No More Art Auctions?

[ggo85]

Just got off FOS and was surprised not to see the infamous art auction and wondered what happened to it.

 

Is it just not done on this ship due to the younger demographics? Do they not do them on 7-day cruises? Have they been suspended/discontinued due to the litigation? Are they losing popularity? Some other reason?

 

Merely curious as for so long they've been a staple of cruising -- whether a good or bad one depends, of course, on one's perspective.:)

[negc]

My understanding is that RCI and several other lines severed their relationship with Parke West because of various allegations made about the company and the actions of its employees. The lines subsequently contracted with another firm to handle art sales onboard their ships, and art auctions, if they continued, were moved to less obtrusive areas of the ship where they were less likely to infringe on the public space used by all the passengers. If you check with Guest services or read the daily Cruise Compass, you should find the information you require.:)

[mking8288]

My understanding ... contracted with another firm to handle art sales onboard their ships, and art auctions, if they continued, were moved to less obtrusive areas of the ship where they were less likely to infringe on the public space used by all the passengers ... :)

 

+1 Bravo, excellent - very good to read & know !! :D

 

It was still going strong last month on EOS, from the promenade deck looking down, they're using up "strategic" spaces along the spiral staircases leading down to the Casino & Studio B (2 levels) - almost to the point of blocking egress - most of us just ignored it & kept moving along ... and it wasn't drawing much of a crowd at the promo events with freebies. At busy times, it's very difficut to navigate thru especially for folks with mobility issues, not to mention those with scooters onboard - the setup is such that they wanted it to be "in your face" presentation every time you pass thru (to/from) the MDR and reception/shops ...

[cruisenfever]

There is still Art Auctions on board RCI but it's called Art on Royal. We had it each week of our recent 3 consecutive cruises last month on Radiance. Some of the art work looked very similar to what was offered when it was done by Park West.

[Hunwolf]

Yes it's still going on but like others have said it is contracted through a different company.

 

For the most part, it does seem to be less intrusive than in years past which is a good thing. I suspect that most people rank the art auctions just below the tours of the sanitation facilities on their lists of ship highlights for the week.

[Verfai]

They had it on LOS May 28th sailing, It was done at Boleros, I think about 40 seated and a whole lot of people standing up….Cleeeeeeearly most there for the glass of champagne (it was a windy day out at sea) :D…They guy was selling absolutely nothing and no one was showing any real interest...Like we were there passing by and stopping to take a quick look, without registering.

 

Personally, except for some real nice3D airbrush technique of cocktails (+3000$ for a normal sized canvas) I found it to a real bad collection of art, 60% was some kind of pop art, the rest where very very very classical painting, not of this period in time anymore…This is my opinion, as taste do vary from person to person

[bbbearden]

Yes it's still going on but like others have said it is contracted through a different company.

 

For the most part, it does seem to be less intrusive than in years past which is a good thing. I suspect that most people rank the art auctions just below the tours of the sanitation facilities on their lists of ship highlights for the week.

 

Yep, or a tour of the bilge, just not on my list of must do items on vacation. :cool:

[ggo85]

I didn't mean to suggest I missed the art auction in a good way.:D It was simply the first cruise in which it was noticeably absent -- as was the artwork lining routes to almost everywhere.

 

I went one time -- a rainy day at sea. I somewhat enjoyed learning about a few artists. Never even considered purchasing anything -- if I want to buy art, there are plenty of art dealers where I live.

[jefngeo01]

There was not one on our recent Allure of the Seas sailing.

[Tucker in Texas]

They had them on our Voyager TA this spring. They were intrusive not only in the public areas but taking over Cleopatra's Lounge, too.

 

Tucker in Texas

[sf2]

http://www.artactually.com/

[DarthGrady]

Just got off FOS and was surprised not to see the infamous art auction and wondered what happened to it.

 

Is it just not done on this ship due to the younger demographics? Do they not do them on 7-day cruises? Have they been suspended/discontinued due to the litigation? Are they losing popularity? Some other reason?

 

Merely curious as for so long they've been a staple of cruising -- whether a good or bad one depends, of course, on one's perspective.:)

 

I say good riddance.

 

If I never heard another announcement about the "champagne art auction happening on deck _____ at ______" again, it will be too soon.

[orville99]

There was an auction on FOS in May when we were onboard, but there were no annoying PA announcements or "in your face" promos. Unfortunately that left the mike open for way too many "Bingo, Bingo, Bingo" screaming announcements every hour or so.:rolleyes:

[Janet524]

No art auctions? That's the best news I've heard out of RCI in ages!

[Kilnwood]

Thank goodness!!!

[XLRATION]

Here is my take on the problem with the art auctions, how the heck do most cruisers get the art home after?

For a lot of us, we fly home right after our cruise. How do we find the time to package an art piece to survive the plane (not to mention the baggage surcharge) or try to cab your way to a UPS store to have it packaged and shipped, again at a premium for shipping and insurance.

We considered a piece last year while on ExoS. When asked how it would be wrapped for transport if purchased. We were told it would be wrapped in paper and put in a cardboard box???? Not very condusive to air travel IMO and since we only had a few hours between debark and our flight we opted to not purchase.

What have been others experiences with purchased art and air travel?

[alfaeric]

Here is my take on the problem with the art auctions, how the heck do most cruisers get the art home after?

For a lot of us, we fly home right after our cruise. How do we find the time to package an art piece to survive the plane (not to mention the baggage surcharge) or try to cab your way to a UPS store to have it packaged and shipped, again at a premium for shipping and insurance.

We considered a piece last year while on ExoS. When asked how it would be wrapped for transport if purchased. We were told it would be wrapped in paper and put in a cardboard box???? Not very condusive to air travel IMO and since we only had a few hours between debark and our flight we opted to not purchase.

What have been others experiences with purchased art and air travel?

 

Except for a few items, they were shipped.

 

We liked the art auctions- had fun at them.

[marci22]

I thought it was funny when they would put all the priceless works on the floor, leaning against walls and other priceless works, for crowds of people to step over.

 

I went a couple times and it was fun entertainment. One time a very drunk woman kept bidding huge amounts of money on things. I wonder if she actually paid for everything in the end. I felt nervous for her.

 

Another time I saw a mother and father at customer service with their (12yo?) son. Apparently he had bid on something during the auction and customer service told them they had to pay up. They were not happy!

[Pumbaamd]

On our last MJ cruise there were tours offered (we did not participate) that escorted you around the ship and discussed the variety of art on board. After the tour, we were told, there was some kind of sales pitch.

R&D

[yogimax]

Here is my take on the problem with the art auctions, how the heck do most cruisers get the art home after?

For a lot of us, we fly home right after our cruise. How do we find the time to package an art piece to survive the plane (not to mention the baggage surcharge) or try to cab your way to a UPS store to have it packaged and shipped, again at a premium for shipping and insurance.

We considered a piece last year while on ExoS. When asked how it would be wrapped for transport if purchased. We were told it would be wrapped in paper and put in a cardboard box???? Not very condusive to air travel IMO and since we only had a few hours between debark and our flight we opted to not purchase.

What have been others experiences with purchased art and air travel?

 

Some of the best purchases we ever made were the PW "take-offs." In essence, you got the framing from free. They would wrap the art work with paper and put on a handle. On the plane, it was either overhead or simply ask that it be placed in a closet.

[XLRATION]

Except for a few items, they were shipped.

 

We liked the art auctions- had fun at them.

 

 

Do you mean the auction people or RCI were responsible to ship the art to your door? That was not what we were told, we were definitely told that we took the art off the ship and were responsible for shipping. Maybe the shipping is only included within the US, we live outside the US.

[sparky-elpaso]

The auctions are now done by the company that supplies the artwork on RCL ships. We went to one just for the fun of it - they sold a few things. On a sea day the art guy gave a talk about the different types of prints, etc. - actually quite interesting.

[cruisefrost]

I posted on another tread as to the ripoff so called art auctions are. The prints cost very little to produce compared to what you pay for them. Was in the printing bussiness for 40 years and know about this. What you paid for the print and what you can sell it for (if you can sell it at all ) maybe one tenth in price. Agree No more art auctions on vacations a good thing.

[alfaeric]

Do you mean the auction people or RCI were responsible to ship the art to your door? That was not what we were told, we were definitely told that we took the art off the ship and were responsible for shipping. Maybe the shipping is only included within the US, we live outside the US.

When was Park West that did the auctions, they shipped it from Florida, now when it's an agent of RCCL, they are supposed to ship it to us. We got a few small items on a cruise in March/April, and still haven't gotten it. No idea why.

 

Whoever was running the auction would do the shipping, and it was not included in the price. Not that it was all that expensive, either.

 

In short, yes. :)

[alfaeric]

I posted on another tread as to the ripoff so called art auctions are. The prints cost very little to produce compared to what you pay for them. Was in the printing bussiness for 40 years and know about this. What you paid for the print and what you can sell it for (if you can sell it at all ) maybe one tenth in price. Agree No more art auctions on vacations a good thing.

Gotta know what you are buying.

 

And for the ones who don't like the events, it never really seemed as if many participated anyway- nobody is forcing you to go....