As older adults, part of the boomer generation, age and pass away, their next of kins are receiving their vast art collections as part of the great wealth transfer.
Another study by Art Basel and UBS on global collecting found that Boomers favor art far more than the generations that followed. Boomers lead in average spending on fine art and antiques, while younger generations favor purchasing digital art and film and video.
The problem for Boomers? Their kins are feeling overwhelmed by the task of managing these collections. As Philip Hoffman, chairman and founder of the Fine Art Group, which advises families on their collections, told Bloomberg: “the next gen don’t want it.”
It’s nothing but a hassle
In the Bloomberg article, Felix Salmon writes that his wife —who is one of artist David A. Vaughan’s grandchildren — expects to receive some of the remaining works of Vaughan’s collection when Vaughan’s own children pass.
After his death in 1975, his children, Sue and David inherited most of his postwar art and kept the collection largely intact. One piece was donated to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2011 and a few paintings were gifted to extended family members.
Salmon writes that both his wife and her sibling “have little ability to look after the remaining works […] and are struggling to work out what to do with it.”
The Vaughans are certainly not alone in this, as many younger generations inheriting works of art struggle with what to do with it all. This is not only due to the art world changing, but to the many costs associated with managing large art collections.
Inheriting an art collection can cost you both time and money.
Hoffman of the Fine Art Group told Bloomberg that “selling is quite easy for the 0.1%, who might inherit an art collection worth $100 million or more,” explaining that the big auction houses will keep the ultrarich “very well looked after.”
That being said, not every collection falls into this category. Some auction houses may show interest in a couple pieces from a collection, but they won’t fight for them unless they’re worth millions. In this case, inheritors might consider seeking out smaller auction houses or professional liquidators to help them sell the pieces they don’t want to keep.
How long that process will take is hard to pin down, and the effort required may lead people to opt to disregard the monetary value of a collection and simply find a museum to donate it to, and at least benefit from the tax deduction. But with nearly every major museum having more art than it can display, they don’t always want to take new pieces.
While trying to rehome art, the cost of storing it also adds up. The exact cost will depend on the value and size of the art, as well as if you choose to store it in a basic storage facility or in a climate-controlled environment, which is advised for maintaining quality.
If you also opt to insure the collection “a piece appraised at $100,000 will cost between $1,000 to $2,000” per year, according to Beacon Hill Private Wealth,
Times are changing
As with every generation, art tastes are evolving and this can add a layer of difficulty to finding buyers for art works that used to be all the rage, but maybe aren’t anymore. Similarly, the generations inheriting these works might feel less inclined to keep and hang them on their own walls, as they don’t fit the modern aesthetic of their homes.
If the next generation doesn’t want their parents’ art collections or the hassle that comes with managing it, what do they want? The short answer is future financial stability.
A 2024 study from Northwestern Mutual found that 46% of Gen X, 59% of millennials and 54% of Gen Z believe that the inheritance they are expecting is crucial to their retirement and long-term financial security. While it is possible that inheritors could make money off an art collection, it’s no guarantee. And with them so heavily relying on an inheritance to fund their future, they might just rather have the cash in their pockets.
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