value in a
wide range of fine and decorative artworks.

FINDING AND WORKING WITH

PROFESSIONAL APPRAISERS
As the overall market for fine and decorative art has grown, so has the
need for the services of professional appraisers. The professionalization of the
appraisal industry is a relatively recent phenomenon, perhaps because the art
world is itself one of the least-regulated industries in the world. Most people
are surprised to learn that there are few hard-and-fast rules or requirements
governing the work of appraisers. “Professions” are generally thought of as hav-
ing a few elements in common, which separate them from “jobs.” These include
prescribed educational requirements, professional association(s), codes of ethics,
and in many cases, legislation (whether federal, state or local) or other formal
regulations governing certification or licensure. Appraisal could be considered
an evolving profession, as it exhibits some, but not yet all of these elements.
Technically speaking, there is no minimal level of educational attainment
required in order to work in the appraisal business. The appraiser lacking at
least a BA or other baccalaureate diploma is of course the exception, but there
22 A RT M ARKET R ESEARCH

are individuals whose extensive experience in the art business — perhaps com-
prised of decades buying and selling art — has in fact prepared them for the
task of assigning value to art. But today’s market environment is so large and
complex, and the potential for litigation so real, that the appraiser’s qualifica-
tions and experience should be seriously scrutinized before he or she is hired.
As noted above, one of the hallmarks of true professions is the evolution
of professional associations intended to oversee and in varying degrees, regulate
the activities of its membership. The appraisal profession has three such asso-
ciations:
American Association of Appraisers (AAA)
National Headquarters Address:
386 Park Avenue South, Suite 2000
New York, N.Y. 10016
Website: http://www.appraisersassoc.org/
The Appraisers Association of America, established in 1949, is the premier national
association of personal property appraisers who focus on fine and decorative arts.
With a membership of over 700 independent appraisers in 100 different areas of
specialization, the AAA’s roster of well-established professionals has the widest
range of experience and expertise in their respective fields. The Appraisers Asso-
ciation of America is very involved in basic and continuing education of its mem-
bership, and partners with a variety of colleges and universities in the provision
of specialized appraisal courses.
The AAA requires that its member appraisers adhere to the highest ethical
standards in serving the public interest as follows:
• provide independent valuation outside of third party influences
• retain no outside interest in the subject property other than an accurate
and professional value
• contract for appraisal work only within the areas of their professional
expertise
• reach objective value conclusions by considering all factors in appraisal
standards
• use the highest standards of connoisseurship in examining and docu-
menting property
• professional remuneration is independent of the value of the subject
property
To learn more about the AAA, or to find an AAA specialist appraiser,
consult the Association’s website.
American Society of Appraisers (ASA)
National Headquarters Address:
11107 Sunset Hills Rd., Suite 310
Reston, Va. 20190
Website: http://www.appraisers.org
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