How to handle the disposal of art after death​

Proper planning prevents poor performance
Fantastically comprehensive resource on estate and legacy planning for the visual arts. Nicely compiled and some of it very up to date. Well done.
This section is about what an artist, an art collector - or their Executor - needs to know regarding Estate Planning and the management of an Estate including art BEFORE and AFTER the death of an artist or an art collector.

Contents
​​​This site highlights:
​
BEFORE DEATH
  • CHECKLIST of issues for artists to consider when planning the disposal of their estates
  • CHECKLIST of issues for art collectors to get to grips with prior to death
  • links to sources of helpful information and advice
AFTER DEATH
  • some of the difficulties which the estates of famous artists have experienced due to mistakes, omissions and poor estate planning
WOW! what a comprehensive resource!!!
Executors of artists' estates - who have little or no understanding of how the art world works - face major challenges both before and after death. 
  • What do you need to know and do if you are an Executor who knows nothing about art?
  • How do you minimise challenges for those who have to deal with the Estate of an Artist or Art Collector?
  • What's the best way of avoiding financial squabbles?
Too often these are issues which people find difficult and avoid dealing with - sometimes until it's far too late.
​This website seeks to address these issues in time to avoid problems!
What a great site. In-depth information on estate planning; the fact that is aimed at artists and art collectors is very interesting and a targeted area that I have not seen too readily before. Especially when investment in art is becoming more common place, it is great that this has been so informative to what might normally be quite confusing regarding asset protection. A very good read.
Comments relate to when this material was on another website
Banner Image: The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain - designed by Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry. It was developed by The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1937 by philanthropist Solomon R. Guggenheim and his long-time art advisor, artist Hilla von Rebay. 
Picture
The Battle of the Pictures,1745 by William Hogarth
Before you start reading........
Bear in mind laws and taxes vary between different parts of the world. Often articles and books are written for a specific audience, particularly if the issue is about financial and legal matters. Therefore what might be an appropriate approach in one country or state might not be relevant in another.
This site does NOT attempt to differentiate between different countries or advice - I'll leave that to the professional experts. However you may well notice some similarities as to the basic principles about how to approach estate planning

READ my disclaimer in full at the bottom of the page
The Artist Estate:
A Handbook for Artists, Executors, and Heirs
by Loretta Wurtenberger

RATED:
  • 5 stars by 3 customer reviews (UK)
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars by 4 customer reviews (USA)
This handbook covers
  • options for legal frameworks
  • appropriate financing models,
  • proper handling of the market, museums, and academia.

​The author explains:
  • different alternatives for managing and maintaining an artist’s estate.
  • recommendations on how to handle artwork, archives, and mementos following the death of an artist.
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Hatje Cantz
Published: August 2016

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About the author: Loretta Wurtenberger has a business (The Institute for Artists' Estates) which has advised on the setting up and execution of artists estates for many years - with a bias towards Germany. She studied law, philosophy and art history and earned her doctorate in international copyright and patent law at the Max Planck Institute. Subsequently she became the youngest ever judge at the Berlin district court. She manages artist's estates.
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Disclaimer: I'm not a professionally qualified expert in this area. However everybody has to start somewhere and the aim of this website is to get you thinking about the right questions to think about and ask if and when you need to get professional advice. The links contained on this website are those which could be found by anybody doing extensive research on the Internet. This is your shortcut to the hours it took me to put this site together!