Currently, there is a critical mass of profitable artists resting in their twilight years, who face important decisions on how to secure their artwork and provide for their heirs. The art world is exploding, and these artists have seen a significant increase in the value of their work, with the art world hoping to cash in on it. Further, these artists represent the greatest number of their kind who have to deal with the posthumous stewardship of their work, so auction houses are starting to hire executives and rely on dealers to hold on to the aging artists they represent. Rightfully so, the potential revenue in managing artists can be substantial. As the art world transforms by merging the skill sets of galleries and auction houses, artists should feel greater comfort in planning their legacies.
See Robin Pogrebin, As Top-Tier Artists Age, the Art World Hopes to Cash In, N.Y. Times, January 30, 2017.
Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.
