Preserve an Artistic Heritage: Estate Planning for Art

As the late Steve Jobs famously said, “Everyone wants to go to heaven, but no one wants to die to get there.” Facing reality, every artist and collector has an estate that someone will eventually have to manage. Inventorying, appraising, and bequeathing artwork requires knowledge beyond the skill sets of most artists, individual collectors or their heirs.

Anyone who owns art – their own or others’ – needs to know the tax implications pertaining to how, when, and to whom artwork is transferred. They cannot assume museums will accept gifts that don’t fit their objectives, but need to acquire prior information. Appropriate knowledge and preparation reduces the complexity of drafting one’s will, reduces the costs to one’s heirs, and leads to a stronger likelihood that one’s wishes will be carried out.

Dedicated to preserving artists’ heritage, Senior Artists Initiative will provide a panel of three leading experts in their fields:

- Legal issues will be discussed by Robert Louis, Esq., partner and co-chair of the Personal Wealth, Estates and Trusts Practice Group at Saul Ewing.
- Jeffery P. Fuller, ASA, of Jeffrey Fuller Fine Art, Ltd., will speak on appraisals and inventory methods.
- Working with museums and institutions as part of the estate planning process will be addressed by William Valerio, Director and CEO of Woodmere Art Museum.

SAI executive director Richard Weisgrau will moderate the discussion that will include questions from the audience.

An informal reception hosted by the Northwest Artists Collective, whose mission is to raise consciousness of and for art in Northwest Philadelphia, will follow.

Artists and collectors are encouraged to bring family members to this important program. Cost is $5 per person, cash only at the door. As seating is limited, participants are encouraged to preregister.