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The Matrimonial StrategistKickerFeaturesSectionsNewsLJN Newsletters

Art As an Asset in Divorce

By Beverly Schreiber Jacoby
August 31, 2005

Death, divorce and debt” are the bread and butter of the art and antiques market, as every art world professional knows. Through good times and bad, these life cycle events frequently trigger sales and other transactions. With divorce, however, if emotions are not already present prior to filing papers, the process itself tends to intensify anger and mistrust between opposing sides.

Divorcing spouses often have competing interests, and neither party may be in a frame of mind to compromise. If divorcing New Yorkers, for instance, are forced to choose between the Fifth Avenue apartment and the house in the Hamptons, not to mention the box at the U.S. Open or courtside seats at the Knicks, and if told they must share the Microsoft stock and the 401(k), by the time they get around to dealing with art and antiques, they may not find themselves in the mood to be practical. If the parties behave as if there needs to be a winner and a loser, there is a great risk that instead of preserving the full value of their collections, they may erode the worth of the marital estate. Like the baby in the Judgment of Solomon, the painting cannot be cut in half. Spouses may have a special attachment to certain pieces, especially when collecting is a shared activity within the marriage.

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