50 Artists for 50 States At SF MOMA
ADAA Announces Pledges in Support of the Initiative
Neal Benezra, Lucy Mitchell-Innes, Roland Augustine, Charles Schwab.
Last month ADAA hosted a lively event at SF MOMA with Director Neal Benezra and Board of Trustees Chairman Charles Schwab to announce the artists pledging to donate works for ADAA’s 50 Artists for 50 States initiative. ADAA’s project encourages the passage of the Artist Museum Partnership Act, which would allow artists to take a full tax deduction for the donation of works of art to museums and other cultural institutions. The renowned artists announced at the event have offered their support of the legislation by pledging works of art to be donated to institutions throughout the United States upon passage of the bill.
ADAA’s 50 Artists for 50 States has brought together all sectors of the cultural and political community in a national effort to encourage the passage of the Artist Museum Partnership Act. Thus far artists who have pledge to donate works include: Artist Committee Chair Christopher Wool, Vito Acconci, John Baldessari, Lynda Benglis, Louise Bourgeois, Vija Celmins, Chuck Close, Eric Fischl, Roni Horn, Robert Irwin, Jasper Johns, Mike Kelley, Ellsworth Kelly, Sherrie Levine, Alan McCollum, Bruce Nauman, Claes Oldenburg, Richard Prince, James Rosenquist, Ed Ruscha, Richard Serra, Joel Shapiro, Frank Stella, Richard Tuttle, Lawrence Weiner, and Terry Winters.
2010 Estate Tax Explained
ADAA’s Karen Carolan gives details on the 2010 Estate Tax exemption rules and repercussions
While the lapse of the estate tax for 2010 would appear to be good news, a number of unintended consequences can result which could increase the chances that you will owe taxes on inheritance.
What You Need To Know
Previously in 2009 –Estate tax and the generation-skipping transfer tax on assets given to grandchildren were at a 45% rate on estates valued above $3.5 million.
2010 – Estate tax repealed. Lifetime gift tax exemption remains at $1 million but the tax rate has been reduced to 35%.
Expected in 2011 – Estate tax and generation-skipping transfer tax are scheduled to return at higher tax rates (55%) and at a lower exemption (estates valued at $1 million). Lifetime gift tax exemption remains at $1 million but the tax rate has been raised to 55%.
Problems for the future – Past law provided a basis tax break for inherited property. Now heirs would have to use the original purchase price paid for an asset as the “basis” when computing tax liability and could not take advantage of utilizing the “stepped-up basis” (the fair market value of the property at the owner’s death as the basis). This change could lead to increased capital gains tax on the appreciation ie., capital gains would need to be paid on appreciation from the original cost “basis” instead of on appreciation from decedent estate tax value (“stepped-up basis”).
How To Plan
Most estate planners expect Congress to restore the taxes retroactively, restoring the 2009 limitations: $3.5 million exemption for estate tax and generation-skipping transfer tax, with a 45% rate for both estate and gift tax. Consequently, we would advise clients to make sure to get an estate tax appraisal. Please contact ADAA’s Appraisals Services Department to discuss your or your clients’ questions and to arrange an art appraisal for estate tax purposes, (212) 488-5530.
James Goodman Celebrating 51 Years as an Art Dealer
From an interview with Linda Blumberg
This year James Goodman is celebrating his 81st birthday as well as the 51st anniversary of his business. This is quite an amazing feat for someone who says he began his career in the art world by accident. Jim had been attending a business meeting in Atlantic City and was considering a change in his career. He pressed the wrong button in an elevator, got off in the basement instead of the first floor, and wandered into the Terry Dintenfass Gallery. After spending several hours speaking with Terry, she encouraged him to open a gallery in his hometown of Buffalo and promised to help. Jim quickly secured space in the upscale Park Lane Hotel and acquired one painting by a local artist, Charles Burchfield. Enlisting help from a theatrical lighting designer and a local art critic who agreed to hang the show, he went back to New York to collect some paintings. Since Terry was still in Atlantic City and unavailable, he went to the well-known dealer Edith Halpert and explained what he needed: basically something for his show. She agreed to loan him a John Marin watercolor and suggested he go to several other dealers using her name to gain entrance. Jim then went up and down Madison Avenue collecting works on consignment, and drove back to Buffalo with a station wagon full of borrowed paintings. His gallery was launched.
By 1967, Jim had moved to New York City. Still working on consignment, he had nevertheless developed several important clients and had met Allan Stone, whose gallery was located across the street. He also produced small catalogues and published the prices of the works for sale. By 1970 he was ready to go to Europe. Taking his children with him, he went to Basel, preceded by his catalogues. He called on Ernst Beyler, whose prestigious gallery showed works by Klee, Leger, de Kooning, Giacometti and others. Jim selected several small works and asked to have them on consignment. Beyler, not familiar with this concept cautiously agreed, marking the beginning of a long and profitable relationship for both men. His next European stop was in Paris, at the Kahnweiler Gallery. Instead of requesting works by Picasso, Jim asked for works by the Spanish artist Manolo, who Kahnweiller felt was underappreciated. Thus ingratiating himself, he was able to later secure works by Kahnweiller’s most famous artists by asking for smaller works. Jim calls this “staying under the radar,” something he still likes to do. It’s a kind of motto for him and that, combined with his salesman ability, his good eye, and his gentlemanly manner, has made him enormously successful. In addition to this success, what has made Jim loved all these years is his honesty and sense of fair play. Buyers, sellers and collectors alike all value this very special quality.
2009-2010 Collectors’ Forum Season Concludes
Tuesday, May 18th ADAA concluded the 2009-2010 Collectors’ Forum series with Artists and Dealers: Creative Partnerships at Sean Kelly Gallery. With a standing room only audience, panelists Richard Tuttle, Amy Sillman, Ronald Feldman, Susan Dunne, Julie Saul, and moderator Lucy Mitchell-Innes, discussed the dynamic relationships between artists and dealers. Video of the event, along with recordings of the rest of the season’s panels will be available to view online at www.artdealers.org/events.
Thank you to the panelists, moderators, and our corporate partner AXA Art Corporation who make the ADAA Collectors’ Forums possible.
The 2009-2010 Collectors’ Forum Season
The Informed Eye: An Expert Look at Print Collecting
October 3, 2010
The Morgan Library & Museum
Panelists
Deborah Wye
The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Chief Curator
of Prints and Illustrated Books,
The Museum of Modern Art
Jordan Schnitzer
Collector and publisher
Armin Kunz
Director, C. G. Boerner Gallery
Jacob Lewis
Director, Pace Prints
Terry Winters
Artist
Moderator
Susan Sollins
Executive Director, Art21 Foundation; Executive Producer & Curator,
Art:21–Art in the Twenty-First Century
Conserving the New:
Preserving and Restoring Contemporary Artworks
January 23, 2010
The Morgan Library & Museum
Panelists
David Reed
Artist
Jim Coddington
Agnes Gund Chief Conservator, Museum of Modern Art, New York
Christian Scheidemann
Owner and Senior Conservator, Contemporary Conservation Ltd.
Mona Jimenez
Associate Arts Professor and Associate Director of Moving Image Archiving & Preservation, NYU
Eileen Cohen
Art Collector
James Cohan
Owner, James Cohan Gallery
Moderator
Patterson Sims
Art Curator and Writer
A Committed Vision: Collecting in the New Economy
March 6, 2010
The Park Avenue Armory
Panelists
Melva Bucksbaum
Art Collector
Edward Dolman
Chief Executive Officer, Christie's International
William Goetzmann
Director, International Center for Finance,
Yale School of Management
Robert Mnuchin
Partner, L&M Arts
Candace Worth
Worth Art Advisory
Moderator
Lucy Mitchell-Innes
President, Art Dealers Association of America; Partner, Mitchell-Innes & Nash
Artists and Dealers: Creative Partnerships
May 18, 2010
Sean Kelly Gallery
Panelists
Richard Tuttle
Artist
Amy Sillman
Artist
Ronald Feldman
Co-Director, Ronald Feldman Fine Arts
Susan Dunne
Senior Vice President, The Pace Gallery
Julie Saul
Director, Julie Saul Gallery
Moderator
Lucy Mitchell-Innes
President, Art Dealers Association of America; Partner, Mitchell-Innes & Nash
