Art Dealer's Field Guide: How to Profit in Art, Buying and Selling
Valuable Paintings

Art Dealer's Field Guide: How to Profit in Art, Buying and Sellin...

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Editorial Reviews

Among the most exquisite achievements of mankind, art, especially old paintings, can enrich your life, beautify the home or office, and gain impressive value while just hanging on the wall. This book examines art, especially valuable paintings. Not a coffee-table art book, but a book with information that will be priceless for those who apply the principles to be learned here. It will take years off your journey in becoming a successful art collector, investor, or dealer. Shortening the learning curve and turning your art apprenticeship into a profitable enterprise, this book will save you time and money. It will help you avoid costly mistakes while revealing how to create opportunities in art where none existed previously for you. Written for the new collector and investor, this book will be an invaluable reference guide for even the experienced dealer. You will find contact telephone numbers, Web sites, and trade information. Learn here the mind-set and game plan of the art collector, investor, and dealer because each has a different motivation, buying and selling strategy, and outcome objective. We will focus on the art dealer of old paintings. He is the professional who earns his living buying and selling art. We will examine his techniques, strategies, and business practices. Because the dealer buys, sells, and negotiates art transactions every day, he has more art know-how—more insider techniques up his sleeve, as it were—than either the collector or the investor. The collector and the investor need to learn what the dealer knows, acquiring the skills of the art dealer. This book aims to equip you with the parallel skills and abilities as those of the art dealer, so that you can buy and sell art for a profit.

Customer Reviews

Excellent guide before buying or selling art

Reviewed by Edith Piaf, 2009-12-16

I found Ron Davis' book to be very valuable and a great guide for me as an art collector. After reading it, I learned what to look for, where to find the information that will allow me to make a sound business decision before I hand out my hard earned money and buy that painting I love. Art Dealers are very knowledgeable but they won't help you much if you don't know what to ask for. This book will teach you all you need to know.

I also found the book well written and very easy to follow. I was really impressed on how organized the chapters were and how gradually the author educates the reader by introducing one by one the main aspects of the art dealing. I have and will continue to recommend this book to my friends who buy art and to anyone I know who is or want to be involved in the art.

Art Lover

The best source for art law issues

Reviewed by Joseph A. Kinney, 2009-10-26

This book is an outstanding compilation for engaging in the field of art with a legal perspective on the basic do's and don'ts. Not only is this book full of useful information, it is well written and very understandable. For those who want to buy and sell fine art, this book is must reading.

For rank beginners only

Reviewed by Infrequent Reviewer, 2009-09-26

I don't usually write Amazon reviews. But this book annoyed me so much I felt compelled to spend the time and effort coming back to write a few brief words. This self-published book is for rank beginners only. It is poorly written, full of generalizations, truisms, flawed logic and "groan-out-loud-head-slapping" banal observations. If you have never set foot in a gallery or bought a piece of art in your life, you may find it interesting. Anyone with even a modicum of experience would be well-served to look elsewhere.

Great resource for understanding the business of paintings

Reviewed by Dahveed, 2008-08-07

Well written, informative, and motivating. A how-to guide for those interested in buying, selling, and/or investing in art. Provides a broad range of resources. Fun and exciting to read!

Art Dealer's Field Guide by Ron Davis

Reviewed by Terese Rizzi, 2008-05-14

Art Dealer's Field Guide is the only book on the market that teaches the "art" of making money in the art world. Ron Davis generously shares his many secrets gleaned from a lifetime dealing in art. A must read for novice and expert alike.