The Dangerous Art Expert, part 2

The Famous Name Trap

Many collectors believe that hiring the most famous expert guarantees the best result.

Reputation certainly matters.

Experience matters.

Scholarship matters.

But fame alone is not protection.

History is filled with respected authorities who later proved incorrect.

Some attributed works that were later rejected.

Others rejected works that were later accepted.

No reputation eliminates the possibility of error.

Collectors often confuse prestige with certainty.

The two are not the same.

A respected expert may provide a valuable opinion.

But it remains an opinion.

Not a guarantee.

When Experts Disagree

Few experiences are more frustrating for a collector than receiving conflicting opinions.

One expert believes the work is authentic.

Another disagrees.

A third remains uncertain.

The owner naturally asks:

Who is right?

Unfortunately, there is not always an immediate answer.

Art history is filled with disputes that lasted decades.

In some cases, the final conclusion emerged only after new documents surfaced.

In others, scientific analysis provided clarity.

Sometimes the debate continues long after the original participants are gone.

Collectors often imagine that disagreement signals incompetence.

In reality, disagreement may simply reflect the complexity of the case.

The existence of disagreement does not automatically weaken a work.

The absence of disagreement does not automatically strengthen it.

The Expert Shopping Phenomenon

A practice rarely discussed openly is what I call expert shopping.

A collector receives a negative opinion.

Instead of examining the reasons behind it, the collector seeks another expert.

And another.

And another.

The process continues until a favorable opinion appears.

At that point, the search ends.

The positive opinion is celebrated.

The negative opinions disappear into a drawer.

This approach may provide emotional comfort.

It rarely provides certainty.

The goal of expert consultation should never be to collect approval.

The goal should be to discover the truth.

These are very different objectives.

The Pressure to Please

Experts face pressures that many collectors never see.

Clients want positive news.

Dealers want positive news.

Owners want positive news.

Auction houses want positive news.

Attorneys want positive news.

Families want positive news.

Negative conclusions often disappoint everyone involved.

Yet a responsible expert must remain willing to deliver unwelcome opinions.

In many situations, the most valuable expert is not the one who tells you what you hope to hear.

It is the one who tells you what you need to hear.

Even when the answer is costly.

Even when the answer is unpopular.