Art Market Facts
This section highlights some of the myths and realities of the art market.
Visit our Advocacy section to read about specific issues about the art trade.
IS THE ART MARKET REGULATED?
It is a falsehood that the art market, including its dealers and collectors, is the last great unregulated market in the world.
The art market trade is both self-regulated and government regulated. Art market sector business practices are governed by the same laws and regulations that all business must adhere to such as those concerning the sale of goods, fraud, sales taxes (such as VAT), and other business issues. In addition, the art market is heavily regulated […] CONTINUE »WHY DOES THE ART MARKET SEEM SO OPAQUE TO THE PUBLIC?
Art market professionals are often legally required to ensure discretion and transparency. For the art market to continue a certain degree of confidentiality is required.
The authorities always have access to a business’s records but clients and businesses have many legitimate reasons to keep records confidential in respect of other parties. To change current practices regarding confidentiality, the benefit of public transparency of ownership and sales information must be evaluated and would need to be demonstrated as outweighing the right […] CONTINUE »SHOULD DUE DILIGENCE RESEARCH PROVIDE A COMPLETE HISTORICAL RECORD?
Due diligence research on older works rarely provides a complete historical record. It is extremely misleading to claim that an artwork without a complete provenance should be considered unsalable or possibly illicit.
Due diligence should be carried out on a best endeavor basis rather than on a result basis. This statement needs to be understood by policy makers, museums, dealers and collectors who follow due diligence guidelines. (Download the CINOA e-Toolkit for Due Diligence and Provenance Research) It is the search that is important and it is […] CONTINUE »WHY DOES EXAGERRATING ILLICT TRAFFICKING IN CULTURAL PROPERTY LEAD TO MORE VICTIMES?
An overwhelming volume of false data is used to promote the idea that the art market is a haven for international crime. Exaggerated claims of cultural goods trafficking is detrimental to public interest.
The way in which some studies report on illicit trafficking often suggests that cultural property looting and trafficking is a widespread problem in western markets, yet the evidence shows otherwise, including within every one of the eight major reports of recent years[1] According to the FBI, Interpol and insurance companies, the single largest cause of […] CONTINUE »HOW DOES THE PUBLIC BENEFIT FROM PRIVATELY OWNED ART?
The art trade and private collectors are the source for many museum collections. It is a falsehood that only the rich benefit from a thriving art market and their privately owned artwork.
The symbiotic relationship between collectors, the trade, museums, academia, discovery, research and preservation goes back 100s of years. Private and scholarly enterprise on the part of the art market has vastly contributed to the establishment, development and prosperity of museums, not just as repositories of artefacts or artworks, but as vibrant seats of learning. Museums […] CONTINUE »IS THERE A DIRECT LINK BETWEEN ANTIQUE IVORY AND TODAY’S POACHING OF ELEPHANTS?
It is a falsehood that in Western markets the sale of antique carved ivory increases new acts of smuggling and elephant poaching.
As a result of poaching the plight of the African elephant has reached critical status and a small number of countries have added their own restrictions on domestic and international trade in ivory to those arising from CITES. Wildlife campaigners have called for a total ban on the trade of antique ivory, arguing that it […] CONTINUE »