I don't really ever trust appraisals, and they are mostly used for insurance purposes anyway. You see really high appraisals in jewelry too, that really don't make any sense either.
It is clear to me that there are those that won't go near Park West because they sell overpriced items, and the auction format is not really much of an auction, and there are those that were mislead or at least felt they were mislead. Then there are those that love what they bought and are happy with it, and don't care about the practices. I sort of fall in the middle, but I view them as anyone else that sells things, you need to know what you are doing before you buy. If you spend $20,000 on Dali and have no idea what you are buying, then I can understand you would be very upset when you got home. However, I can't see spending that much money and not knowing what I was getting into, but that's just because it is soo much $$. Park West sells Rembrandt etchings that look cool, but I wouldn't spend any money on them, or at least not what they are asking. As I mentioned here before I bought from Park West, and on my last cruise a few weeks back, I bought again from them. Reason being is that Park West commissions art from certain artists that simply can't be found anywhere else. You can question the value of the art to be certain, but one thing is for sure, it can be almost impossible to get elsewhere. So, I saw something I liked, worked out what I was willing to pay, and bought it. The first time I bought from them, I came home from my trip, researched what I bought, and checked local prices. I found the painting that I bought from Park West from a couple of other dealers - who were both selling it for more than double what I paid Park West. All that meant to me was that my intuitions were correct, and what I bought was reasonable. I have no plans on selling what I bought, so it really just meant that I did OK. I also researched other pieces and found them much cheaper elsewhere, so you really need to know and understand art and the artist. With all that said, I thought I would update you on my buying experiences to assist those that are interested in buying while on your cruise. I enjoy looking at the art while I am there, even if I don't buy, but this may help some future cruisers, so here goes.
1. The auctions really aren't much of what you would expect an auction to be. So I will use that term loosely here. They display the art prior to the auction start. This gives you an opportunity to view what they have that day, and on our 7 night cruise, they had 3 or 4 auctions, mostly with different items each time. If you think you may want to buy something, you can register with Park West (who had very friendly people on
DCL, much better than the folks I met on RCL) and they will give you a bidder card and some post-it notes to label any art in the preview. If all you do is put your post it on the art, they will show it during the auction. If you really want to buy it, the trick is in talking to someone at Park West before the auction starts.
2. So, let's say you want to buy something, so you call over one of the folks from PW and ask the price. They basically have a price range in which they will sell the art. They will probably quote the value of the retail or gallery price of the piece and then tell you the starting auction price. By the way, if you don't ask the price at all and just put your post-it on the art, they will bring it up for auction and will start the bidding at the starting auction price, and it will go to the highest bidder. This is really the only time it is like an auction, but this is also the most expensive way to buy.
Now, if you tell them you would like a better price, they may negotiate with you. If you have done some pre-homework, you may have a price in mind. You can try for that price and see what they say (all they can say is no). If you can't agree, no problem, let it go. If you agree, fantastic, they will sell it for that agreed upon price. However, here is where it is a bit strange.
3. So you agreed on a price, but you are not done. What they will do is actually put the item up in the auction and talk about it just like any other auction item. The only difference is they will give a quantity of 1 or maybe multiples of how many they can sell at a set price. Well low and behold, that set price is the price you all agreed upon. So as soon as they say go, you put up your bidder card and the auction is closed immediately. As you can see, there is not much of an auction here, it is simply what you agreed to pay in advance, with an auction flavor.
4. What I have found is what others have stated here, the price can go down as the cruise moves along. On the last cruise, I was quoted the standard auction starting price of $1,650 on day 1. As the days went along, I kept chatting with them and kept passing at the auctions. On the final auction, they came down to $1,400, which is what I was willing to pay, and I bought the piece. Up until the last day, they kept telling me they simply couldn't do it, but what do you know, they had a change of heart on the last day (I am being sarcastic of course). Also, one of them was telling me they couldn't do it for my price, but the other one had agreed on my price with another buyer. Since they have to put it up in the auction, they couldn't sell it to both of us for different prices, so they tried to clean it up by saying that it was a volume discount because 2 of us were buying. I just laughed and said "whatever", my wife wanted the piece, I got my price, all was good. When I was on RCL, they never met my price on one item, so I passed and bought what they did meet my price on.
5. A couple of other pointers -
A. Don't get carried away with the process. Buying art is fun, you can love a piece to death, but it is a financial transaction (like buying a car). Spend what you can afford, and know what you are buying. Don't let your emotions get carried away.
B. Please note that there is a Buyer's Premium of 15%. This means that whatever the auction closes at, they will add 15% to the price, so keep that in mind when considering the final price you will actually pay.
C. Many items include framing, matting and shipping. All in all, I like some of their framing and the pricing is reasonable compared to local stores in my area, and in many cases, the PW framing prices are good deals. Just note that many items come in the frame style and color that they display it in. Which means if you don't like the framing, it will probably cost you more to change it after the auction, so negotiate that up front as well.
D. Lastly, don't be afraid of attending if you enjoy art. I have had fun at these, and I enjoy going. Also, if you make a mistake and buy something, and change your mind, simply don't sign anything and be honest about it. Once the auctions are over, you will set an appointment to handle the payment of your art. If you decide not to buy, tell them, and they will let you go. I have seen them do this with other people, as well as I myself have changed my mind, and bought other things that I wanted instead. It appears to be no big deal, and in the end, I think they do this to keep up good relations with the cruise lines, so passengers aren't complaining about PW. Once you sign however, you are on the hook, so Buyer Beware!!
I hope that helps anyone interested in attending or buying at an auction. Keep in mind that these are my experiences, so if you have something to add that is different, please do so.
Cindy
Cindy
