August 19, 2020

A Guide To Consigning Art

Everything you need to know about selling your art

To consign is to ‘deliver something to someone’. In terms of art, it’s when the owner of the artwork - the consigner - consigns (gives) their artwork to a gallery or auction house via a specialist, with the intention of putting the work up for sale.

Do Some Research Beforehand

Before engaging with an art specialist, it can help to do your own research beforehand. Research the artist, how many exhibitions they have been in, including the most recent and if they’ve had any solo exhibitions, their auction history and also looking into artists similar to the one in question and seeing how they are performing in the market.

KAWS, THE NEWS SET, 61 x 61 cm

Have an informed conversation with a specialist

When engaging with an art specialist, it is important to lay out what your expectations are for selling the work. Chairman at Maddox Gallery and Art Critic for London Live TV, James Nicholls, adds, 'at Maddox Gallery we pride ourselves in assisting clients who wish to consign their artworks to us for sale. We provide advice, which in our considered professional opinion and experience, to be in the best interests to our clients. We are earnest in our endeavour to achieve the most favourable and realistic results possible, in regards to the particular art works and market conditions. This is demonstrated in both our achieved results and client satisfaction.'

Unique strategies are put in place in order to maximise interest in the work. We begin with working with our international network of collectors, the thousands of people contacting the gallery each month, including over 100k followers on Instagram to promote your work for sale. While our standard practice is to offer exposure across our platforms, we also offer a discreet service to cater for a private sales. If we have the physical consignment, we can hang the work in one of our galleries for any clients who visit – It is within everyone’s interest to make sure the work sells.

Harland Miller, On Me Not In Me; Health and Safety is Killing Bondage; There's No Business Like No Business

When it comes to valuing art, there’s a lot to consider

Gallery specialists decide a price estimate, taking market information and data into consideration. Our team look at previous results and bidding mentality from major galleries and auction houses, in order to give a good indication on how the work could perform on the secondary market. Banksy, the ever-audacious street artist, for example, has become one of the most sought after artists to buy and invest in. Girl with Balloon that sold in 2015 for £52,000 later sold for £160,000 in 2019, a 207% increase over a 2 year period. Many aspects therefore come into play when deciding an estimate, and timing is one of the most important. Maddox Gallery does not charge to provide an estimate. It is free to consign artworks. Once sold the gallery takes a commission from the final sale price.