Consignment
An arrangement where a gallery sells a work it doesn't own, remitting the owner an agreed share after sale.
Under consignment, the consignor (an artist, collector, or estate) entrusts a work to the gallery for sale; title stays with the consignor until the work sells. The agreement fixes the split, the period, and who bears costs like shipping and insurance.
Operationally, consignment is where gallery bookkeeping earns its keep: each consigned work carries its terms, each sale generates a payable to the consignor, and periodic statements report what's sold, what's on hand, and what's owed.
In the product: Invoicing & Payments. Related: Consignor statement · Ownership status