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Article28 Nov 2019

The Global Art Market

Drivers of Evolution
For generations, many of the world’s wealthiest individuals and families have collected art. These personal collections have brought them enjoyment as well as created social networks and special bonds with family, friends, scholars, and fellow collectors. Many collectors lend artworks from their collections to museum exhibitions for others to study and enjoy while adding to the prestige of the collection. Additionally, over recent decades, high quality works of art have increasingly gained recognition for their investment potential.

Citi Private Bank’s Art Advisory & Finance team guides clients through the art market, helping to create important private art collections that reflect each collector’s vision. We provide administration and management, consultation on wealth planning, and offer loans collateralized by artwork.

Our advisors seek to help clients buy wisely, save money, and turn their collections into valuable assets. We have longstanding expertise in numerous fields, including modern and contemporary art, Chinese antiquities, and impressionist paintings. We can source acquisition and disposal opportunities, research provenance and authenticity, and give insights into the significance of potential additions in context of overall collections. Besides impartial artistic expertise, we bring financial perspective to the collecting process, including intelligence about market trends, cycles, and timing.

Having pioneered the concept of using art as collateral forty years ago, we enable liquidity to be unlocked from collections. That liquidity can be used to buy further artwork or for other investments. We accept internationally marketable paintings, sculptures, drawings, and high-value photographs as collateral for loans. In most cases, a collection used as collateral can remain in the client’s home or office. Our in-house loan appraisals allow discretion and confidentiality to be maintained.

As well as advising collectors and providing art loans, we offer a comprehensive art management service. We can arrange packing, shipping, installation, conservation and framing of artworks, as well as administration and accounting for collections. This includes managing art insurance policies and appraisals, coordinating loans of works to exhibitions, and negotiating vendor services. We manage significant art holdings for trusts and foundations, as well as for individuals and families.

With the potential for technology to enhance the world of art over the coming years, we believe that art’s existing appeal to collectors and investors could increase further. We stand ready to help clients grow and realize value from their collections.

In the report that follows, we look to a variety of experts who talk about changes in the art market, including Nanne Dekking from Artory Inc. on the use of technology such as blockchain and Anders Petterson from ArtTactic on how changing demographics are triggering different behaviors and motivations around philanthropy. We also hear from Michael Moses and Jianping Mei from artasaninvestment.com on the financial characteristics of individual artists and groups of artists based on their relative liquidity level, Steven Wieting, Global Chief Investment Strategist from Citi Private Bank on the performance of art and its characteristics in an investment portfolio, and Betsy Bickar from Citi Art Advisory & Finance on the evolution of the art market over the past 40 years.

Click here to view the report in full.
Alternative Assets
Art
Art Market
Blockchain
Philanthropy

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