Elizabeth II, Buckingham Palace, London, March 28, 2007. Photograph by Annie Leibovitz, courtesy of Vanity Fair.
In times of turmoil, I've often found that being surrounded by art is soothing to my soul. When I'm stressed or merely pre-occupied by something, I tend to sneak off to any number of museums (London's National Portrait Gallery remains a favorite) to collect my thoughts or simply to take a break. It's my refuge. Apparently, I'm not alone to find comfort in art. According to the IHT, cash strapped collectors and artists themselves are turning to companies like Art Capital Group for loans using their own art collections or even their future works as collateral.
While Art Capital Group may refer to themselves as "private banking for the art world", the company in question and others like it, are little more than pawnshops for the very wealthy. And with dwindling property prices and stock portfolios under water, their business is reportedly booming. Annie Leibovitz and Julian Schnabel, two of the contemporary art world's most commercially successful artists have turned to Art Capital Group in recent times to raise cash.
This option is said to be appealing because it is both a quick way of securing cash and a discreet one (the latter claim sounds somewhat ridiculous given that the details of both Ms. Leibovitz's and Mr. Schnabel's loan term agreements appear in the pages of the IHT both online and off for the entire world to see). In any event, with credit markets still entangled in the bailout morass, pawn shops may be the only way to secure financing for the cash strapped collector. The business of pawning valuable assets is not new but the range of goods available for use as collateral seems to be expanding. In Paris for instance, the Credit Municipal de Paris, the municipal pawnshop, began accepting fine wine as collateral.
Before you consider resorting to this option however, keep in mind that while the range and quality of goods at issue are of the utmost refinement, the terms and tactics associated with the business are not. They're no different than any other pawn shop. Just ask Julian Schnabel or Veronica Hearst.
Sincerely,
The Luxe Chronicles
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