Auctions Specific Terminology
Lot Detail Terms Condition Report Terms Categories Mediums Photography Printmaking Sculpture Works on Paper Style Miscellaneous Art Terminology Auction Specific Help Terminology Lot Detail Terms
Artist Name: The name by which the artist is known professionally.Catalogue Raisonne: Complete documentary listing of all works by an artist known at the time of compilation. It includes an identifying catalogue number for each work listed, as well as information such as provenance, current location and/or exhibition history.Condition Report: Notes any damage or unusual characteristics relating to an item or work of art. The type and location of damage are explained in detail to ensure a complete examination.Edition: Set of prints, photographs or sculptures, made from a single image off one plate, negative, or mold, and numbered consecutively. For example, a piece marked 20/100 is the 20th print out of 100 prints which were produced. These editions vary in size, and artists often choose to duplicate impressions on different types of paper or color states.Estimate: An approximate calculation of degree or worth. When quoting the value of a piece, appraisers often take into consideration specific characteristics such as date, medium, size, technique, style, condition, and/or rarity.Exhibition: The public display of a work of art. Artists can have a solo exhibition, retrospective exhibition, or be part of a group exhibition. Solo exhibitions consist of a single artist and may include a variety of works. Retrospective exhibitions typically look historically at the career of an artist or summarize the artist's works to date. Group exhibitions are usually created around a specific theme or idea, or composed of a variety of works from multiple artists, and embody many different mediums.Foundry: A workshop where cast metal sculpture is created. Markings: Any identifying features found on an item for sale (e.g., signature, stamp, manufacturers mark, silver mark).Medium: The material/materials an artist utilized in creating a work of art, such as oil paint, acrylic or bronze. The material that a work was created on, such as canvas or wood, is also considered part of the medium. For example, one might say that the medium of an oil painting is "oil on canvas."Print / Casting Year: Works of art produced in an edition, such as prints, sculpture,and photography can have a second applicable date. For example, a photograph might have been taken in 1932, but printed or re-printed in 1975 from the original negative.Provenance: The history or exact record of ownership for a work of art. The provenance of a work of art helps museum staff, curators, gallerists and auction houses determine valuation and authenticity.Publications: Any publication in which either the specific work of art or artist was noted. Publisher: The printer or foundry that produces an artist's work in multiples (i.e., an edition). For example, Atelier Mourlot of Paris, France, was the publisher for Pablo Picasso's prints. Size: An item's height, width and depth noted in either inches or centimeters.Title: The name by which a work of art is formally known.Year: The year a work of art was created.
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Acid Burn: Brown discoloration on paper, resulting from acidic matting or mounting materials.Adhesive Failure: Occurs when the adhesive deteriorates to the point of collapse. Can be found in works on paper (e.g., prints that have been mounted or collaged). Biological Degradation: Any interruption in the original material due to current or previous biological infestation or insect damage, such as holes or remaining dust-like material.Bloom: Occurs when moisture penetrates a varnished surface, causing cloudy areas to appear.Broken / Separated Element: A broken element is part of an item that has been fractured into two or more parts.A separated element is part of an item that has been become disconnected. Canvas Relined: When the original canvas of a painting has been damaged or weakened, the piece is removed from its stretchers, backed in linen or canvas, and placed on its original stretchers or on new ones.Canvas Re-stretched: When the original canvas of a painting has been tightened on its original stretchers, or taken off of its original stretchers and placed on new ones.Check: A partial split in the woods grain. Occurs when there is uneven shrinkage, which most commonly extends across the rings of annual growth. These lengthwise separations usually result from stress due to air or kiln-drying. Corrosion / Pitting: Corrosion is a chemical reaction between a material (usually metal) and its environment, which produces a deterioration of the materials properties. In some instances, corrosion can occur in a small or confined area in the form of pits on a metal surface. Pitting is an extreme, concentrated attack on a material which may take months, or even years, to become visible.Crackle: The network of fissures or cracks in a finish layer such as varnish, lacquer, or shellac, due to age degradation, expansion and contraction from climate changes, and other causes.Crazing: In ceramics, a mismatch in the thermal expansion between the glaze of an item and its physical body often causes small hairline cracks of the glazed surface, which can potentially compromise the pieces structural integrity. Craquelure: A network of fine cracks on a paintings surface, typically due to elemental expansion, contraction , and age.Creases: Occur when a material has been folded or bent, creating a line or ridge on the surface without breaking or tearing.Deterioration: Any reduction of quality, use or aesthetics due to physical impairment.Fading / Bleaching: Loss of brightness and/or brilliance of color. Occurs when excessive ultra-violet light exposure causes the surface of the piece to become discolored and loose brilliance.Foxing: Reddish-brown mold spots that appear on paper and textiles due to water exposure or high levels of humidity.Indentations: Any chip, dent, gouge, tear, abrasion, or loss occurring from force.Inpainting: Application of paint to re-establish an items visual continuity. Can be used to replace paint loss or disguise craquelure.Instaining: Application of stain, typically to a wooden surface, in the area of a loss to re-establish an items visual continuity.Late Additions: When an artist authorizes a print re-strike with or without changes to the original plate.Missing Element: Part of an item that has been lost.Overpainting: Occurs when a restorer does not possess the correct skills to retouch a damaged area on an item and extends beyond the confines of a loss into undamaged areas.Paint Loss: The absence of paint in areas where it was previously located, due to age and other influences.Painting Varnished: During the restoration process, the restorer will often varnish the surface of an oil or acrylic painting to protect the image from dirt, dust, smoke, grease, or other pollutants. Patina: The result of natural or artificial oxidation on a surface, which produces corrosion, texture, or a thin layer of color that can range in hue. In bronze sculpture, patina specifically refers to the alteration of the surface by the sculptor with acid or other chemicals.Remains of Hinges: Works on paper, prints, and photographs are often attached to a mat with paper hinges and a chemically neutral, non-staining, and permanent adhesive. Each hinge is attached to the piece and the back board,allowing easy removal from the board should the necessity arise. Repurposed: An item that has been repurposed no longer performs its original function, and retains only aesthetic value.Requires Cleaning: An item requires cleaning if there is an accumulation of unrelated matter on its surface (e.g., dirt, dust, grime, fungus, mold, wax).Restoration: The process of halting the decay of a work of art and/or returning it to its original state.Rippled Paper: When environmental influences cause disruptions, ridges, or buckling of paper.Separation: Disconnection between two previously attached layers of a structure. For example, when varnish peels from the surface to which it was applied.Skinning: Excessive cleaning. Occurs when a piece has experienced exorbitant intervention from a restorer or conservationist, removing a portion of the original media. Staining: Occurs when foreign materials react with the surface of an item and create discoloration or spotting.Surface Abrasions: Visible result of wearing, grinding, scratching, or tearing of a surface due to friction. Surface Soiling: Accumulation of dirt, or other materials, upon the face of an item, including fingerprints.Tears / Holes: Openings in a surface caused by forcibly pulling the piece apart. Trimmed Margins: When the margins of a two dimensional work of art have been reduced. Typically occurs during the framing process.Verso: Refers to the back or underside of a sheet of paper.Water Damage / Warping: Includes any type of damage caused by contact with water or humidity such as staining, warping or loosening of material.