Tang Art Advisory

" Navigating the art market is daunting. It seems so opaque and full of noise that one can easily make the wrong decision in buying art. At least that's how I felt when I first started as a collector. But I am so grateful that I've met Annelien, my trusted advisor. Her professional depth and breath in the art market have made investing in art a very pleasant and exciting journey for me. She helps me decide what to buy, how to buy, how to ask the right questions and research the artists and genre I like. I really appreciate her direct and genuine approach. I couldn't imagine doing it any better way."

" Annelien Bruins of Tang Art Advisory gave an hour-long lecture to our team of CPA’s and family office advisors in New York, Boston and Beverly Hills. Ms Bruins discussed the nature of the international art market and art as an asset class; the pro’s and cons of art investment and the concept of art asset management, which relates to maintaining the value and condition of collections of fine and decorative arts. The purpose of the talk was two-fold. Firstly, our team members earned a CPE credit by correctly answering questions about the presentation. Secondly, Ms Bruins introduced important concepts in relation to authenticity, title, valuation and wealth transfer allowing our team members to gain a better understanding of potential problems that can occur when a collector owns, manages and sells art. The presentation was beneficial to our team members and we look forward to working with Tang Art Advisory in the future."

" I worked with Annelien Bruins of Tang Art Advisory on a residential interior design project over the summer. Annelien helped me to source artworks that are a perfect match for my client's interior. She arranged a private viewing for my client. She liaised with the top NYC galleries and artists on our behalf and organized all the logistics surrounding the viewing and acquisition process. I would happily recommend Tang Art Advisory to those who require access to a range of high quality artworks varying from cutting edge contemporary art to works by established masters and who need a fast and reliable art advisory service."

" Annelien Bruins has contributed significantly to our firm’s understanding of art as an investment. Ms. Bruins possesses the unique ability to convey her knowledge in the most seamless and effective manner. Combining her strong knowledge of the investment community with her fluency of the art world results in a passionate and dynamic perspective that benefits all whom are fortunate enough to experience her presentations in person. Any organization would benefit from Ms. Bruins adroit and keen perspective and it is difficult to imagine entering into the art investment space without her guidance and wisdom."

"Over the years I have come into the possession of a number of artworks and antiques, both through inheritance and acquisition. Recently I started to consider the potential sale of some of my collection and found out that these matters are highly complex, in terms of price discovery and determining the most appropriate sales channel, not to mention the potential tax consequences resulting from such transactions. Annelien Bruins guided me through the process in a highly professional, discrete manner and I would be more than happy to recommend her to collectors of art and antiques for the acquisition and sale of their art assets."

"Annelien Bruins has assisted us with the condition checking, cataloguing, researching, photography and digitisation of our art collection. She has advised us on reframing, insurance and the potential sale of one of our artworks. We will certainly look to work with Annelien and her team if and when we decide to acquire for or dispose of artworks in our collection. I would gladly recommend Tang Investments to private and corporate collectors who require professional and hands-on advice on buying, selling and managing their art collections."

"Annelien Bruins has managed the collections of our clients for nearly ten years. During this time she established a system of procedures and guidelines in which the art and antiques are monitored and safeguarded. She continues to work for us on a consultancy basis and advises us on art management issues such as valuations and insurance, tax-related matters such as purchase and sale as well as import and export. She manages international art-related projects for us and she directs our registrar. As a result of her dedication, professionalism and knowledge our clients’ collections are exceedingly well-managed in an incredibly discrete and cost-effective manner. According to one of the valuation teams that we worked with in 2006, the collections belonged to one of the best-managed that they had come across. I would happily recommend Ms Bruins to collectors, family offices and others who have to deal with the practical challenges that occur when dealing with extensive, international art collections."

"Annelien was recommended to us by a mutual connection and we have worked with her on a number of occasions. She has advised us on buying art and the practical considerations one should take into account when going through the purchasing process. We enjoy working with Annelien and we found her advice invaluable. I would happily recommend Annelien to art collectors who need a trustworthy and independent opinion."

"I recruited Annelien in April 2010 as a project manager to work on the development and initial implementation of a new inventory management system which we needed as a result of our rapid expansion. For this job I needed someone with experience of designing art-related databases because the system we required was complicated in that it needed to integrate data from a number of disciplines (sales, inventory management, finance, imaging). An added complication was the heritage data that needed to be transferred from our old records to the new system and the integration of the new system with our existing website. Annelien worked with me, our head of operations and our other team members to determine our requirements for the new system which she recorded in a mapping document. She communicated our requirements to our software developers and continued to liaise between us and the software developers until the beta version of the database was ready to be tested. I am pleased to say that our new inventory system functions very well which makes our lives much easier. I found Annelien to be highly professional in the management of this project and I and my team enjoyed working with her. I would happily recommend Annelien to any organization in need of a project manager to assist with developing and implementing IT systems."

"Annelien Bruins has assisted me over the years with buying and shipping art. She is discrete, knowledgeable and professional."

"Annelien Bruins has helped me to catalogue my collection of contemporary art. I worked closely with her on the sale of a part of my collection. She has a hands-on approach and pays attention to detail. I would gladly recommend Annelien to collectors who needs advice on any art management issue."

"It is an honour to write a recommendation letter for Annelien as we have had a tremendous pleasure working with a diligent and impeccably behaved young lady. Over the past 9 years our working relationship has comprised of arranging complicated insurance in the Fine Art Sector for an important client having assets worldwide. Annelien is extremely organised and we are lucky to have her assistance in making a complex matter run incredibly smoothly. I have absolutely no doubt that whatever project Annelien is given her unique talent in creating solutions and making mechanics run efficiently will create nothing but confidence and enjoyment for her clients utilising her services."

"I worked closely with Annelien in connection with an UHNW client who had an extensive art collection which was managed by her company. I had to assess the risk exposure to my clients (the insurers) of the fine art and valuables collection. I found her to be professional and meticulous in the management of the client’s art and valuables collection and was able to answer all of my queries in respect of the risk. I would have no hesitation in recommending her services to HNW or UHNW clients."

"Good advice just when you need it."

"Annelien Bruins’ lecture was inspirational for the growing number of students beginning or considering starting their own art business. Her near ten years experience of collection and curatorial management provided a panorama of the art market’s unique operation and complex marketing, especially at the sharp end of the business. Knowledge of which is essential for success in today’s fast growing and changing international art market."

"Annelien Bruins has lectured several times on our marketing module. Her expertise on the practical aspects of collecting and the art market seen from an entrepreneurial point of view in combination with her marketing background came to the fore during these engaging lectures. Her approachability and willingness to discuss and answer questions very much assisted our students to gain an in-depth understanding of what to expect from starting a career in the art market."

"Annelien has provided detailed articles for Go Figurative on issues which are of interest to our community members. She has an authoritative yet engaging writing style and has always delivered her work on time. She is also an eloquent speaker on the issues surrounding art buying and collection management and presented for us to a group of art buyers."

"The Whitechapel Gallery’s Collecting Contemporary Art Course aims to provide an intellectual and creative framework for anyone interested in starting to collect or new collectors who have already begun to purchase work. Annelien Bruins gave a highly engaging lunchtime talk that covered the basic practicalities to consider when purchasing works of art. Her thoughts and advice were well received by the group, and the talk complemented the other events and lectures in the course very well."

"Annelien Bruins provided our financial adviser readers with a well-thought-out discussion of buying art as an alternative investment, detailing the issues investors must consider when adding art to their portfolios. Her thorough and clear observations were very well-received, and we look forward using her as a source of information on art collecting again in the future."

"Annelien Bruins has participated in several panel talks for Sotheby’s Institute of Art in which the topics varied from practicalities of collecting to starting up a business in the art world. Her contributions were insightful and her enthusiasm and knowledge about her areas of expertise were an inspiration to our students and guests."

"Financial Republic is a microfinance institution based in Ghana, offering microsavings and microloans to its clients, accompanied with financial education to individuals and community groups. Annelien Bruins, a Sloan Fellow, led the team of 4 MBA students in the research and analysis of our market environment, our competition and our company. She and her team provided us with a clear and to-the-point analysis of the key marketing issues Financial Republic faces in its growth process. She also provided us with a set of strategic recommendations as to where our focus should be for the next 5-10 years. We were very pleased with the report received from Annelien’s team and have no hesitation in recommending her to small organizations that require practical, strategic and insightful marketing advice."

"I worked with Annelien in the Board of the Children of Kilimanjaro Foundation. I have been chairwoman since 2003, when I founded the organization, and Annelien was Board member (secretary) during 2004 and 2005. Her activities as a volunteer ranged from managing all in- and external communication (e.g. minutes of meeting, development of newsletters) to organizing activities in rural Africa. It was an absolute pleasure to work with Annelien, not only because she always managed to get the large amount of work done in a high-qualitative and timely manner, but also because of her enormous amount of energy and humour. She is one of those people who are talented communicators and make networking look so easy. It was a great loss to the foundation when Annelien decided to pursue other activities, but we fully understand she had to devote all her time in setting up her own business Bruins Private Collections Consultancy. Her company is doing very well and I absolutely recommend Annelien to any private collector or business partner!"

We are grateful to our private clients for providing us with testimonials and we honor our clients’ requests for confidentiality by publishing their testimonials anonymously.