“How can I persuade a reluctant dealer to provide a value on the work of an artist he represents?” My Opinion: We have a policy in our office. Do not ask a dealer for a value unless you have researched it first yourself. The research usually begins with an auction search, Googling information and utilizing your art and antiques reference library of art and antiques. When you decide you have a pretty good handle on the fair market price you can then call the dealer and say “I have checked auction prices on your artist, Billy Brown, and it appears paintings of his from the 1960s that are about 36 x 48 inches sell for $2,000. That doesn’t seem nearly enough to me in this market. After all, he has had a number of exhibitions here and inEurope. I want to do justice to your artist with an accurate value.”
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The above is an excerpt from an article by Elin Lake-Ewald, Ph.D, ASA, RICS, published in the ASA Personal Property Journal, Autumn 2008 / Winter 2009.
To read the complete article please click here:
PPJ Vol 17 (34) 2008 2009 For Appraisers Only - Responses to some FAQs