Art Appraisals: A Comprehensive Guide

I. Introduction

Every day, many artists are in search of art appraisals. Valuing other artists’ works is not easy. It takes a lot of understanding about the art. Many believe entirely in the guidance of the first-hand experts they meet without researching the expert and, more importantly, the process involved. You might have oil portraits, which you want to appraise. In this article, you will learn how to find everything to your advantage from the basics of art appraisal. Keep reading to know more about it. 

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II. What Is Art Appraisal?

Art appraisal is estimating one’s art based on value, ultimately on some factors. Art appraisals are a process of forming and delivering an opinion about the value of the artwork. The primary purpose of art appraisal is to determine the fair market value of a piece of art. Appraisals are done for various purposes, such as - estate valuation, insurance, insurance aid, estate planning, donations, and sales. The art appraisal process involves - 

Research

The appraiser will research the artwork’s history, authenticity, and comparable aspects. This may include looking at auction records, art currently for sale, and private sales records. 

Questions: 

The appraiser will ask the artist questions about the art. 

Report:

The appraiser will write a report about their findings regarding the painter and the artwork. 

III. Reasons for Getting Art Appraised

There are lots of important reasons why you should get an art appraisal. But as with many others, you must learn why or how to get an art appraisal. We will discuss all the potential reasons here, so keep reading for more details about it. 

1. Insurance Purposes

You could lose thousands of dollars if your artwork is lost, damaged, or stolen. Suppose you still need to update insurance appraisal information. Artwork is appreciated each year, and much of this is determined by its current condition and authenticity verification. 

2. Resale value:

You are well-informed when it is time to sell or resell your product. You can save yourself a lot of time and surprises if you have already had your piece appraised when it comes time to sell. 

3. Broader connections:

You will be able to make connections with great artists and great auction houses. Art appraisers often have good ideas and connections about which auction house will be best for your art piece. They are skilled in their areas, know how to approach, and can put you in touch with potential buyers. 

4. Value of the product

Most of the time, we don’t know what we have here. Most of the time, we get drawings as presents of someone whom we don’t know, but you hear the stories in the newspaper of old masters’ paintings being found somewhere and that were sold in auction for $50000. Recently, paintings found in Bellport, New York cottage were estimated to be worth $20 - $30 million. One of the paintings by artist Arthur Pinajjan fetched $500000 at auction and made national press. 

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5. Sell determination:

With the help of art appraisers, you can determine whether or not you should keep your art or it is time to sell it. If you are hurrying to sell your art piece, you will know what you are looking at regarding finances. 

6. Professional opinion:

A professional opinion will help you understand whether you want to sell your artwork or keep your artwork to yourself. Your professional art appraiser might help you with Prints vs Painting Choices. 

7. Avoid dispute

 An art appraisal can help avoid disputes between buyer and seller or between family members if it is a case of estate. A professional appraisal will help you provide an objective opinion on the value of your artwork. 

IV. Finding Painting Appraisers

Now, you must understand the factors you must consider before finding painting appraisers. 

• Locating Certified Appraisers:

Consider looking for a certified appraiser member of one of the three major professional organizations: The American Society of Appraisers, the Appraisers Association of America, or the International Society of Appraisers. 

• Online Appraisal Services

There are numerous appraisal services available in the USA for art appraisals, which you should consider while searching for appraisal services. You can check them out, research them, and go for it. 

V. How to Get a Painting Appraised

There are a few things you need to understand to appraise a painting. You will read about them in detail in this part of the blog. 

• Evaluate if you need an appraisal.

An appraisal is an opinion of value, ideally prepared in compliance with a professional appraiser's Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice. You need to evaluate for which reasons you need to have an appraisal for your artwork. After you get the bottom line of your question, you may go in search of art appraisers. Evaluating between Drawing vs Painting and it will help you understand if you actually need an appraisal or not. 

• Professional appraiser:

As mentioned above, you should always look for appraisers who are members of professional organizations such as The American Society of Appraisers, the Appraisers Association of America, and the International Society of Appraisers. All members of these three organizations must be USPAP-compliant, have codes of ethics, and continuing education requirements to retain their membership status. A professional appraiser will be able to help you determine What to Do with Old Canvas Paintings.

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• Reach out to potential appraisers.

Contact multiple appraisers to see if your project would fit your artwork well. If you feel unsatisfied after talking with appraisers, you must keep contacting others because you believe strangers can evaluate your passion. You have to be patient about the process. 

• Confirm and schedule the report’s scope of work. 

Once you have evaluated all the points mentioned above and secured an appraiser, congratulations. Now, let’s start the remaining process. You have to discuss which items from your collection you would like to be appraised with your appraiser. Your appraiser might suggest you contact some experts and provide critical assignment details. After the clarification, your appraiser might give you a total estimate of projects that need to be appraised. Then you might need to pay a certain amount for the deposit.  

• Schedule an on-site appointment or virtual presentation.

Now, you have to schedule an appointment with your potential appraiser to show them your work, and based on that, they can give you an appraisal. You should visually represent your works if physical presentation is impossible due to unavoidable circumstances. 

• Inspection for appraisal: 

If you can do a physical round of inspection, then your appraiser will come to your gallery and inspect all your artwork. They can take photographs, take notes about the work, and do condition reports. You should have provenance documents, such as receipts, to help your appraiser decide about your work early. Make an artwork document file online ready so that you can email the online document to your appraiser quickly. Most of the time, these inspections take hours to complete. 

• Formatting the inspection data

Now, after the completion of the on-site inspection, your appraiser will start gathering all the data they took from the inspection. After that, they will select the best images and will carefully input the inspection notes into the USPAP-compliant appraisal format and fully catalog the items to the items to be appraised. You must be patient about the process, which takes time to complete. 

• The appraiser conducts valuation research & analysis. 

This process differs from the type of projects the appraiser gets. But it typically includes contacting galleries and artists to inquire about private pricing, scouring auction records for similar sales, and studying how similar the available pieces are.  

• Finalizing your appraisal report

After all the research, analysis, and documentation, it is time to finalize your appraisal report. Appraisers will write the findings to the appraisal report.

• Delivering your appraisal report

Once it is done, your appraiser will give you the report. You will decide which type of report you want; for example, they can provide a physical appraisal report. They can give you an electronic appraisal report via a secured system, making a PDF file. If any payment is due, you can complete it if you’ve paid the advanced payment amount.  

VI. Where to Get Art Appraised

 In this part of the blog, you will get the idea & information about all the places where you can get art appraisers or the contact of the people who appraise artworks. 

• Ask local museums.

Finding art appraisers is easier if you reach out to local museums. They have a wide range of contacts which belong to art appraisers. You can get in touch with some of the potential art appraisers. 

• Use an app.

There is an app named The Painter Values Art, which you can get from the App Store. This allows you to check values in real-time through your device camera. It can also analyze the image or any other image imported from the Photo gallery. 

VII. Tips for Getting Art Appraised:

You must know some additional tips to get an art appraisal quickly. The process might be tedious, but if you follow these tips, it will save you an ample amount of time. 

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Purpose determination 

There are many reasons you might need an appraisal for your art, but it is your duty first to determine the exact reasons for which you need the appraisal. Let’s assume you have made a masterpiece, which is rare; in that scenario, you should ask for an art appraisal. You might need art appraisals for insurance, donations, or charitable donations. Still, if you determine the exact purpose initially, it will be easy to demonstrate that to your potential art appraiser.

Type of art appraisal

There are different types of appraisals, which are discussed below - 

Insurance value appraisal

These are typical high-value artworks that must be insured against theft or damage. The appraiser here arrives at the amount it would likely supplant an item with similar conditions bought during a specific period. Primarily, this appraisal is used for insurance coverage. 

Estate value appraisal 

The appraisal here is done for tax purposes when an artwork is inherited or sold to someone. This is the price at which the artwork would sell on the open market. As the Internal Revenue Service requires, it is most commonly used for charitable donations and inheritance tax. Art appraiser can tell you what type of Art That Sells. 

Liquidation value appraisal 

is the least common type of appraisal. The liquidation value appraisal is the work’s value if forced to sell with conditions and time constraints. 

Choose the exact qualified appraiser.

You have to look for an appropriately qualified and officially certified appraiser. They must be qualified from atleast The American Society of Appraisers, the Appraisers Association of America, and the International Society of Appraisers, three associations with knowledge of exact ethics and appraisal codes. 

Decide how detailed the appraiser you want. 

You have to decide how much detailing you need in your appraisal because some artists just want a rough idea about the price and value of their artwork. In contrast, others want a detailed report (the detailing process discussed above)  about their artwork. 

Detailed information about the artwork 

Your appraiser will appreciate this information a lot because having all the research and analysis handy makes the process smoother for them as well. As you know, these processes tend to be lengthy. Detailed information such as artist name, art medium, history related to the art, etc. 

VIII. Considered factors in art appraisals 

There are a few factors you should know and consider to understand the value of artwork. Read to know more - 

Condition 

In most cases, art appraisers will evaluate the artwork's condition and whether there have been any changes since its creation. Generally, savvy art buyers seek a piece of work that is well maintained so the appraisers also appreciate the overall condition of the work. 

Attribution 

This process includes determining the artist's identity who made the original artwork. 

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Exhibition history 

A rich history of artworks exhibited at various art galleries and museums may increase the overall value of the artwork. 

The rarity of the artwork 

Rarity is another crucial point for appraisal. It is generally determined by how often an artist appears on the market or by the availability of a particular type of piece from a specific period in the artist’s career. 

IX. Frequently Asked Questions:

What are the reasons for art appraisal?

You may need an art appraisal if it is a case of insurance, donation, estate, or tax considerations. 

How is an artwork appraised?

Based on market research, your artwork is appraised. It involves the vigorous process of private sales records, the authenticity of documents and artwork, the history of ownership, etc. 

How long does it take to appraise an artwork?

It is quite a long process, depending on the number of things to be appraised and the hours or days it will take, which can be from a few hours to a few days.

How often should art be appraised?

It is recommended to appraise some types of art as often as six months. 

Are art appraisals worth it?

Art appraisal can be worth it for several reasons, such as helping you determine the value of your artwork, providing you with information in addition to expert advice, and authenticating your artwork. 

X. Conclusion

You must remember art is a subjective thing. So, it will differ and vary from every person’s perspective. You must first value your artwork so that when you appraise it, you know that it is priceless and unique to you. Always consider all the facts mentioned above regarding art appraisal. You must hire a professional and experienced art appraiser, and this is the most critical point above anything.