Earlier this month it was reported that independent insurance brokerage Crystal & Co partnered with AIG Private Client Group to offer a new insurance product for conceptual art collections.
For many pieces of conceptual art, according to the report, the idea being expressed is primary while form and material are secondary. With that, an artist provided certificate of authenticity is paramount, and without it, the work may be considered to have little to no value.
The new insurance product insures the value even if the certificate is lost.
The Insurance Journal reports on the new conceptual art program
Source: Insurance JournalCrystal & Co., a strategic risk and insurance advisor, has partnered with AIG Private Client Group, a division of AIG, to create a new insurance product for private clients with conceptual art collections.
Conceptual art is focused more on the idea being expressed, while the form and material are secondary. A certificate is provided by the artist to authenticate an item and without this, the piece is considered worthless. Therefore, if the certificate was lost or damaged, the item may have lost most of its value, according to Crystal & Co.
Historically, references to lost or damaged certificates of ownership have not been spelled out in fine art insurance policies, which can lead to uncertainty in the event of a claim. The endorsement created by AIG insurers in collaboration with Crystal & Co. specifies where conceptual artwork is covered.
“Since a piece of paper is often the only document essentially giving value to a work of conceptual art, we wanted to find a way to protect our clients’ investments even if something happens to their certificate.” Jonathan Crystal, executive vice president of Crystal & Co.
Ron Fiamma, global head of Private Collections for AIG Private Client Group, said the coverage idea is an effective way for the companies to address the concerns of their shared clients.
“Conceptual art collecting has increased in recent years, and as a result we have fielded more questions about policy contract coverage,” he said.
Crystal & Co. is headquartered in New York with 10 regional offices throughout the country, placing over $1 billion in premiums annually in the global insurance marketplace. It is a member of Brokerslink, a global alliance of independent insurance brokerages.
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