Deaccessioning A Collection
When I wrote a post a few weeks ago about Brandeis closing their art museum and
selling the collection, I was thinking about doing something very similar. I don't have an art collection to sell, but I do have a pretty extensive book collection of art, architecture, design and photography.
I'm fortunate in that I don't have to sell books to raise money to live on, but I started
thinking about it as a way to acquire new books that I'd like on my shelves. I know collectors of all kinds are continually refining their collections by selling pieces they've had for years and grow tired of, or see a market ready for a piece or two they own that will allow them to buy several other items that they'd like to add to an existing group of work. This is where I find myself these days.
At first, I didn't think about how emotional the decision would be. I didn't relate selling
books with the kind of emotional attachment people have with a painting. Why did I underestimate the relationship between myself and my books? All I can chalk it up to is personal art snobbery, and falling into the trap of a culture that places value on art auction headlines filled with paintings (and a few sculptures) selling for millions of dollars. I never see any flashy headlines talking about book auctions.
So why sell? Under the groaning weight of 30 years of compiling books in genres that
interested me, I find myself sitting with a collection worth a nice bit of cash. I never, in a million years, considered myself a "collector" I just loved books. But, through a friend telling a friend telling a friend, my books came to the attention of a used book dealer who contacted me and asked if I'd be interested in selling some of my books. I didn't know what to say, since I hadn't been thinking about it. But, the call made me curious. So, doing a little investigating of my own, I was shocked to see that a book I'd paid $65.00 for years ago, was selling for around $350.00. I kept looking up other titles, and was really shocked when I realized how much some of these books were worth in today's market.
I haven't opened many of them for years. They sit on shelves looking out from their
spines and give me comfort. I just like knowing they are there. Until that phone call, I would never have thought of selling any of them, but now I'm considering it. There are many more books I'd love to have since my interests have changed, and I realized there is a reason I haven't cracked open some of those books in ages, I've moved on. Depending on what I choose to do, and what books I might want to sell, I could pocket a nice chunk of change. I may not be in the league of big museums, or major art collectors, and I'm not in a distressed situation like Brandeis, but in my little corner of the world, finding myself with the possibility of deaccessioning a collection, has been a surprisingly emotional experience.
Posted by designslinger at 3/10/2009 5:00 AM 
Categories: Architecture, Interior Design, Photography, Art
Tags: art books architecture books design books book collection photography books
Categories: Architecture, Interior Design, Photography, Art
Tags: art books architecture books design books book collection photography books
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