I
Timed Online Auctions
Curated 10–14 day sales with staggered closings, designed for the rhythm of online bidding.
Legacy · Art Exchange
Consign a workEst. 2026 · New York
The estate of a life's work, placed with care.
An online auction and resale exchange for art by deceased artists — with deep specialization in African American masters and estate collections. Authenticated. Transparent. Stewarded.
$67.8B
U.S. art market, 2025
+40%
African American art, YoY
~24%
Total take rate
$84T
Wealth transfer underway
§ 01 — The problem
The market for legacy art is opaque, expensive, and slow.
Estates pay 25–35% in fees.
Traditional auction houses bury the take rate in seller commissions, buyer premiums, photography, and marketing levies. Heirs see a fraction of the hammer.
Mid-value works are overlooked.
Works between $1,000 and $100,000 — the heart of most estates — receive little curatorial attention from the major houses.
Provenance is a guessing game.
Buyers shoulder authentication risk. African American masters, in particular, lack the catalogue raisonné infrastructure of their European peers.
§ 02 — The exchange
A modern house, built for the secondary market.
Four interlocking services replace the auction-house monolith — each priced clearly, each measured against the standard of a great gallery.
II
Fixed-Price Marketplace
Immediate sale with private offer capability for collectors and institutions.
III
Authentication & Provenance
In-house specialist review supported by an external network of artist foundations and appraisers.
IV
Estate Concierge
White-glove service for heirs: valuation, photography, shipping, and tax documentation — handled.
§ 03 — Schedule of fees
Posted, plainly.
A total take rate of approximately 24% — materially below the 27–35% charged by traditional houses. No surprise levies, no quiet deductions.
~24%
Total transaction cost
| Seller success fee | 10% of hammer |
| Buyer's premium | 15% of hammer |
| Listing fee (optional) | $25 – $100 / item |
| Authentication | $250 – $1,500 / item |
| Dealer subscription | $150 / month |
| White-glove concierge | $1,000 – $5,000 / collection |
§ 04 — For estates & heirs
Stewardship, not liquidation.
For executors, attorneys, and families, the disposition of an art collection is rarely just a transaction. It is the closing of a chapter. Our concierge handles every step — appraisal, photography, authentication, marketing, shipping, and tax reporting — with the discretion the work deserves.
- ✦Complimentary preliminary valuation within seven days
- ✦Estate-attorney referral program with transparent terms
- ✦Direct relationships with artist foundations and museums
- ✦Insured fine-art shipping through vetted partners
Detail: impasto study, mid-century, private collection.
§ 05 — The specialization
African American masters, finally indexed.
Works by Charles White, Alma Thomas, Elizabeth Catlett, Norman Lewis, and a generation of their peers are setting records — yet remain undercurated in the mainstream secondary market. We treat this category as the discipline it deserves: with scholarship, catalogue depth, and institutional relationships.
50+
Estate attorneys in network
20
Museum curator relationships
$15M+
Estate art advised to date
2
Inaugural LOIs signed
§ 06 — A note from the founder
“I spent a decade placing important African American works at Christie's. The artists I most admired — and the estates that carried their legacy — were too often the ones least served by the model. Legacy Art Exchange is the house I wished existed.”
Baron Murdock
Founder & Chief Executive
Former specialist, Christie's · MA, Art Business, Sotheby's Institute
§ 07 — Inquiries
Place your collection with the next generation of auction.
Tell us about the work or the collection, and attach any provenance documents you have. A specialist will respond within two business days with a preliminary path forward, and you will receive email updates as your inquiry progresses.