phillips ART expert

1. Who buys art?: Anyone can buy art; it is a misconception that you need a lot of money to buy art. If you love art, you can and you should buy it, because art enhances our lives.
2. Where can I buy art?: There are many places where you can buy art. From a gallery, an auction house, ebay, and sometimes - though less frequently - directly from the artist.
3. What would be a good area to begin collecting now?: You should buy what you love, what you have an affinity for. Don't buy something just because it might be considered "hot" right now; buy something because it appeals to you.
4. Should I buy art as an investment?: Art can be a good investment; but that's not why you should buy a work of art. In fact, buying something you love usually proves more successful than buying something because you think it's going to be a good investment.
5. Are auctions a good way to buy art?: Well I would say so. But seriously, when you buy a work of art at an auction, it gives you a good sense of the temper of the market and what people are interested in.
6. What is the primary market?: The primary market means that this is the first time an art object is being sold by a gallery or by the artist.
7. What is the secondary market?: The secondary market means that the piece has been sold before and it is now being resold; it has reentered the market.
8. Where does an auction house get the property it offers in its auctions?: We get objects from private collectors who wish to sell a piece. Each individual has their own reason. A person may need money, or may want to upgrade their collection and will sell one piece to buy another. Or pieces may be sold after a divorce or death, so the proceeds can be split between the parties involved.
9. Do I have to have a lot of money to attend an auction?: No. The exhibition of the art work is open to everyone to look at - to attend an evening auction, it is necessary to make a reservation in advance, and priority is given to known clientele. Also if you want to buy something and you are a new client you have to provide a financial reference before coming to the auction. But, as I said earlier, anyone can come to the gallery and see the pieces which will be auctioned off.
10. Do auction houses try to foster art education and appreciation?: We do. In fact we would love to have schools come and look at our exhibits. And the public is always welcome to come in and look and there is no fee.
11. How do auction houses make their money - what is a buyer's premium?: The buyer pays a percentage based on the final selling price of the art piece to the auction house. The percentage starts at 20%. The seller also pays a commission which ranges from 0 to 10% of the selling price to the auction house. The vendor's commission is equal to the sellers commission, 0 to 10% of the final gavel price.
12. What is provenance?: Provenance is a list of the previous owners of the art work. Provenance is used to help to determine that a piece of art is not stolen or is not a fake.
13. How do you estimate the value of a work of art?: Estimating the value of a piece of art is an art, not a science. Generally, an estimate is made by seeing what a comparable piece of art sold for recently. Estimates are given in a range of prices, not one fixed figure.
14. What is a reserve?: Very simply, a reserve is an agreement between the seller and the auction house that the work will not be sold below a certain price. If the price is not met, the piece goes unsold.
15. What is a condition report?: A condition report is a certificate from a specialist that describes the physical condition of the work of art - whether it has been retouched in certain places or if it is in the original condition. Every piece we auction off has a condition report.

16. What if I bid on the wrong lot?: That's a real problem if you do, as a bid that has been given is valid and the bidder therefore has an obligation to honor it. So you better concentrate and make sure you are bidding on the correct lot.
17. Can I get an artwork valued by an auction house and decide not to sell it?: Yes absolutely, one of the great services that most main auction houses provide is giving valuation for works of art and there is no obligation whatsoever on the behalf of the collector to sell.
18. Can I take an artwork to an auction house for an insurance valuation?: Yes, the principal auction houses are equipped to give insurance valuations that are accepted by the main insurance companies.
19. What is an underbidder?: The underbidder is the person who left the last bid immediately before the successful final bid was made by the purchaser.
20. If I can't attend an auction, can I still purchase the piece I am interested in?: There are a number of ways to participate in an auction. The best of course is to be there in person and raise your hand as the lot that interests you is being offered. If you are at the other end of the globe at the moment of the auction or prefer to be bidding from home, at your office or beside your swimming pool, you can ask to be connected to one of the specialists of one of the auction companies and relay our bids by telephone. For many auctions today you also have the chance to bid in real time over the internet. Finally, if there is no way that you can follow the sale in actual time, you can leave a written bid ahead of the sale that will be executed on your behalf by sales clerks in the auction company.
21. How does a "telephone bid" work?: After having declared your wish to bid over the telephone ahead of the sale, a specialist from the auction house will call you at the number that you have indicated and will relay to you the bids as they are being called out by the auctioneer. He will ask you if you wish to bid, if so, he will relay your bids to the auctioneer. This allows you to participate and still get a feel of how things are going even without actually being there.
22. If a piece does not sell at auction, what happens to it?: Normally the auction house has the possibility of selling the work privately at a pre-agreed price that will normally be lower than the reserved price that had been set for the auction.
23. What is a private sale?: A private sale is a transaction directly arranged by the auction company as a intermediary between the willing seller and a willing buyer.
24. What is a guarantee?: In some cases, the auction house may decide to offer the vendor a pre-agreed price regardless of the outcome of the auction. This protects the downside for the vendor. However for taking on such a risk the auction house will share any upside above the guaranteed sum with the vendor normally at a 50/50 split. In a strong market therefore, the vendor is likely to make money by making a straight consignment without a guarantee.
25. Is Design an important collecting area for the future?: Design along with Photography is one of the most important collecting areas for the future. Until recently there were only a handful of dealers and galleries around the world specializing in that field. In the meantime, most important Contemporary Art galleries have started to include Design into their programs. The main Contemporary Art fairs either integrate Design or have parallel Design fairs taking place simultaneously. This means that the demand network for the best designers has multiplied exponentially and will insure a solid demand in this market for years to come.
26. Are auction house specialists available to anyone for free advice?: Yes, quite definitely. Is a pleasure for the auction house specialist to be in contact with anyone seeking advice.
27. Is it okay to buy an edition work?: Rarity is a factor that has an impact on the value of a work. Uniqueness is therefore the most sought after. The higher the edition number of a photograph or edition piece of furniture, the lower the price will be. This does not mean necessarily that the quality will be lower. In our Saturday@Phillips sales for instance, we sell only works estimated between $500 to $20,000 which are of great quality but lesser value for the reasons described before.
28. How do you become an auctioneer?: In most countries by working for an auction company normally you are being trained in-house. Once you are deemed sufficiently good to conduct your first auction you still have to go through the test of a mock auction being staged by your colleagues. You start by conducting unimportant auctions and the better you become, the more likely you are to conduct the most important sales.
29. What is an appraisal?: An appraisal is a formal document with the market and insurance valuation of a collection of work of art that has been approved by an insurance company.