Frequently Asked Questions

What geographic area do you serve?
Signet Art is based in Carrolton, a northern suburb of Dallas, Texas. We routinely provide art consulting and appraisal services throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. We also accept large project assignments elsewhere in Texas and throughout the United States. Projects outside the greater Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex area are subject to travel costs.

Do you appraise anything other than art?
Brenda Simonson-Mohle is a certified appraiser (ISA CAPP) of personal property with an acknowledged specialty in fine art; specifically American and European paintings, sculpture, drawings, prints, tapestries and decorative art from the 18th Century to the present. No one appraiser can appraise everything well. Large projects may require the participation of a team of qualified appraisers with different areas of expertise. The team appraisal approach offers the most efficient means of appraising large, diverse collections. Ms. Simonson-Mohle has led many such appraisal teams.

If you have a few items of personal property that do not fall within Ms. Simonson-Mohle’s area of specialty, call for a referral. We will gladly refer you to the best-trained appraiser for the type of items you have.

Do you do email appraisals?
No. Here’s why: The very first thing that a professional appraiser must do in order to properly appraise an item is to correctly identify it. Without proper identification, hours of research can be rendered useless. The use of photographic images as an exclusive means of identification is ill advised. A photograph or digital image is nothing more than a two-dimensional likeness of the subject depicted. As such, many important details can be lost in translation. Even with the best photographs, it is often impossible to determine with certainty the medium of a piece.
For example:

• Is it a watercolor or an offset reproduction print of a watercolor?
  
• Is it an original oil on canvas painting or a print transfer to canvas?
  
• What type of print is it—intaglio, lithograph or offset lithographic reproduction?
  
• Is the signature an original or a facsimile?
  
• Is it a bronze or a decorative plaster sculpture painted with metallic-color paint?
• What is the condition of the piece?
  

These and many more issues can be difficult to ascertain without first-hand inspection. Many times appraisers employ photographic documentation as part of the physical inspection process. Such photographs are taken by the appraiser to document key information they have noted about the items being appraised, and can serve as valuable reference when conducting research. These photos are an aid to documentation only—never a substitute for first-hand inspection.

In special situations, such as cases of theft or fire loss, photographs may be the only available means of identification. Where the objects in question are not available for inspection, a well-trained appraiser can still provide an appraisal of the objects. However the extraordinary assumptions that are made regarding the qualities of the items being appraised will be listed as limitations on the report, and the accuracy of the appraisal will turn on accuracy of the assumptions being made.

Please do not email any images! If you are interested in determining the identity and value of artwork in your collection, call us and make an appointment to have your pieces personally inspected.

Can someone just take a quick look and tell me
what I have?
Yes…if you don’t want or need a written appraisal. There are times when you may just want to satisfy your curiosity. If you picked up an interesting piece at last weekend’s estate sale or your rich aunt left you some paintings that you know nothing about, you may want to seek a professional opinion of what the items are and what they might be worth. For just this sort of need, we schedule appointments in our offices for verbal consultations. You may bring as many pieces as you like. Verbal consultations are subject to a minimum half-hour appointment time, and you will be charged in half-hour increments depending on the length of your appointment. This can be an efficient and cost-effective way to get your questions answered. If you have a greater number of pieces or transporting them is impossible, a walk-through appointment can be scheduled at your location. (Travel time and minimum charges may apply).

And No…Sometimes written appraisals are required. Professional appraisals are written for a specific purpose and involve value determinations based upon thorough research and the appraiser’s knowledge of the art market. Insurance qualification, charitable donation, estate tax valuation, equitable dissolution of property in a divorce or business matter…these are just a few of the reasons you may need a written appraisal. Call us to discuss which best fits your needs.

Can you authenticate my artwork?
Appraisal and authentication are two very different needs. A good appraisal begins with an accurate identification of the piece to be appraised. The appraiser examines each piece for medium, condition, size, and identifying characteristics. Of course, that includes a close examination of the signature on a piece, if it is signed. A professional appraiser would not appraise an item unless they were confident in making an accurate identification of the piece.

A good appraiser should have years of broad-based experience relevant to the type of items they are called upon to appraise. Most appraisal reports contain a “readily apparent identity” clause, which means that if the piece conforms to the known characteristics of the work of a given artist, the piece will be assumed to be by the hand of that artist.

Authenticators, on the other hand, are specialists in the work of one artist. An authenticator would have had enough exposure to the work of a given artist so that they could confidently make a claim as to whether the artist did or did not produce the piece.

An authenticator might be the art historian who authored the most comprehensive book on the artist, a family member who had daily exposure to the artist’s work, or perhaps the artist’s long-time gallery representative. For each artist, there are usually only one or two widely accepted authenticators of his/ her work.

In certain situations where a question of significant value rests on the correct identification and verification of authorship, the appraiser may suggest the services of an authenticator. The appraiser will then locate the right person and help coordinate the process of authentication.