Editing Christie's (section)

== Christie's Fine Art Storage Services (CFASS) ==
Christie's first ventured into storage services for outside clients in 1984, when it opened a 100,000 square feet brick warehouse in London that was granted "Exempted Status" by [[HM Revenue and Customs]],<ref name="online.wsj.com">Kelly Crow (26 April 2010), [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703709804575202083586359768# The Ultimate Walk-In Closet: Christie's Offers Art Storage in Brooklyn] ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]''.</ref> meaning that property may be imported into the United Kingdom and stored without incurring import duties and [[VAT]]. Christie's Fine Art Storage Services, or CFASS, is a wholly owned subsidiary that runs Christie's storage operation.

In September 2008, Christie's signed a 50-year lease on an early 1900s warehouse of the historic [[N.Y.D. Company]]<ref name="An exodus from Red Hook">Laura Gilbert (26 April 2013), [http://www.theartnewspaper.com/articles/An-exodus-from-Red-Hook-/29346 An exodus from Red Hook] ''[[The Art Newspaper]]''.</ref> in [[Red Hook, Brooklyn]], and subsequently spent $30M converting it into a six-storey, 250,000 square feet<ref>[[Diane Cardwell]] (24 August 2009), [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/nyregion/25christies.html A High-Tech Home for Multimillion-Dollar Works of Art] ''The New York Times''.</ref> art-storage facility.<ref name="online.wsj.com" /> The facility opened in 2010 and features high-tech security and climate controls that maintain a virtually constant 70°{{huh|date=March 2024}} and 50% relative humidity.<ref>Jennifer Maloney (10 May 2013), [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324744104578473423704512226 Builder Is Bullish on New York City's Fine-Art Storage Market: Developer Starts Construction of Art Storage Facility in Long Island City] ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]''.</ref>

Located near the Upper Bay tidal waterway near the Atlantic Ocean, the Brooklyn facility was hit by at least one storm surge during [[Hurricane Sandy]] in 2012. CFASS subsequently faced client defections and complaints arising from damage to works of art.<ref name="An exodus from Red Hook" /> In 2013, [[AXA]] Art Insurance filed a lawsuit in New York court alleging that CFASS' "gross negligence" during the hurricane damaged art collected by late cellist [[Gregor Piatigorsky]] and his wife [[Jacqueline Piatigorsky|Jacqueline Rebecca Louise de Rothschild]].<ref>Laura Gilbert (20 August 2013), [http://theartnewspaper.com/articles/Axa-sues-Christies-storage-services-over-Sandy-damage/30215 Axa sues Christie's storage services over Sandy damage] ''[[The Art Newspaper]]''.</ref> Later that year, StarNet Insurance Co., the insurer for the [[LeRoy Neiman]] Foundation and the artist's estate, also filed a lawsuit in [[New York Supreme Court]] claiming that the storage company's negligence caused more than $10M in damages to Neiman's art.<ref>Laura Gilbert (12 December 2013), [http://theartnewspaper.com/articles/Christies-storage-hit-by-second-lawsuit-over-storm-damage/31352 Christie's storage hit by second lawsuit over storm damage] ''[[The Art Newspaper]]''.</ref>