Although there is truth that in some instances art value increase after death, Grant points out that most of the time this increase in value and recognition is based over an extended period of time with gradual increases. Grant also points out that in general many artist values actually decrease after death. Some of this is based on how the estate is handled, how dealers view the artist and the inventory of the artist.
In any event, it is an interesting article to read and view from both the perspectives of collectors and appraisers.
To read the complete article, click HERE.Certainly, the truism applies to some quite important artists, for instance, Gauguin and van Gogh. Both 19th century French painters were outcasts socially, and their artwork was held in even greater contempt. At their deaths, they were both penniless, lonely and isolated figures, shouting out their messages to the world but not even hearing an echo.
True recognition followed these painters' deaths, as their works began to sell and their names found a place in the history of art, and it has led to the drawing of a bizarre conclusion: Art must naturally become more valuable after the artist's death.
"I would have to say that a deathwatch does exist for many older artists," Robert Schonfeld, a private art dealer and one-time head of the appraisal department at Sotheby's auction house, said. "All dealers and collectors anticipate changes in circumstances that make works more available or more valuable."
The concern with an artist's age does frequently lead collectors to start hording, or buying up, works by artists who are getting on in years or who are in poor health.
However, the concept of the starving artist whose death gives his or her works new life is more mystique than truth. In a few, very rare instances do works immediately go up in value. In some cases, prices go up gradually (or eventually). In general, demand drops and the prices go with it.
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