It would be insufficient to discuss the art
market without examining the areas that, although essential,
are peripheral to said market. In practice, these areas require
as much of the amateur’s attention as buying and selling,
in order to enable the amateur to protect his finances.
prevention
Prevention
If you follow normal security and
protection measures, you will reduce the risks of theft or of any
other loss or damage (e.g. fire, flooding, etc.). Whatever
steps are taken, nobody is ever completely protected. As much
to increase the chances of finding a stolen piece, as to ensure
a correct compensation in the case of loss or damage, it is in
your interest to have at your disposal as precise a description
of your works of art as possible, a description which could one
day help you prove that you are the legal owner.
It is essential to have a good photografic portfolio of
your works of art. You will thus, in case of theft, help the
legal authorities to search for your property more efficiently,
and you will especially help the assessor (for insurance
purposes) to form as precise an idee of its value as possible.
In case of fire or the object’s destruction (total or
even partial), this portfolio will be the only document on
which the latter will be able to base his opinion.
Needless to say, as long as its value
warrants it, it is better to contract a professional photographer.
It will be necessary to take colour shots from different angles
(front and back of a two-dimensional work; front, back and
sides of a three-dimensional work).
The better the description of the work, the
more help you will give third parties (legal authorities,
assessor, etc.) to work efficiently. Print out this sheet and
fill it in. Attach the photographic portfolio and keep
everything together in a safe place that is not the same as where you keep the
works of art.
