Insuring your art collection

You have put in a lot of time, energy, and resources to acquire an original work of art. It is now in your possession and you are over the moon with your recent purchase. The very last step you now need to consider is how to protect it.
Whether you are a newbie or a seasoned collector, your enviable art collection when uninsured hedges a lot of risk. Risks including theft, robbery, and general damages, can be easily eliminated with the right art insurance. If you are reading this and you have art pieces worth thousands of dollars that are uninsured, now is the best time for you to get on with it. This digest will arm you with everything you need to get started on the process of insuring your art pieces.

Homeowner or renter protection
If you own your home or you are leasing a property that you placed an insurance policy on, chances are that you may already be covered. Some homeowner policies cover collectables such as jewelry, artworks, and other collections so it might be worth combing through your policy to see what you already got.

If you discover that you do indeed have general coverage for art in your policy, you might want to get special coverage from art insurers specifically for art items. This additional step boosts your confidence because you will be dealing with an art insurance expert who will carefully craft the best policy that protects you from any type of damage, spoil, and other unforeseen occurrences. Working with a fine art insurance company ensures that your artwork or collection is covered to its most recent appraised value.

Appropriate documentation
Every piece of documentation is important at this stage. You want to provide all documentation that validates you as the owner of those art pieces and also show their worth. Such
documentation includes but is not limited to proof of ownership, bill of sale, photographs, and the most recent appraisal on the art piece(s) or collection.

Credential appraisal
Next, you need to work with a credential appraiser. When it comes to art appraisals, you want to ensure that you are working with a credible appraiser. If you do not have one, most often than not, the insurance company you are dealing with will recommend one to you. When this happens, be sure to conduct due diligence on them.
If you are insuring an older piece of art that was handed down to you as inheritance or similar instances, you want to ensure that you get a good and up-to-date assessment that takes into consideration the state of the current art market and projections for the future. If at the point you are to insure it you discover that it is a great time to sell off and make real profits and you are open to it, your appraiser should be able to make informed advisory on such matters.

Art appraisals are one of many services that we at Patrons offer to our individual and corporate clients. We work with the best insurance companies to provide you with a full suite art insurance package tailored to your specific need. It does not matter where in the world you are, we collaborate with our partner insurers to appraise and insure your African art pieces and collections. To get started, send us an email: [email protected] to begin the process.

Create a tailored plan
Be sure to get a comprehensive insurance package that covers theft, floods and natural disasters, transportation or when-in-taxi mishaps, fire, and other unforeseen occurrences. If you live in an area that is prone to hurricanes or floods, you want your insurer to take these into consideration.
If you or someone in your family has ever leased or is currently leasing an art piece to a Museum or any institution, or if the art is constantly in commute from one location to another, you want your appraiser and insurer to consider these factors when making professional recommendations to ensure all eventualities are fully covered.

Appraise regularly
There is no right or wrong answer to how frequently you should have your collection appraised. However, I would recommend yearly appraisals if you collect very often, otherwise, every 3 years is a decent time interval. When you schedule an upcoming appraisal, be sure to specify that it is for art insurance purposes to ensure you are given the most up-to-date market value of your artwork or collection.
Regular appraisals are important for artworks purchased for investment purposes. These frequent check-ins keep you informed on the value of your collection. If you purchased an artwork for $3,000 3 years ago that is now worth $10,000, you want to ensure that it is now insured at the $10,000 value to protect you in case of theft or damages.

Stay informed
Your professional advisors – appraiser and insurer – may want to keep you updated with the latest tips. Be sure to stay informed on an ongoing basis on how to preserve your art, store it, frame it, and take care of it while it is in transit. Stay educated about these things as well as the current affairs in the art market. Information such as these will inform you when it is the best time to flip any piece of art in the secondary market. Do not be shy, always ask questions and expect detailed, well-informed answers from your professional advisors.

Art Index Top 5 Monthly
January’s digest kicks off 2022’s top 5 monthly showdown. Before we get into it, I am curious to know; what are you most proud of yourself for achieving in 2021? When it comes to Art Index Africa, mine is to have secured a syndicate partnership with BusinessDay Weekender paper to repurpose and publish our digests on their weekly paper! That’s right, Art Index Africa has its own weekly Column where these digests you get to enjoy on this substack now have increased reach and ultimately, readership.
In this month’s selection, our jury curates and features artists from 4 different African countries. With every month’s digest, Art Index Africa’s jury brings to you a showdown of the top 5 well researched and curated art pieces that should be every collector’s must-have based on strong technique, message, style, and medium.

Starting 2022 with a bang, here are our top 5 for January:

Related News

Artist: Lionel Yamadjako | Title: Sounou tégbédjou | Country of Origin: Benin Republic | Medium: Mixed Media | Size: 120cm x 100cm | Year: 2019 | Estimate: $3,900
I hope this digest leaves you with good factors to consider. Once again, if you are interested in getting started with insuring your collection which I highly recommend, my team and I are but a mail away: [email protected].
Until next month’s digest,
Keep collecting.

Contributor’s Bio
Column Title: Art Index Africa

About Art Index Africa
Art Index Africa is Africa’s first art repository mirroring Africa’s real-time art exchange. Each publication navigates around the Nigerian and at broad, Africa’s contemporary art developments and equips art enthusiasts and collectors with invaluable information such as artists profile, works, provenance and authentication. It also provides expert advisory and guidance towards art acquisition and collection, preservation and management including exhibitions, curating, auctions and general dealership.

About Columnist: Keturah Ovio
I am a patron of African art and a Director at Patrons Modern & Contemporary African Art. I am also an engineer and the founder of Dukka.com, a pretty amazing Fintech startup. I am actively eating into the world of African Art. I started collecting art in my early 20s. Now, I advise and manage collections for individuals and corporations looking to start or diversify their wealth management through art collecting. I strongly believe that there is a cross between Art and Technology. It is no surprise that I started this editorial.
Interesting fact: Nigeria makes up a larger percentile of Africa’s art industry.