Affiliations / CV
Lucca Appraisal & Collection Management is an independent personal property appraisal firm in Cleveland, Ohio specializing in the valuation of fine art. It was founded by Rita DiCello, a USPAP Certified Personal Property Appraiser and Probate Court Appraiser. She is Secretary of her local American Society of Appraisers Chapter, registered Probate Court Appointed Appraiser in Northeast Ohio, registered active memeber of the Association for Research into Crimes Against Art (ARCA), Association of College & University Museums & Galleries (ACUMG) and registered Art Historian with The College Art Association (CAA) and The Association of Art Historians (AAH) based in London, England. Her expertise includes the valuation of paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, lithographs and antiques including decorative arts, rare books, and others. She has been extensively involved in appraisal projects for universities, public libraries, museums, insurance underwriters, claims adjusters, attorneys, probate court, corporate and private art collections, galleries, and auction houses.
Her credentials include education from Università per Stranieri di Perugia in Perugia, Italy with a concentration in Italian Antiquities, followed by a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and a Master of Fine Arts in Italian Renaissance and Baroque Art from Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. Continuing education includes professional courses in appraisal, art, and connoisseurship. She is an artist in the Cleveland area and an instructor in Art History at The Willoughby Fine Arts Association.
Ms. DiCello is fluent in Italian including several dialects, antique Italian and Latin. She also has staff members fluent in German, French, Spanish and Chinese. She and her staff work from an extensive database with both national and international clients. She actively volunteers and supports local art initiative programs in the Cleveland area. Ms. DiCello is also a writer for the quarterly magazine "Artist Review Today".
LACM is a collaborative group of independent art historians, curators, professors, fine art appraisers and professionals in New York, Washington D.C., California, Chicago, New Orleans, Florence, Rome, Bari, London, Barcelona, Swizterland, Germany, Finland and Leon, France.
***Ms. DiCello and her affiliates are professional appraiser and scholars. We do not endorse or advertise "free" or "instant" appraisals. If the client is looking to sell a piece, LACM acts as a professional and confidential agent for the client.
Scholarship memberships and affiliations:
Association for Research into Crimes Against Art: Registered Member, http://www.artcrime.info/
American Society of Appraisers: Candidate Member, www.appraisers.org
Association of Art Historians: Accredited Member, www.aah.org.uk/
Willoughby Fine Arts Association: Faculty, www.fineartsassociation.org
Association of College & University Museums & Galleries: Registered Member, www.acumg.org
