How to read a gallery price list

A gallery price list looks simple: an image, a caption and a number. Yet the same number can mean different things from one gallery to the next, so it pays to check a few lines before you compare two works or quote a price to a client.

The caption

A full caption reads artist, title, year, medium, dimensions and edition. Titles are usually set in italics. Dimensions are given height before width (and depth for objects), most often in centimetres, sometimes with inches beside them. Check whether they refer to the work itself or to the frame.

Editions and artist proofs

For prints, photographs and cast sculpture, the caption gives the edition size, for example “edition of 5 plus 2 AP”: five numbered copies and two artist's proofs. Galleries often raise the price as an edition sells through, so the price on the list applies to the next available number, not to the whole edition. Ask which number you would receive.

Price on request

“POR” or “price on request” usually marks works the gallery wants to place carefully, often the most sought-after ones. Read it as an invitation to ask. Record the work anyway, so it is in your comparison, and ask the gallery directly.

Tax, framing and shipping

• Tax:prices are usually shown before VAT or sales tax. Whether tax applies depends on where the gallery is, where the work ships and who buys it. Ask for the final figure for your client's situation.
• Framing: a price may or may not include the frame. Works on paper in particular are often listed unframed.
• Shipping and insurance: almost never included. For large works or international shipping, they can matter.

Currency

Galleries price in the currency they work in, so a fair can mix dollars, euros, pounds and Swiss francs. Keep each price in its original currency and convert only when comparing, with the rate and date noted.

Availability

Price lists sometimes mark status: available, reserved (on hold for a buyer, for a limited time) or sold, often with a red dot. A list is only true on the day it was sent; confirm availability before you present a work to a client.

Comparing lists

It gets hard when you have twenty lists, each in a different layout. Put every work you are considering into one table with the same columns, and the comparison becomes a sort and a filter. Vitryne does this for you: it reads each gallery PDF and gives you one row per work, ready to search or to export to Excel.