Art Auctions: To those who bought Art

[love2bonboard]

What we have done is keep a binder of all of the art we have collected. It includes a photo and any receipts for each piece of art. I also update it from time to time (when I can find them) prices off of the internet. The binder has grown to two and keeps expanding. I showed it to my insurance broker and he said it was exactly the right proof to have in case of a claim.

 

Remember not to keep your records at home. The most likely reason for a claim is a fire and it doesn't help if the binder burns up too! I keep mine at work.

I scanned my receipts and took digital photos and then I emailed them to myself and kept it in my "in" box in a subfolder "misc". That way, I have a record of them and can pull them up wherever I am. I also keep a 10 page "home Inventory" as well.

[MattOsprey]

We bought a Dali lithograph on Island Princess in 2004. At the time there was a lifetime buy back guarantee on fine art. We paid about 3300 USD at the time. Now with money getting tight we are thinking of returning it and using th money for another Princess cruise.

Has anyone returned a piece under the guarantee?

Thanks.

Matt

[love2bonboard]

We bought a Dali lithograph on Island Princess in 2004. At the time there was a lifetime buy back guarantee on fine art. We paid about 3300 USD at the time. Now with money getting tight we are thinking of returning it and using th money for another Princess cruise.

Has anyone returned a piece under the guarantee?

Thanks.

Matt

I thought the buyback guarantee was for piece valued at over 20,000 usd. I will be on a cruise next month and I can ask about it. You might try the online art auctions though.

[royalcruz]

About 15 yrs ago, we bought a framed/matted litho from an unknown artist at a Park West Auction on another cruise. We had bought art in auctions on land before and assumed that what you bid on is what you get, so we didn't read the fine print. We lived right by the port, so we asked the auction rep to give us the litho. We were then told that a different litho from the same series (a different number) would be shipped to our house without the frame or mat. This of course completely changed the value, so we immediately asked for and received a refund.

[jff50]

I thought the buyback guarantee was for piece valued at over 20,000 usd. I will be on a cruise next month and I can ask about it. You might try the online art auctions though.

Not sure what the lower limit is, but I thought that the buyback guarantee was for items well below $20,000 (even below $5,000).

[MattOsprey]

We were given the buy back guarantee, by the auctioneers, I was just wondering if anyone had experienced using it.

Thanks.

Matt

[jagsfan]

Hi,

I believe the Venice Carnival piece you're mentioning is "Rigoletto and Gilda" by Los Angeles photographer Weldon Brewster.

Like yourself, have had many positive comments about this piece.

 

Ciao for now!!!

 

Wow......I'm glad somebody else has it to enjoy. Mine is a Brewster. When we downsized

from our house, this is one piece I wouldn't part with.

[Parrot Mom]

Before Park West we were on the Majesty when we spotted a Matiros and fell in love and it's hanging over our stairs.(more than 20 years later).Now, if I see any of h is work they are way, way out of sight.. We have many Tarkey..at this point..lol We are addicted to art sales.. and going on Princess and willbe interested to see what they have to offer. We buy what we love. When searching for Matiros I "googled"him and found him in many galleries in CA.. He is now gone back to Europe and is no longer painting for the galleries..So many.. Chen, LeKliff, several of the Russian and Israeli artists A few cruises ago for whatever reason I ended up with so many "take offs' it was hysterical.. Can hardly wait until we attend our next.. within the week..

[KansasCityTBone]

I answered trivia questions several years ago on Carnival and won my choice of 3 out

of serveral prints. Paid 8.00 for shipping and handling for each. They came in wonderful

mailing tubes......really good ones, probably worth the 8.00. I had one framed, actually

an odd piece with two masked people during Carnivale in Venice. Everyone who visits

comments on that one picture.

My brother is fortunate enough to have two Behrens originals.....large paintings done on

vacation on the east coast of the US....vastly different from most of his works.

I'd be shocked to see any of his originals for sale on a cruise ship, but prints, lithographs

and giclees, yes. The chances of realizing a profit from any of them is slim to none,

but the joy of looking at them, and the memories of where you obtained them.....priceless.

 

My last cruise I saw many Behrens oil paintings and they were legit.

[kath00]

Just remember that Park West is NOT ON ANY PRINCESS ship. Just want to clarify because Park West has been sued multiple times and many lines (like Royal Caribbean) have completely dumped them.

 

Princess has their own art collection that they obtain and maintain themselves. It's a whole different world that the scam artists that Park West have become through the years.

 

Katherine

[MattOsprey]

For anyone who is interested, I am in the process of returning my piece under the buy back guarantee. This piece was $3300 and was bought in 2004.

Matthew

[Talisker92]

I have been following with great fascination the saga of Park West vs. Fine Art Registry.That being said, on our last Princess cruse, I went over the disclosure form that Princess had for the art auction. It was forthright and 180 out from Park West.

The bottom line is-if it appeals to you, buy it, but do not expect it to appreciate as an investment.

[jewopaho]

I agree. Princess are the only cruise ship that runs its own in house Art Auctions. They are very different from other cruise lines and as far as I know they will provide provenance documentation willingly.

In fact, it worked in reverse for a British passenger who had spent upwards of $10,000 on two art pieces. Princess took the initiative to contact him, let him know that the works were not as represented, and offered him both a full refund and additional monetary compensation. Somehow, I can't see Park West doing that. I'm looking for his post, and will paste it here if I find it.

 

We've also had the pleasure of meeting Alexandra Nechita ... she's absolutely captivating. Her originals may be of investment quality ... but you'll pay five figures.

 

Incidentally, Royal Caribbean is initiating Art Actually, an in-house operation. It's a feature on their "Monsters of the Seas" ships, and will soon be aboard all of the fleet. Right now, there are no auctions on the others.

Edited February 8, 2011 by jewopaho

[mph045]

One should purchase Art because they like it not for investment-this they state at every auction. I have purchased numerous paintings over 10 years with Princess Cruises and have no regrets. The selection you chose[Goddard/Behrens/Nakita] are excellent artists and world renown. The art sold by Princess includes the frames remember-look at the costs for frames at home!

Goddard and Behrens have appreciated over the years, and on the average the art we have bought have been sold 30-40% higher on land[remember overhead at Art galleries]. If the Art sold by Princess were not what it was stated-you would have heard it by now and they have been selling for a very long time.

 

Again-buy it if you like it-remember the cruises you were on and the good times.

 

As to other art galleries purchaseing art on Board-it happens all the time-I know of two art galleries in California that routinely buy it and resell it

[love2bonboard]

Yes, all of the art we have purchased has gone up in value, actually by quite a bit. We have Godard originals, Behrens, Daniel Wall, Bill Mack, and a Nekita. We have no desire to sell them whatsoever as we get great enjoyment at looking at all of them. We have been extremely happy with Princess art auctions and the customer service we received from them. As a matter of fact, we are going to Alaska in May and really thinking about adding to our collection.

[moniquet]

"Art"...don't make me laugh. You would be lucky to get back what you paid for them. Same as the diamonds:D

 

At least it keeps my cruises cheaper, buy lots, lose in the casino and overpay for your jewellery;)

[jewopaho]

"Art"...don't make me laugh. You would be lucky to get back what you paid for them. Same as the diamonds:D

Good point, although a bit abrasive. I'm sure that most contributors here are basing their contentions on "appraisals." Essentially, they're used for insurance purposes, so the pieces would have to be lost, stolen or destroyed in order for the owners to collect ... I'm certain that none of them wish any of that to occur. An item's true value is the amount one could receive when selling it ... return on investment. Yet the perception is that a piece appraised for $3000 and purchased for $1000 is worth three times what was paid. And you're correct ... the same convoluted logic applies to jewelry purchasers, as well. The point is simple ... there are no true cut-rate art or jewelry pieces; if there were, the ships would be filled with delers and wholsalers, loading up on whatever they could get their hands on. I guess perception is reality after all. As noted hundreds of times, if you like something, and are comfortable with the price, buy it and enjoy it ... but don't try to sell it!

Edited February 8, 2011 by jewopaho

[moniquet]

Yes, good post. Maybe I didn't put it very well but I do think they are vastly overpriced. Have seen a few I wouldn't mind on my walls but they value them as "real" when infact they are only prints/copies.

[shepp]

O The selection you chose[Goddard/Behrens/Nakita] are excellent artists and world renown.

 

Not to seem snotty or burst anyone's bubble - after all, if you like something, you're entitled to like it - but the reason Godard is "world renowned" is because he churns out vast quantities of product, much of which then gets sold on cruise ships or in the fine arts capitals of Las Vegas and Atlantic City, and because he excels at self-promotion. He is not famous because reputable museums are clamoring to add him to their collections, or because critics and art historians regard him as anything more than a kitschmeister, or because he has anything more to say with his art than the unknown painter of the poker-playing dogs did.

 

By all means, enjoy your pictures of drunken olives. But please don't confuse them with actual investment-quality "fine art" in the generally accepted definition of the word.

 

My, that did sound snotty, didn't it?

Edited February 9, 2011 by shepp

[rdsqrl]

Not to seem snotty or burst anyone's bubble - after all, if you like something, you're entitled to like it - but the reason Godard is "world renowned" is because he churns out vast quantities of product, much of which then gets sold on cruise ships or in the fine arts capitals of Las Vegas and Atlantic City, and because he excels at self-promotion. He is not famous because reputable museums are clamoring to add him to their collections, or because critics and art historians regard him as anything more than a kitschmeister, or because he has anything more to say with his art than the unknown painter of the poker-playing dogs did.

 

By all means, enjoy your pictures of drunken olives. But please don't confuse them with actual investment-quality "fine art" in the generally accepted definition of the word.

 

My, that did sound snotty, didn't it?

Yes, it did. I have such a crush on you right now. . .

[shepp]

Yes, it did. I have such a crush on you right now. . .

 

We can't go on meeting like this.... ;)

[RickEk]

Good point, although a bit abrasive. I'm sure that most contributors here are basing their contentions on "appraisals." Essentially, they're used for insurance purposes, so the pieces would have to be lost, stolen or destroyed in order for the owners to collect ... I'm certain that none of them wish any of that to occur. An item's true value is the amount one could receive when selling it ... return on investment. Yet the perception is that a piece appraised for $3000 and purchased for $1000 is worth three times what was paid. And you're correct ... the same convoluted logic applies to jewelry purchasers, as well. The point is simple ... there are no true cut-rate art or jewelry pieces; if there were, the ships would be filled with delers and wholsalers, loading up on whatever they could get their hands on. I guess perception is reality after all. As noted hundreds of times, if you like something, and are comfortable with the price, buy it and enjoy it ... but don't try to sell it!

 

Hmmm... they do sell originals too. I met an owner of an art gallery on one cruise and he was stocking up on originals. Probably spent more than $100,000 on that cruise. I asked him how much of a markup he was going to charge and he (cryptically) said that it was worth the investment...

[Times Prince]

I thought the buyback guarantee was for piece valued at over 20,000 usd. I will be on a cruise next month and I can ask about it. You might try the online art auctions though.

Back in 2004 the guarantee had a much lower limit. If you want to sell the art back to Princess Global Fine Arts, contact their customer service and let them know. They could probably pay you the bid price back, and then turn the painting over to another customer at a fair profit.

 

Our dealings with their customer service have gone really well, and we were treated fairly. They stood behind their guarantee.

 

"Art"...don't make me laugh. You would be lucky to get back what you paid for them.

At least it keeps my cruises cheaper, buy lots,

OK, don't laugh. And I won't tell you about the Martiros that we bought that was recently appraised by a very reputable art dealer at over twice what we paid. :)

 

Art is in the eye of the beholder. The art we've bought from Princess brings a smile to my face and is a delight to my eyes. As such it is a good investment.

[Vexorg]

I have a relatively small animation art collection, and On the last cruise I was on I bought a relatively inexpensive Disney sericel from the art auction on the ship. It's actually on the wall right next to me here, and has been joined by several other pieces (in particular, I've been picking up a number of character sketches on visits to the Disney parks, they're reasonably inexpensive and hand-drawn.) All things considered I probably could have gotten it cheaper on land, but I don't pretend that it's got much in the way of collector value, but it still looks nice.

[knotIn1]

tell you about the Martiros that we bought that was recently appraised by a very reputable art dealer at over twice what we paid. :)

 

Art is in the eye of the beholder. The art we've bought from Princess brings a smile to my face and is a delight to my eyes. As such it is a good investment.

 

Appraised value means very little. Was it appraised at replacement value? Was it appraised at fair market value? What you paid, what it's "worth" is and what you can SELL it for are 3 different things!

 

A diamond 1ct "nice" ring may be bought for about 5k, could be appraised at replacement value of 7k -8k, but try to sell it......be lucky to get 2-3k.