Why buying what you like can be very costly

Buying a work of art is an experience that is all too often felt in a purely emotional way. Even people who are usually well informed and aware make their choices relying on instinct when they acquire a work of art. Such choices always run the risk of paying a high price. How, in fact, can the information provided by the seller be considered reliable and impartial?

Nobody would ever buy a second-hand car without even opening the bonnet, just relying on its owner’s verbal assurances. Yet too many people go into the purchase of a work of art, which is often much more expensive than a car, practically with their eyes closed.

Works of art, true ones, undoubtedly speak to people’s hearts. And allowing ourselves to respond emotionally to them is sacrosanct. The aesthetic pleasure that a work transmits to us is one thing, while the fact that we are not admiring the work at an exhibition, that we are buying it, is quite another. Therefore, in order not to run into any nasty surprises later on, it is indispensable for us to open our eyes wide beforehand. It is necessary to gather in-depth background information on the artist and on the performance of his market over time. It is necessary to be certain of the authenticity of the work and to appraise the qualities boasted by its vendor carefully, perhaps by contacting an art consultant: a skilled professional, someone extraneous to the negotiations.

The cost of a consultation may truly be rather modest, in percentage terms, compared with the hundred percent of a capital sum that you believe you have invested, but that you have actually lost forever. Unfortunately, in fact, it is very common for works to be purchased that over time prove totally unsalable. Every day we confirm this by examining the many paintings that collectors submit to us for valuation. Works that we dismiss as “of purely decorative value”. In other words, of no value at all.