“Original” Gilding

Nearly impossible to ascertain with certainly. People making such claims should be asked to describe how this has been determined. Under questioning, most of these descriptions are quickly amended to “old” gilding, which is fine, but quite different.

Negotiating for Sport

Do not negotiate for something unless you are truly interested in buying it. Dealers become highly provoked by prospective buyers who barter over price but have no intention of following through on the deal.

Quality

Given the choice, don’t buy an artist’s least oil painting when you can buy, for the same price, the same artist’s best watercolor, or drawing. Always buy from the top of a specific market, never the bottom.

Authenticity

The art market has always paid a premium for artist’s “signature” pieces, Monet’s “Haystacks”, eg. Collectors are comfortable with these images, and so are their guests. They are what everyone is looking for and expects. There is generally more value in these works than those that are odd, unusual, or atypical.

Mirrors

These sell well on the antiques market. Collectors should remember that many of them are made from empty picture frames, the mirrored glass distressed to appear old.

Light vs. Heavy

Older pieces tend to be light in their weight. The cost of most antiques lay in the materials, not the hand labor, and older craftsmen were frugal with their supplies.

The Rule of Marquetry

Marquetry (naturalistic patterns), parquetry (geometric patterns), and other inlaid decoration is judged for the tightness of the seams. Wide seams of dark filler, usually stained wax, are a sign of mediocre work.

Selling Art and Antiques

We have guided over $5 million in sales through public auctions, private, and institutional sales over the past 12 months, in categories as diverse as Art Deco Cartier jewelry, 19th century American paintings, early porcelain, a 1966 guitar formerly owned by Jimi Hendrix, rare coins and stamps, Walt Disney animation drawings from the 1930’s, and Greek antiquities.

The art market comprises both opportunity and peril. We help our clients to make informed decisions about what to sell, when to sell, how to sell, and under what conditions.

Private Sales

There are many case in which a private sale, either to a collector, an institution, or to a reliable dealer, offers distinct advantages. These transactions are usually speedier than other options, and in some ways more predictable. A price is negotiated and set and all that remains are the arrangements for a proper transfer of funds and property. Often, the buyer in these transactions will pay a premium for the same reasons that attract the seller, usually speed and privacy.

Our role in these transactions is multi-level:

We provide a thorough appraisal of the piece, including a condition report, and, when necessary, a conservation analysis.
We maintain a comfortable separation between the buyer and seller.
We assist in negotiating a price and the exchange of property and funds.
We can arrange for expert advice on capital gains and tax issues.
We arrange the details of packing and shipping

Auction Sales

The same issues apply to purchases made from dealers, private collectors, and institutions that apply to buying at auction. We determine answers to the questions that allow the collector the freedom to make a good decision.

Estates; auction sales offer the executor a way to satisfaction the “fiduciary duty” requirement that estate properties be sold to their best advantage. In mast cases auction sales also offer the family a method of sale where a variety of different pieces can be sold under one roof, with one negotiation, and one contract.
Collectors; auction offers private sellers of certain properties a venue where all interested parties must bid against one another, with results that are often record-breaking.

Auction Sale Variables and Other Considerations

We have negotiated auction sale contracts of considerable diversity, and from both sides of the table, on behalf of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, highly visible Hollywood personalities, and US diplomatic personnel, negotiating on behalf of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and the US State Department.

A few of the primary variables in the decision to sell at auction would include:

Which auction house should offer the property?
At what time of year?
In what specific type of sale?

Specific variables regarding auction consignments would include:

The correct level of the pre-sale estimates.
The reserve to be placed on the property, if any.
The terms of the consignment contract, including; commission rate, buy-in fees, shipping, photography costs, insurance, unsold property policy, cataloging fees, catalogue description, order of sale questions, marketing and publicity plans, and designation in sale catalogue.

It is not uncommon that a combination of auction sales and private sales is the best option for certain sellers, especially those with collections of significant diversity.