Fine art is everywhere we turn, from museums, to our homes, to businesses and institutions of all sizes. At AppraiseItNow, fine art is the most common type of artwork that clients bring to us. Although fine art is the broadest and most popular art form globally, novice collectors, arts professionals, and occasionally even appraisers struggle to understand exactly what fine art is.
In Western art academic and professional circles, art can generally be categorized into three broad groups: fine art, furnishings + decorative art, and gems + jewelry. The outlines of these groups are not always rigid, which is what makes categorization so helpful.
Generally speaking, fine art refers to objects produced solely for aesthetic purposes instead of utilitarian purposes. In other words, fine art is art created for art’s sake. Fine art’s function is to express visual, political, or emotional themes.
There are many ways to categorize fine art, but the two most common are by medium or by period. In this article, we will take a look at some of the different ways to categorize fine art by medium. For our purposes in this article, the medium categorizations discussed are Western. It is important to note that the categories that Western audiences use for fine art were developed specifically with Western art in mind, which means that they aren’t always applicable to Nonwestern types of art, such as Asian art, African art, Native American art, etc.
At AppraiseItNow, we appraise fine art for all types of intended uses. Most often, our fine art appraisals are insurance appraisals for artwork and non-cash charitable donation appraisals, but other common intended uses include:
AppraiseItNow attracts many different types of clients for fine art appraisals. The largest group consists of individual collectors, but we also have experience collaborating with:
Any of these groups can collect fine art!
The largest category of fine art across all time periods and geographical regions is painting. Paintings can command the highest values at auction and generally hold their value well over time when compared with other medium categories. At AppraiseItNow, we often encounter the following types of paintings:
Many of AppraiseItNow’s appraisers specialize in these areas.
The second most popular form of fine art is sculpture. When people hear the word “sculpture”, they might first think of ancient Greek or Roman sculptures or perhaps Italian Renaissance or Baroque sculptures, but the medium is equally active today, too.
Sculptures are usually made in-the-round or relief, although there are also more Contemporary forms. While ancient sculptures were often made from marble or stone, Modern and Contemporary sculptors can make sculptures out of almost anything.
After paintings and sculptures, works on paper are another major category of fine art. While works on paper can be antiques, there are not as many antique works on paper available as paintings and sculptures due to durability issues, as paper (much like textiles) disintegrates faster. Categories for works on paper often include:
Some of these categories are not rigidly defined, as watercolors and pastels can be categorized as paintings, depending on the context.
Photography has been a popular category of fine art since its invention around 1826 and prevalence from the mid-19th century. In our lifetimes, the rise of personal cameras and especially smartphones have redefined the photography market, making the medium more accessible to laypeople. Even with cameras so readily available to us, professional photography as an art form maintains a strong market. Photography can be a grayer area of fine art, as it is not always “art created for art’s sake”, since it so often carries utilitarian purposes. Despite this contradiction, photography is still categorized as fine art instead of decorative art. Common types of photography include:
Mixed media and installations are not the most common types of fine art for the typical collector, but we do encounter them at AppraiseItNow. Installations can demand a lot of space, so appraisers tend to see more of these for our institutional clients. Common types of mixed media and installations include:
Digital installations fall into the category of mixed media as well as the emerging field of digital art, leading us to the next category…
Since the second half of the 20th century (and especially over the past decade), the rising demand for digital art has emerged as a powerful fine art market. While digital art was not initially recognized as fine art, strong sales during the pandemic drastically changed this. From a purely categorization perspective, the assignment of fine art makes more sense than decorative art, as digital art does not carry a utilitarian purpose, but is solely created for aesthetic value and other forms of commentary. Digital art first emerged in the 1960s (even before the rise of personal computers!) in very abstract forms and really took off in the 1980s and 1990s as technology became more accessible to the general public, introducing new forms of creativity. A small subset of digital art types include:
Since the pandemic, NFTs have stolen the limelight. At AppraiseItNow, NFTs are the most common type of digital art we encounter, and our specialists are well aware of the evolving trends and technology in NFTs and the changing landscape of valuations. The market for NFTs remains significant, suggesting that this medium is not going away anytime soon!
Fine art is a broad term to describe art that is created for art’s sake. When assessing fine art, appraisers break the items down into categories that help us better understand the objects at hand and ultimately appraise them fully and objectively, helping clients and all parties involved. The most popular categories of fine art are painting and sculpture, but the breadth of fine art is vast and still growing, especially with the rapidly increasing popularity and complexity of digital art.
Each category is appraised differently, which is why it’s so important for clients to hire a USPAP-compliant appraiser who is well trained to assess fine art objectively and correctly. At AppraiseItNow, all of our appraisers are USPAP-compliant, so you can be confident that we will treat your fine art with the care it deserves.
Looking to get your fine art appraised? Get in touch here.
