Cruises and Art Auctions - Article

A very interesting article was posted at [url="http://www.ecotravelernews.com"]http://www.ecotravelernews.com[/url]

we bought from a ships auction once and after that would never do it again--
had no idea about the 15% commission thats added to the cost of the item --that is N$EVER mentioned during any of the talks --then theres the framing-the appraisal etc etc and then they had to ship it for us and when we got home we got a phone call that they did not have the piece but that they offered us a choice of substitute art work --all of this is now taking place by e mail over a period of weeks and the art work was paid for -- finally i said that i wanted my money back if i couldnt have the exact piece that i bought and lo and behold they found one and finally shipped it to me---------------by the way the champagne they serve is domestic

Thanks for posting.

I've been lucky, I guess. I've purchased 5 pieces from 3 different auctions (three pieces through Park West on Royal Caribbean cruises and two from a Princess cruise {they manage their own auctions}).

One was a "take-off" from a Royal Caribbean cruise; I took it with me, and I had it matted and framed at home.

Others have been mailed to me. On the 2 remaining pieces I bought from Park West, I had them re-matted and framed at home. On the pieces I bought on the Princess cruise, I was able to choose a different frame while still on-board and so they arrived ready to hang.

Quite frankly, I don't know much about art and buy what I like, without giving a thought to pieces increasing in value. I find the auctioneers entertaining (most of them) and informative.

Another nice thing about the Princess-run auctions (aside from being able to choose a different frame while still on the ship) is that your purchases are 100% guaranteed for life. That is, if I decide 10 years from now that I don't want it anymore, I'm able to return it for a 100% refund. At least, that's what we were told. I haven't tried to return anything, so this is in theory only. In practice? Who knows....

That's terrible about the cruise passenger who paid $4000 for a piece that was appraised at $50 (or who had received it as a gift). And those poor folks that didn't receive the artwork at all. I guess that's where using your own credit card for these types of purchases is the right thing to do - at least you can dispute the charges until the goods are received.

These auctions are very popular (don't go there for the champagne, it's not champagne, it's domestic sparking wine and not that good) and so I'm inclined to think that the cases mentioned in the article don't happen very often (of course, once is too often if you're the 'victim') or they'd be shut down.

As with all things, caveat emptor.

Thanks again for the article.

T

[QUOTE]we bought from a ships auction once and after that would never do it again--
had no idea about the 15% commission thats added to the cost of the item --that is N$EVER mentioned during any of the talks [/QUOTE]

On Celebrity and on Princess they mention the Buyer's premium over and over and over. It's also in the literature they hand out. Park West does Celebrity's auctions, in their land auctions they are also clear about the commission.

And I'll assume your comment about Domestic champagne was a joke.

[quote name='Nitemare']On Celebrity and on Princess they mention the Buyer's premium over and over and over. It's also in the literature they hand out. Park West does Celebrity's auctions, in their land auctions they are also clear about the commission.
And I'll assume your comment about Domestic champagne was a joke.[/QUOTE]
my purchase was on a hal ship and i stand on my comment that it was never mentioned ---the champage comment was meant to be a joke but i also stand by my comment that it wasnt very good

[quote name='lougee1043']i also stand by my comment that it wasnt very good[/QUOTE] It was *free* and one generally gets what one pays for.

[font=Comic Sans MS][color=royalblue]I purchase art work stateside and on a ship because I like the piece, not because I want to invest in it. [/color][/font]
[font=Comic Sans MS][color=#4169e1]Hmmm.....I didn't know that Princess will take the art work back after a few years, because I have a piece or two that I have "fallen out of love with." Can anyone elaborate on this practice? Thanks! [/color][/font]

[quote name='tef43']It was *free* and one generally gets what one pays for.[/QUOTE]
aint that the truth

I just wanted to add that of all the auctions that I have attended, the "rules" and payment procedures, etc. have been mentioned several times throughout the auction. I make it a point to chat with the art director beforehand and pick his brain. I like unique pieces, pieces that I am going to like seeing on my walls, and again, I don't buy for investment purposes. I think this is where a lot of people think they can make money, by buying for investment purposes.

Hi there,

I don't know if this policy is new or not. My cruise on Princess back in January was my first with them.

Let me look at my paperwork at home and see if there is a phone number or e-mail address. It might be work checking out.

If you try to return some things, I'm sure we'd all love to hear about your experience.

You know what they say when something sounds too good to be true....

T