Do You Know The Value Of Your Art Collection?

Unfortunately, not every piece of jewelry or fine art you’ll find on the market will have clearly discernible price tags you can just readily see. Art valuation is a very elaborate, intricate process that involves much more than simply looking at a piece of art.

Art valuation is a complicated matter. Often, it involves accounting for a wide variety of underlying factors, including but not limited to:

  1. Market demand
  2. Valuation trends & research data
  3. Liquidity
  4. Reasons for selling or buying
  5. The artistic effort, scale, and quality

It can be difficult to gauge these factors from a first glance. One could have many underlying motivations for buying or selling art, a wide range of factors could motivate one to buy or sell art, and even the quickest market trends can lead to a precipitous rise or fall in an artwork’s value.

It’s important to put all of those factors into account when assessing the value of your artwork, but this can be a considerably easier process said than done. Consider referring to price guides, consulting with art appraisers to determine a value, and getting robust art collection insurance to protect that value.

How To Find The Right Art Appraiser

Appraisers are experienced price valuation specialists that can help you determine the total value of your art collection, comprehensively analyzing all of the aforementioned factors to determine a final valuation. 

As their services come at a fee, however, it’s best to refer to price guides first. Some reputable price guides include:

  1. International Art Prices
  2. Contemporary Print Portfolio
  3. Art Sales Index
  4. Gordon’s Print Price Annual
  5. Davenports Art Reference & Price Guide
  6. International Auction Records
  7. Leonard’s Annual Price Index of Art Auctions

Some websites that are also helpful for art pricing include:

  1. Invaluable.com
  2. Artprice.com
  3. Artnet.com
  4. Askart.com
  5. FindArtInfo.com
  6. MutualArt.com

If all else fails through, then it’s time to seek an appraiser. Make sure to look for one with reputable and positive reviews, and one who’s specialized in appraising the types of art that you own. Once they’ve finished their evaluation, they will give you a formal written statement. 

While the following organizations don’t conduct appraisals of their own, they do offer useful references to get in touch with appraisers. They include the American Society of Appraisers, the Appraisers Association of America, and the International Society of Appraisers, respectively. Get in touch with them here:

Work With A Professional Art Insurer

Once you’ve settled on a concrete value, it’s time to invest in good art collection insurance to protect all that value. Art collection insurance will protect your fine art, as well as its value, from damage, losses, or thefts. The cost of such an insurance plan will depend on:

  1. The value of your individual pieces
  2. The deductibles (if there are any)
  3. The total collection value
  4. The type of policy you’re after

These policies may not always charge you at the most cost-effective or affordable value, but we feel that it’s well worth the price, so you don’t risk losing exponentially more value. And in California, you can’t go wrong with the FACE Insurance.

We ensure everything from wineries, to fine watches and jewels, to sports memorabilia, to automobiles, to whatever other treasured artwork is found in your collection.
Need coverage? Get in touch with us today to get in touch with the best in California art collection insurance.