Why Zurani

One obligation.
To you.

In a market shaped by conflicts of interest, Zurani offers something rare: advice that answers only to you. A partnership-led approach to art advisory, grounded in discretion, alignment, and long-term thinking.

Our Philosophy

The art market is large, unregulated and often opaque. Zurani exists to change that, advising family offices, wealth managers and private collectors with complete independence. Our understanding of the market’s complexities enables us to deliver solutions tailored to the unique objectives of each partner.

OUR STORY

Built from experience in the market itself.

Zurani was established by Benjamin Tomkins after more than ten years of working at the intersection of art and finance. Zurani emerged from the realisation that much of the advice received by collectors and investors was fundamentally flawed: provided by parties with commercial ties that created incentives misaligned with buyers’ interests.

Today, Zurani is based in Dubai, with offices in Abu Dhabi, London, Doha, and soon Hong Kong. Our team combines deep expertise in the art market with financial discipline, cultural understanding, and the Zurani Intelligence Engine, our proprietary technology that gives our partners a true information advantage in an often opaque market.

THE JOURNEY

2020

Arthur Avery founded in London

Arthur Avery was founded in London, beginning to build the relationships, data infrastructure and advisory methodology that will evolve into the Zurani model.

2023

Zurani established in Dubai

The firm is reconstituted as Zurani and licensed in the UAE, thereby establishing a formal regulatory framework and positioning it at the centre of the GCC’s rapidly expanding art market.

2024

Zurani established in Abu Dhabi

The firm expands its regulatory and operational presence into Abu Dhabi, bringing it closer to the ADGM and deepening its capacity to serve an increasingly international client base.

2025

Penbriar founded in London

Penbriar is established in London under the Zurani umbrella, bringing an advisory and curatorial presence to one of the world’s most significant art markets and extending the firm’s reach to collectors across Europe and beyond.

2026

Doha office opens

Zurani expands into Doha, responding to growing demand for independent art advisory from family offices and institutional partners across the Middle East and internationally.

2027

Expansion into Asia

Zurani enters Asia, establishing a presence in Hong Kong to serve the region’s growing community of collectors, family offices and cultural institutions.

I

Independence above all

In a market shaped by conflicts of interest, Zurani offers something rare: advice that answers only to you. No preferred relationships that influence what we recommend, and no incentive to direct you toward any particular gallery, dealer or auction house. Whatever relationships exist in the market, they never come before your interests.

II

Fiduciary standard

We hold ourselves to a fiduciary standard: the obligation to act solely in our partners’ interests. In an industry where this is rarely the norm, it is the foundation of everything we do.

III

Evidence-based advice

Every recommendation is grounded in data, market evidence, comparable sales, provenance research and independent condition assessment. We do not recommend based on instinct or relationship. We recommend based on evidence.

IV

Long-term thinking

We invest our own capital alongside our partners. We are not a transactional firm. Our reputation and our returns depend on the quality of our advice over the years, not the volume of transactions we generate.

Independence is not a positioning statement.

It is how we are structured. We’d welcome the opportunity to demonstrate the difference.

One obligation. To you.