Chapter 8

The Art Of Art Negotiation

Negotiating artwork is definitely an art in itself.

And I can only recommend you negotiate with established

and reputable galleries.  You will of course find many

galleries willing to haggle and reduce prices for artwork they

buy at closeout, but when it comes to the negotiation of

valuable fine art, these tactics are more useless than most

politicians.

Let's say the piece you want to buy has found you,

you've checked the established value and the artist

reputation, and now you're walking into the art gallery

armed with knowledge and perhaps counteroffers from the

galleries you have called.

Here's where most people make their first

serious mistake. They take the prices from the Internet

into the gallery and say "I like the painting and I really want

to make a deal but, John Smith from such and such gallery

just told me he can send the piece from out-of-state at this

price, and you know what, there is no sales tax and he is

going to give me free shipping and either you beat his deal

or I walk.'

The second most serious mistake people make

is, they start quoting lower prices than what they actually

found or were given. This is a sure-fire way to have a very

unpleasant experience because most art dealers know what

the artwork in their gallery goes for online and in other

shops.  Remember, they make a living by knowing the

market and what a person realistically pays when shopping

around.

Either way, coming in with hard tactics and fast

prices the gallery must meet or beat is quite an