Art: discerning quality, establishing trust

A work requires a certain perspective before it can be acquired. Its presence, the mastery of its execution and the power of its language are the starting points. To appreciate its scope, it is necessary to situate it: within the artist’s research, within their time and within the entire body of works to which it relates.

At The A, this reading combines aesthetic judgment, historical knowledge and documentary examination. It aims to understand what distinguishes a work, to verify the elements that define it and to appreciate the conditions under which its acquisition takes on its full meaning.

The place of the work in the artist’s creation

An artist’s reputation does not confer an equivalent importance on each of his or her works. A decisive composition, a fully accomplished research, an emblematic subject, or a break in his or her language can give a work a special significance.

The analysis considers the date, technique, format, construction, material treatment, and relationships with other works of the same period. It distinguishes the major works, variations, studies, and more repetitive productions, taking into account their function in the creative process.

The presence in a reference exhibition, a scientific publication, or a historical collection brings additional insight. These elements take on value when they contribute to explaining the work and its reception.

Attribution: a conclusion that must be supported by evidence

Identifying the author requires bringing the direct observation into line with the available knowledge. Pictorial writing, the technique used, the support material, the pigments, the inscriptions and markings on the reverse must all form a coherent whole compatible with the attribution and dating proposed.

The signature is examined in the same way as the other material characteristics. Its presence alone does not resolve the question of authenticity; its absence does not, either, preclude a work from being authentic.

The archives, catalogued works and specialist reviews must be studied with precision. A recognized work by the artist, an attribution to his workshop or a recommendation from his circle of friends correspond to different qualifications. The designation chosen must faithfully reproduce the established level of knowledge and any possible reservations.

When a scientific examination is necessary, it answers a defined question: the compatibility of the materials with a given period, the identification of a modification, or an understanding of the stages of execution. Its results feed into historical and stylistic analysis.

The trajectory of the work and the strength of the dossier

The history of a work is reconstructed from documents that must be able to be linked to it with certainty. Variable titles, approximate dimensions, old photographs or brief descriptions can make this connection difficult.

Invoices, inventories, sales catalogues, correspondence and collection archives allow the stages of his career to be established. The examination identifies continuities, changes in identification and periods that remain to be clarified. A famous provenance has no significance unless its link with the work is demonstrated.

The file should also make it possible to understand what elements form the seller’s ability to transfer the item. When its history reveals a difficulty related to its ownership or circulation, this requires specific verification before the acquisition.

What matter reveals

The state of a work is not reduced to its appearance under favorable lighting. A varnish can change the perception of colors; retouching can mask flaws; an intervention on the support can affect the surface or the reading of the composition.

The examination looks for any alterations and assesses their consequences. For a painting, it focuses on the stability of the support, the adhesion of the layers, repaints and restorations. For a drawing or print, it considers the quality of the paper, the margins, discoloration and previous treatments. For a sculpture, it examines the assemblages, the surface, the patina and any replaced elements.

The documentation of interventions helps to distinguish what belongs to the original work from what results from its material history. Their acceptability depends on their nature, scope, and impact on the creation. A report prepared by a competent restorer can specify the conservation needs.

The editions: identifying exactly what is acquired

A photograph, a print or a published sculpture requires a description that goes beyond mere numbering.

The date of conception must be distinguished from that of the drawing or casting. The workshop, the publisher, the dimensions, the process, the different states and the distribution of the copies contribute to defining the piece. The artist’s proofs, the numbering, the subsequent editions and posthumous works must be identified according to the practices specific to the artist and the technique.

For a photograph, the proximity of the printing to the shooting, its process and its status in the publishing process can weigh in the assessment. For a sculpture, the foundry, the date of casting and the conditions of execution are decisive. Two copies from the same creation can thus have distinct interests.

The price to the test of quality

The appreciation of the price begins with that of the work. The sales references become useful only after establishing the differences in period, subject matter, technique, format, state of preservation, and documentary trajectory.

A spectacular result can translate the exceptional quality of a piece or the particular circumstances of an auction. It is not enough to define the market of an artist’s entire output. The unsold works, the close resale discounts, and the concentration of demand provide other indications.

The analysis brings together known transactions on a consistent basis, distinguishing between hammer prices and amounts including fees. It also takes into account the sometimes incomplete nature of the information available on private sales.

The question is whether the price demanded is justified by the qualities of the work and by a sufficiently established market. Rarity and media visibility deserve to be examined separately from the actual depth of the demand.

Collecting with a lasting intention

An acquisition also prepares the future life of the work. The methods of hanging, the lighting, the climatic conditions, transport and insurance must meet its material sensitivity. Some creations also require installation instructions, equipment or documentary elements essential for their presentation.

The creation of a file kept with the piece facilitates borrowing, subsequent examinations, and transmission. It helps preserve knowledge of the work as well as its physical integrity.

The patrimonial dimension ultimately requires considering the total costs and the time required for a possible sale. Artistic interest may be sustained over time without leading to a steady increase in price. The quality of the decision therefore depends on an understanding of the work, the extent of the expenditure, and a coherent collection horizon.

The conviction The A

We are looking for major works, references, intersections, full of beauty, powerful, subtle, historically important for the artist concerned, whose presence is confirmed through study: a creation that supports the gaze, an attribution that the available elements allow to be supported and a story that can be conveyed with precision.

Our role is to bring these dimensions closer together in order to give the buyer a clear understanding of the property, its qualities, and the questions that remain open.

Choosing a work is at once to love it, to recognize a thought that has become material and to give it a place in a collection destined to endure.

« We are not looking for the rare. We are looking for what will remain exceptional.»