New York – On a multi-acre estate in the Northeast, at a residence in Europe and in a
palatial Manhattan apartment, a private collector takes pride in a rare assemblage of art,
antiques and jewelry acquired over decades. And over the decades, the collector
has moved pieces of the collection from home to home, often losing track of
where the valuables are housed.
Among the hallowed halls of a beloved major U.S. magazine publisher are found works by
van Gogh, Picasso and Pissarro. But each time the company redecorates or just adds a fresh
coat of paint to the walls, the integrity of the collection is at risk. Where did the
Picasso go?
While the names of these collectors must remain confidential, the scenarios are real and
repeated daily everywhere that corporations and individuals invest in rare antiques, works of
art and other collectibles. In the event of fire or theft, the protection
afforded by insurance is only as effective as the accurate documentation of the
collection. Since 1982, New York-based Koo Consulting has helped corporate and
individual collectors manage and maintain accurate records of their
collections.
You would be surprised how many companies and private collectors have difficulty keeping
track of their valuables," said Bob Koo, founder of Koo Consulting. "From artwork to
antiques, rare books to jewelry and even, wine, the valuables are often
distributed among many corporate facilities or private residences. For
insurance as well as tax issues, it's critical to have an accurate record of
each piece in a collection."
Koo notes that private collections are often decimated by the impact of inheritance
taxes. Valuables lovingly acquired cannot pass to the next generation because they must be sold
to pay the taxes. With accurate documentation and appraisals, he maintains, families
can work with estate and tax advisors to avoid this outcome.
Koo Consulting, through its ArtManager Client Services, creates detailed and comprehensive
inventories of private and corporate collections that enable clients to track, manage and
preserve their valuables and help them plan the future of their collections.
ArtManager Client Services and the online ArtManager eAccess provide organized
inventories that follow the Getty Information Institute International Object ID
Checklist for identifying and recovering lost objects.
Itemized Inventories
With ArtManager Client Services, Koo Consulting produces itemized inventories, that include
origins, physical descriptions, cost and basis, asset ownership, provenance, ownership history
and appraisals.
A digital photograph is taken of each piece in the collection and all items are affixed with
an electronic bar code label for security identification.
Finally, a map is created for the entire collection, including site, building, floor, room
and location. Should the collection be on loan, lost, relocated, stolen or destroyed, both the
collector and Koo Consulting have records of the collection on a CD-ROM
archive.
J. Patrick Cooney, a former senior vice president at Christie's thinks that Koo Consulting's
online ArtManager eAccess "is helping to bring art up to the same level of other assets,
such as stocks and real estate."
Koo Consulting does all the inventory documentation and record
keeping for the client. Records are updated and maintained by Koo Consulting at
its facilities. Clients are provided with copies of the records on CD-ROM for
insurance, tax and legal purposes. Clients may also select to undertake the
maintenance of their records personally or they may access their information
via the Internet.
According to Gayle Skluzacek, an
appraiser with Abigail Hartmann Associates, ArtManager eAccess "functions
like a bank statement for fine artwork and other collectibles, and it is
essential for high net-worth individuals with large collections."
