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Vice President
Fine Art, Jewelry & Specie
Willis
Chicago

Willis fine-art broker Sandra Berlin is credited with combining the trade skills of a top-flight broker with a broader understanding of her clients' needs.

To the person, her clients underscored that Berlin is smart, knows how to drive a hard bargain, is exceptionally efficient and has a good sense of humor. A wealthy Chicago commodities broker with a complex art portfolio said he was highly impressed with how quickly and capably Berlin broke down and then shaped up his portfolio.

Another client described her as a broker who takes the time to learn her clients' interests inside and out.

A 13-year veteran of the fine-art brokerage business, Berlin put together an excellent 2007. In adding several private collectors to her practice, her emphasis has been on setting up coverage for new acquisitions so automatic coverage based on a client's specific needs is built into the policy.

Also, Berlin transitioned several of her collectors away from burdensome scheduled policies to systematized reporting policies, thus eliminating the need to notify their broker each time a piece of art moved, or was bought and sold.

One important client noted that Berlin is particularly adept at assisting in the process of making loans to a museum for an exhibition. Berlin handles all aspects of the loan reviews and transfer agreements. Said a prominent arts attorney who knows Berlin well, "If you go to her, you are going to somebody who knows how the market works."

Senior Vice President
Willis
Bethesda, Md.

In 2007, especially with larger risks, capacity in the fine-art realm became tougher to find for larger exhibition placements. Earthquake and windstorm coverage grew very difficult to locate, and many of the traditional coverage enhancements were no longer available.

But by anticipating these changes, and by approaching markets several months out, clients of Eric Fischer and his team saw very little in the way of changes. Fischer's team was able to place coverage for two very large exhibitions located right across the street from one another with roughly the same exhibition dates.

All this was accomplished by getting to the markets early and educating the underwriters on the nature of the risk. And the coverage came in at a premium level that was quite a bit less than anticipated.

For as high as Fischer ranks in the world of fine-art brokers, he is remarkably approachable, said his clients, many of which have been with him for more than 10 years.

"He's an excellent communicator," said one client. "I ask him a question, and he always says, 'Yes.' He'll tell you when he needs more time, but he'll always come back with an answer." Added another admiring client: "He respects the layperson's questions. He will patiently respond to any question."

Client service is a specialty of Fischer's, said the senior registrar of one of the largest museums in the country: "He always takes us out to a holiday luncheon, and he always includes the entire staff."

Managing Director
Henderson Phillips Fine Arts Insurance
Arthur J. Gallagher
Washington, D.C.

Henderson Phillips Fine Arts' Diane Jackson is known for her ability to hang tough through rapidly changing environments.

"We have gone through almost every kind of situation with her, and she has remained amazingly consistent," said the manager of one of the most important private art collections in the United States.

Added this client: "There's nothing I could call Diane about that would surprise her. She connects exceptionally well with us professionally and personally."

Like other leading fine-art brokers, Jackson had another area of concern in the past year: securing earthquake capacity in California. "This is not only affecting clients in California," noted Jackson, "but it affects any client who may be sending items to California."

Last year, Jackson also worked with universities that ran into capacity issues for their rare books and valuable papers. In that period, she was able to put together a combined Fine Art and Valuable Papers Policy on an admitted basis. The premiums have been slightly less with better terms, conditions and deductibles than in the nonadmitted market.

"She doesn't get tied up with things," said a client who knows her well. "She'll tell you up front if there are problems, but then she'll find a way to solve those problems."

Finally, Jackson is timely. "Two days is the longest you ever have to wait for her to remedy a matter," said this person.

Fine Art Practice Leader
DeWitt Stern
New York

The logistics director at an auction house said his insurance broker "comes by auctions just to see what's going on." That's part of what led him to describe Steven Pincus and his team as "meticulous."

Although the director has only known Pincus for a couple of years, he said of his broker: "He makes you feel comfortable, like someone you've known for long while."

Pincus in 2007 successfully created coverage for private collectors, fine-art dealers, and museums that held individual paintings valued in excess of $150 million and collections with values that exceeded $1 billion. He arranged a large exhibition of paintings for one musuem that will travel to six other museums throughout the United States.

Pincus has been a guest lecturer for the past two years at Sotheby's Institute in New York, teaching property/casualty and fine-art insurance on the graduate level. He has also lectured at The Fine Art Program at the Fashion Institute of Technology, and will be speaking on alternative insurance for museums in catastrophic locations.

Said an important private collector of Pincus: "I've known him for many years, and he's always been fair and balanced. He's very knowledgeable about his field."

This collector commended Pincus for the group he has built. "He has surrounded himself with a good staff. These are serious, intelligent people," said the collector.

Account Executive
Roach Howard Smith & Barton
Dallas
v Kathleen Roth is fast gaining a reputation as a top-seeded player in the world of fine-art brokerage. As an account executive, elite client services, Roth has the entire country as her territory, and she works it diligently and well.

Said a client who has worked with Roth for one and a half years: "She is always very presentable, very professional, very cordial."

In the past year, Roth and her staff represented a client who was purchasing substantial amounts of furniture in Europe to furnish a new home, while at the same time storing current pieces, as well as pieces coming into the country, and conducting an auction sale.

Roth negotiated with the insurance company for blanket coverage that would apply to the maximum amount the client would own at any one time with a high per-item limit, and adjusted the amount periodically as the process reduced inventory.

Another client had a small, but important art collection from a particular group of artists. Roth's group acquired the account because it could offer coverage for new art pieces from the day of purchase, not the day the artwork was actually installed in the home.

What does Roth do outside the "normal" realm of brokering that she can bring to bear for her clients? "The first things on my list to do when I visit a city are their art museums, then specific galleries," she said.

"Attending lectures, attending art museum events, visiting with appraisers and fine-art specialists are my evening and weekend pastimes," said this consummate learner.

Managing Director
Fine Art, Jewelry & Specie
Willis
Bethesda, Md.

The accent is a bonus when you have Robert Salmon as your fine-art broker. "He's very charming. That lovely English accent is always great to hear on the other end of the phone," said the manager of collections for a private collection.

Salmon is also thorough, flexible, conscientious and answers questions immediately, the client said.

The director of registration at a prestigious museum in the United States also noted that Salmon is excellent at getting good rates out of London. She added that Salmon is quite creative and works well with her organization. "One of the things we adore about him is how available he is, by e-mail or phone," she added.

Salmon is widely respected for his international savvy, especially in navigating politically sensitive areas. His expertise in terrorism and war risk came to the fore on behalf of one client who had scheduled a major exhibit in Rome that was preceded by an exhibition in Tel Aviv, Israel.

"Robert was very careful in monitoring the situation in the Mideast," said this client. Very high-value exhibitions going to China, Russia and now Spain have also kept him busy brokering.

Coverage for very large value loan shows is still a real challenge, even with all international markets available, Salmon said.