APIx Stability Ratings are a window into
the future of art investment
ART IS COMPLEX, TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT YOUR INVESTMENT
Art preservation specialists know that a great deal of art being sold today may deteriorate quickly and cause the monetary value to decline precipitously in some cases. Art is created with many materials that are visually appealing and seem innocuous but most artists, gallery owners, and buyers of art know very little about the stability of these materials or how they interact with one another over time.
APIx will illuminate this for the entire art world.
AN INNOVATION TO HELP INVESTORS
APIx is a patented rating system, like investment ratings from Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s for the financial industry, made to reduce and protect investment risks for fine art. APIx creates transparency in the art market. Buyers of art like buyers of investments should seriously consider getting an APIx rating before making a purchase. APIx ratings will properly position works of art for the marketplace.
RESEARCH-BASED SYSTEM, DESIGNED BY EXPERTS
APIx scores are generated by scientific and historical research that is completed by a staff of professionals who base their artwork analyses on multi-layer assessments of the materials, their application, and the way they interact chemically and physically to determine their stability. Each rating will be accompanied by a full rating report that describes how the rating was derived, and specific recommendations for the care of the artwork.
THE ART WORLD WILL BENEFIT FROM APIx,
MAKING A NEW MODEL
Art buyers, conservators and insurers everywhere will benefit from APIx as it will make investing in art a safer process while creating a higher profile and more work for preservation professionals, and a safer bet for those who insure it. APIx creates a new model for trading art as an asset because it incorporates stability and risk awareness.
READ ABOUT THE APIx
Title: Untitled
Artist: signed "Picasso"
Year: 1956
Medium: Colored pencil on paper
Title: Midas Washing
Artist: Joe Simeone
Year: 2013
Medium: Oil paint on canvas
Title: Te Tiare Takani
Artist: Unknown
Year: early 20th century
Medium: Oil paint on canvas
WHAT THE PRESS IS SAYING
The APIx is "due diligence...a key bit of information you need to have before making a major purchase"
- Barbara Haislip, Wall Street Journal / Barron's
"Index guards against faulty art investments"
- Jeanine Prezioso, Reuters
"a brilliant idea"
- Oxford World Financial Digest
"a no-brainer...it surprising that a rating system of this sort is not already in place"
- Nichole Vacherot, Articheck Blog
CREATING TRANSPARENCY IN THE ART MARKET
Works of art are complex composite objects, commonly made from multiple materials and the qualities of these materials are central to their stability over time. Some materials may begin to disintegrate almost immediately while others may remain stable for centuries. Art Preservation Index is a standard rating system for art materials and works of art based on the projected stability, or longevity, of its matrix of constituents. Often works of art are purchased with little knowledge of the projected stability. This rating system gives all participants in art creation and distribution a more standardized method to evaluate the longevity potential of each artwork or material.
Financial rating agencies have been rating investments for the likelihood of repaying loans since the early 20th century. Building construction materials are rated for strength and stability. Like homes, artwork may be made of materials that will degrade quickly without proper care, and in some situations self-destruct over short horizons.
Despite the fact that many works of art cost more than an average home, no standard stability ratings currently exist in the art world. Presently, a piece of art could be sold at a gallery or at auction for substantial sums and, unknown to the buyer or the seller, the materials by which it is constructed might negatively interact with one another or simply deteriorate independently in just a few years, consequently devaluing the piece substantially. Art Preservation Index will help art owners, art conservators, and all participants in the art world make better plans for the conservation of art objects.
THE INVENTORS
Emily MacDonald-Korth, Co-Inventor, Founder, and CEO of APIx, is an art preservation specialist working in art conservation, research, and consulting; she has published, lectured, and taught internationally and worked on conservation projects across the United States, in China, and in Italy. In 2013, MacDonald-Korth founded the art conservation practice Longevity Art Preservation, LLC; formerly she was Associate Project Specialist at the Getty Conservation Institute. MacDonald-Korth is a graduate of the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation where she earned a Master of Science degree in Art Conservation, with a specialty in the conservation of paintings.
James Korth, Co-Inventor of APIx, started J W Korth & Company in 1982. Throughout the 80s and 90s Korth focused on investment banking, underwriting debt of major corporations for retail issue and pioneered many of the corporate debt programs that are found today. As the internet took hold in the early 2000s Korth launched the Shop4Bonds website in 2003. JW Korth & Company brings institutional investing expertise to individual investors and small institutions. The company has offices in Miami, Orlando, and Lansing, Michigan, and clients located across the country and around the world. More information can be found at: www.jwkorth.com
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