Appraisals made by auction houses or galleries are in conflict of interests

A conflict of interest is created by the certificate of authenticity (C.O.A.) or an art assessment performed by a gallery. A gallery that sells you an artwork will almost always make an art assessment that is greater than the price you pay the gallery for a painting. Ask instead for a professional art appraisal before deciding to purchase the piece. It is clear that a C.O.A. that a gallery creates for an artwork that they sell to a buyer is in conflict of interest. They won't ever admit that the $100,000 painting you bought is actually a fake or has only a fraction of that for value. An auction house acts differently they will appraise your artwork ( future reserve price) low so that they are sure to sell your artwork.
Some galleries are exceptions: Castelli, which began selling Willem De Kooning in 1949, Vollard, who sold Picasso exclusively, and others. The C.O.A. made by these galleries is meant to be infallible, "BUT" I always suggest hiring a renowned expert to confirm the agreement between the C.O.A. and the pieces of art the gallery offers. Anecdote: A renowned New York gallery once sold a bogus Renoir with an official C.O.A. created by Francois Daulte, the undisputed Renoir authority long time ago. The genuine Renoir with the genuine C.O.A. had been purchased by the renowned NY gallery ten years earlier at a Parisian auction. The gallery sent a Japanese collector the genuine Renoir together with a replica of the genuine C.O.A. by Daulte. A replica of the original artwork with the genuine C.O.A. by Fr. Daulte was sold by the gallery ten years later! The Japanese owner of the original Renoir watched in horror as his own Renoir painting was put up for auction in New York. "A painting should always be sold by a gallery with a C.O.A. made by the solely recognized authentication expert for the artist." In conclusion, I suggest: - Always have the certificate of authenticity (C.O.A.) reaffirmed by the one and only acknowledged authentication expert if you purchase a painting from a gallery with a C.O.A.If there is fraud going on, it will be quickly discovered in the expert's records. - If an artwork has a C.O.A. that is more than six months old, ask the gallery for an updated C.O.A. from the only acknowledged authority. The expert may have changed, and they may no longer agree with the previous acknowledged expert. -Whenever purchasing a painting from a gallery, make sure to "always" ask for the advice of a trustworthy expert. © Gerard Van Weyenbergh. - https://www.vwart.com