What goes into ensuring your fine art collection stays in perfect condition and retains its value? Take, for example, professional art storage services. Once your valuables enter the doors of a fine art storage facility, they get meticulously cataloged. A fine art storage facility cannot function without a well-kept inventory. In this blog post, we will let you in on how some of the best art storage facilities in the industry tackle art inventory management.
What is art inventory management?
First and foremost, remember that an art collection is an investment. Thus, managing an art inventory is a crucial part of organizing and ensuring the safety of your assets. Poorly maintained records can and will directly affect the value of your art collection.
So, what does art inventory management entail? Usually, a fine art storage facility keeps detailed records of every single piece of art that they store. Today, those records are fully digital and are managed using special software. All artworks that the fine art storage companies are responsible for are listed in a database, along with all the information one might need. That usually includes but is not limited to:
- the title of the artwork and the name of the artist (if known);
- the name of the client;
- the artwork’s medium and materials used to create it;
- the artwork’s dimensions and weight;
- photographs of the artwork, taken at the time of pick-up or receiving at the facility;
- the date of the artwork’s pick-up or receiving at the storage facility;
- the value of the artwork;
- condition notes;
- the duration of storage.
As you can see, fine art storage services go to great lengths to keep art inventory perfectly organized and easily accessible. Knowing all these details about the artwork can prevent serious issues such as loss and damage. In addition, fine art handlers regularly check the condition of the storage facility to ensure that the items it contains stay in the same condition in which they entered storage.
Your approach to art collection management might differ from what we have just described. However, some rules are universal and should be followed by all art collectors who want to ensure the longevity of their collections. The easiest way to achieve that is to enlist the help of a professional art collection management service.