Did You Know That Technology Can Help Protect Your Art Collection?
Art Provenance makes artwork identification "immediate, accessible, and cost-effective."
Collecting art seems simple enough: You purchase a piece, then display it in your home. What many don’t realize however, are the other tasks that come with being a full-fledged collector.
To prove authenticity and determine value, you must first be aware of your art’s provenance. Provenance, from the French provenir, is simply the history of an artwork. Knowing a piece’s exhibition history and ownership track help you become a responsible collector. While it’s possible to find this information on your own, in a country like the Philippines, it can be very difficult.
In the Philippines, Art Provenance covers this underserved area in the local industry by making artwork identification “immediate, accessible, and cost-effective.” The company uses “archival identification technologies and secure online registry” to properly verify artwork and let you collect at ease.
To further its services, Art Provenance has partnered with galleries such as Blanc, Artinformal, Tin-aw Art Gallery, and Eskinita Art Gallery.
Art Provenance was founded in 2015 by Rico Gonzalez, Cris Mora, and Gerry Qua to “safeguard the legacy of Filipino artists through a service that supports more accurate scholarship, creates better security for artist estates and strengthens confidence in secondary market sales and collection building.”
“Getting reliable provenance information is extremely difficult for even the most diligent of researchers, let alone for the average collector,” says Mora. “We hope to change that through a smart mix of technologies that allow us to put dependable information at your fingertips.”
Art Provenance’s team is made up of experts in gallery management, art logistics, materials manufacturing, technology, and even international finance. The company can authenticate artworks and add layers of protection by installing identification tags on each artwork—using a combination of security labels and archival microdots. The company uses technology to catalog art in a digital collection database, while storing important documents and images that will be useful in the future.
Aside from authentication and provenance, the company protects you long-term by preventing forgeries. To authenticate an artwork, Art Provenance approaches the artist and has him or sign a Certificate of Authenticity which is then stored in the database. Currently, the company only works with living artists. The founders of Art Provenance have taken steps to make sure that all information stored digitally is kept safe by “creating a system that automatically separates your personal details from your collection.”
To learn more, contact Art Provenance at info[at]artprovenance.com, call 661.7616, or visit artprovenance.net.
This story originally appeared on Townandcountry.ph.
* Minor edits have been made by the Realliving.com.ph editors.
