Defining the importance of an art appraisal

A fine art appraisal is a legal document that is as important as a written will and it is the only formal method by which you can accurately describe to an interested party the relative values of a work of fine art. A properly prepared appraisal by a knowledgeable art professional will make clear all of the different relative valuations of that work and will present you with the up-to-date relevant information that you seek.

People sometimes ask... Should I place my confidence in an 'art appraiser' or an 'art academician' simply because he or she completed a certificate course in 'how to appraise art'

Well, you just might want to think that over very carefully. You don't want to confuse someone who passed a 'certificate course' in art appraising, with someone who has been active for decades as an art appraiser and fine art specialist for 20th century paintings and prints.

Rather, it might be wiser to place your trust in a dedicated independent appraiser, with a decades long track record of buying, selling, researching and appraising 20th century works of art. You want to be assured that you've chosen a professional who can hand you the accurate information that you need to know concerning your valuable paintings and hand-pulled prints.

Fine art appraising is a difficult 'soft-science' that has to be passionately learned and cultivated over time. The person that can serve you best is someone who is well experienced in the retail fine art gallery sector for original 20th century works and has a rich knowledge base concerning paintings, prints, artists and techniques. You want an appraiser who can interpret the sometimes profound differences found in art auction sales results and who also has a fertile understanding of the nuances, trends and fluctuations that inherently influence "the pricing of fine art".

Due to the fact that the relative values of a broad range of Canadian, North American and European works of art, be it paintings, hand-pulled prints or sculptures, are now changing so often and over shorter spans of time, that accurate information-based art appraisals are more important to owners of fine art than ever before. Here's a question you should be asking yourself. Is the insurance coverage you possess for your treasured artworks up-to-date?

Don't take for granted that your artworks are insured for their full market value just because they are listed under your general contents policy. This is an important reminder, that insurers require actual appraisal documentation to obtain full coverage for your treasured artworks, as opposed to believing they are fully insured under a general contents category of your policy. Finding this out after the fact can be a shocking and expensive mistake on your part. It's always wise to be in-the-know concerning the value of the items in your personal treasured collections.

There are a several different types of valuations commonly employed by fine art appraisers, and they are: Estimated Art Gallery Value, Fair Market Value, Replacement Value, Estimated Art Auction Value and Marketable Cash Value, commonly referred to as Quick Disposal value. Each described in detail below.

Estimated Art Gallery Value (EGV) is a term used to assess the reasonable estimated selling price of an artwork in a retail art gallery setting. This is a short range of value that offers a realistic view of what a proper selling price could be for the artwork in question. When possible, research is performed for similar works in a retail gallery setting to verify that our estimates are reasonably accurate and within range.

Fair Market Value (FMV) is a legal term and often defined as ”the price at which an artwork would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither being under any compulsion to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts.” Fair Market value is also a hypothetical value; the value of which sophisticated people with knowledgeable insight will agree to trade upon. It is not necessarily wholesale or retail value, but it could be a sum calculated to be within that range. What is considered, when setting Fair Market Value by a fine art appraiser, is what a person with financial means is willing to pay for a work of art when he or she has all the relevant facts about it and is under no pressure to buy or sell. In other words, what someone is actually willing to pay a willing seller.

Replacement Value (RV) is primarily used for insurance appraisal value. It is the amount of money that an owner will charge for a desired item, painting or artifact on a short notice basis. It can often be on the higher-end of the spectrum of retail value for a qualified similar replacement. There can at times be a large distance that separates FMV (Fair Market Value) and RV (Replacement Value), and for the appraiser, it is important to distinguish the difference between these two valuations.

Estimated Art Auction Value (EAV). Art auction estimates are researched values that one can expect when an artwork is sold at a qualified public art auction house. Through a search of online data base records that go back at least twenty-five years, we extract and cross reference past auction results for a painting of the same genre. We then analyze the time and placement of each auction sale to arrive at realistic up-to-date assessment for a similar artwork if it were sold today. This estimate can vary, depending on what province and city an artwork is sold in and at what time of the auction calendar year the sale is held.

Marketable Cash Value (MCV), also known as a Quick Disposal Value (QDV) is just what what it sounds like. A sale by which an owner of an artwork can obtain a ready, cash-in-hand payment, for an item to be sold, liquidated or disposed of by means of a quick transaction. Usually negotiated on a short notice basis with an interested party. For example, if the owner of an artwork approaches a gallery owner to sell a painting, and he or she makes an offer to buy that is agreeable to the seller, this transaction is considered a Quick Disposal Value.

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At FineArtandAntiques.ca, our professional qualifications maintain that we have been actively involved in the retail fine art marketplace for well over three decades, researching and specializing in original 20th century works of art, with a combined knowledge base of over sixty years of experience. During that time we've acquired the requisite knowledge and experience to be able to delve deeply into the subjective activity of appraising fine art paintings and hand-pulled artists prints. By applying our combined knowledge and experience, along with the basic tenets of our ethical duties, we have generated many informative fine art appraisals for our clients.

Over the years we've developed a keen eye and a strong sense for what is considered unique, excellent and above the ordinary, as opposed to what could be considered somewhat uninspiring, commonplace, and just plain everyday mediocre works of art. We believe that this type of insight and focus is considered crucial when determining accurate and relevant valuations for fine paintings and hand-pulled prints from the 20th century.

We're dedicated to placing in your hands the information that you need to know concerning the works of art in your treasured collection, and we charge a reasonable fee for the appraisal results that we render. Appraisers, sometimes with a far less diverse and lengthy experience in the fine art gallery trade, regularly charge fees that often range from a minimum of $200. to $300. per hour or higher, for a single fine art appraisal. Consider getting the best value for your money by using our fine art services to achieve the most cost effective, up-to-date and accurate appraisal results. You have our assurance that the independent fine art appraisals that we generate are accepted by both estate lawyers and national insurance providers.

✻ Click here to view a sample fine art appraisal.

The independent appraisers and associates at FineArtandAntiques.ca do not undertake any responsibility in determining the legal ownership of any art submitted for appraisal. Nor is any title of ownership warranty given or implied in reference to the legal ownership of such art put forward for appraisal purposes, nor is there any assertion that clear title is being conveyed through any appraisal performed.

We conscientiously follow the basic 'Principles of Appraisals Practice and Code of Ethics' of the American Society of Appraisers and we are compliant with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). We also legally and ethically stand behind every art appraisal that we perform and we clearly state here that we are not members of the 'American Society of Appraisers' nor the 'International Society of Appraisers'.

As independent fine art specialists, we do however rely on our moral philosophy and more than three decades of fine art sales and research expertise to guide us in creating objective, accurate and informative appraisals, where we always apply the most prudent operational practices to best serve our clients needs.