Mrs. Eaves has always been a bit puzzled by the art world’s reliance on “good old boy” agreements, the handshake-and-a-smile transactions wherein artists pledge their artwork to dealers and in turn dealers hand over the art to collectors with little to no paperwork and often no real time exchange of money. Although these types of transactions may have worked sufficiently in the past, the recent economic woes have caused many to reconsider these practices, even at the highest levels.
Mrs. Eaves recently read an article in The Art Newspaper regarding the problems art dealers are facing collecting on sales. Collectors are taking longer than the standard 30-days to pay for art purchases or even canceling sales. The delayed payments make it difficult or impossible for the dealer to pay the artist.
The article noted that this type of transaction is less tolerated in other industries. Fashion houses often require a deposit for couture orders. Even Christie’s has a new policy requiring buyers to pay in full before picking up purchases (whereas clients previously had 30 days to pay). Sotheby’s too expects payment in full at the time of sale and is quick to turn over late payments to the accounts department and legal department.
While Mrs. Eaves thinks the visual art world would be well served to follow these leads, what does this mean for the average artist? Mrs. Eaves encourages artists to discuss this point with their gallerist or dealer. Good gallerists/dealers will acknowledge the problem and be willing to negotiate a working solution. For example, one gallerist Mrs. Eaves knows requires the client to pay 50% at the time of delivery (even to take a piece out on trial) and that amount goes straight to the artist. Then even if the client is slow to pay the balance due, the gallerist is still able to pay the artist and keep that relationship strong.
How do you see artists and gallerists dealing with the problems of collecting payment in a tight economy?
0 comments:
Post a Comment