What are the pitfalls? How to communicate with auctions? And how to increase the chances of your painting to succeed?

In Moscow in 2020, 14 auction houses are engaged in art. And for the sale of a decent painting no protection, connections, and, strictly speaking, even special knowledge are needed. However, there are a number of steps and life hacks that will save you from wasting time and unpleasant surprises.

Let's go through the points.

1. Where to begin? The first step, always with any Moscow auction, is to contact them by e-mail. You need to send a photo, the name of the artist, the size of the work and your opinion on the price (if there is one and it is justified). You can send a letter to several auction houses, even to all at once. Then you will choose for yourself.
2. Would it not be safer to bring work personally? You don’t need to immediately bring it to the auction office and insist on a personal meeting without a letter. People at the reception are experienced and they will understand the basic information from the photograph. By the way, with the quality of the photo, you should not be worried also. An ordinary photograph taken by the telephone will be sufficient. The main thing is that the sharpness is normal. You don’t have to worry about the fact that a live picture is much better than in the photo. The evaluators know this effect and they will make adjustments using their own knowledge and imagination. And if this is not enough, then they will ask you to send a better photo.
3. What conditions need to be clarified in advance? After waiting for the interested reaction of the auction, find out the conditions that it offers for sellers. Are there any additional fees from sellers (committees)? Are there any seller fees for listing? Does the owner pay a percentage of the sale price? For example, at our ArtSale.info Auction, sellers are exempt from any additional fees. The owners receive all the money on hand, and only the buyers pay the commission. But in different places the conditions may vary.
4. How to set the selling price? In the commission agreement or its annex, it will be necessary to indicate “reserve” — the reserve price, below which the work cannot be sold. This is more a technical parameter, not a flint, it can often be reconciled. Although, when the auction takes place in the hall, in live mode, there is practically no time to adjust the reserve. There, the auctioneer has less than a minute to sell the lot. And, if the seller suddenly decides to lower the price, then the leading bidder is unlikely to have time to rebuild. Online time to maneuver is usually longer. If the rates are close to the reserve, then the auctioneer can call you and agree on a new reserve price.
5. What to do to sell more expensive? You should not initially declare a high reserve price and insist on it. There is such a temptation. Especially from those who bought paintings 12 years ago, at the peak of prices. It’s worth remembering that the auction and the seller work together — the auction is also interested in selling more expensive and getting a higher commission. But an auction is not a buyer. And bargaining is not with him, but with the market. Auction receivers are generally well versed in prices and demand patterns. For them, agreeing to the seller’s initially exaggerated claims means not to sell and get zero commission. Therefore, the opinion of the auction at a price worth considering.
6. Is it possible to send a good photo and not bring a painting if it is in another city? Why carry if an auction is bidding on the Internet? If the painting is accepted for an auction, then it will need to be brought to the office. Even if the auction is online. It will be correctly photographed, examined, shown to experts, correctly described, displayed at a pre-auction exhibition. And, most importantly, the organizers and buyers will be sure that the painting is really available, and not sold in ten places according to the photograph.
7. Should I do an expertise? Sometimes unnecessary, and sometimes necessary. For example, high priced Russian classics are sold only with expertise, they are not going to be bought without it. The same applies to often fake artists (for example, Zverev or Tyshler). Yes, there are nuances that allow the seller to save money if the thing is inexpensive. For example, the auction itself can show a painting or drawing to a profile expert in order to receive verbal confirmation. This means that after the sale, the new owner can pay and get a positive expertise. You will be told about this when you first contact the auction house. And they will give advice on what and how to do on the expertise.
8. How to choose the time for bidding? Some try to get to the auction on holiday. Like March 8 or February 23, when people choose gifts. In our practice, this approach does not work. And on holidays everything is sold no better and no worse.
9. How quickly can an auction put a painting up for auction? The charts are different for everyone. If the auction is weekly (like ours), then they will be able to deliver quickly. For example, in a few days. Especially if it is a masterpiece or for some reason the auction urgently needs to put this particular painting. And the usual comfortable mode for a weekly auction is 10 days to prepare. In offline houses (when bidding in the room), everything is different, depending on the schedule. More than a month may elapse from the moment the work is included in the catalog to the auction. This will also be told the first time you contact.
10. How to prove the auction that the painting belongs to you? Some documents confirming the ownership of the painting are not needed at the auction. No one will ask. For an auction, the owner will be the one who signs the contract on behalf of the seller. And after the sale the auction will give the money to this person. So, when you entrust the sale to a friend, relative or assistant, keep in mind that exactly the person who signed the contract will receive the money.
11. What documents are needed to conclude a contract? Only a passport. And your phone number. And it’s better to immediately print out and bring the bank details with you (not the card number, namely the data of the bank account, BIC, etc.). This will speed up further calculations. And the phone is needed for another important reason.
12. At the time of bidding, closer to the end, the owner of the painting is strongly recommended to be available by telephone. What for? In practice, situations are possible when there is very little left to the reserve price indicated in the contract. And to conclude a successful transaction, it makes sense to quickly reconcile the price. If the owner is unavailable by phone, then the moment will be missed. After the end of bidding, it will be much more difficult to negotiate.
13. If the painting has not reached a reserve, then can we offer it to those who haggled for it during the bidding? Why not? Price reconciliation must be done before the auction ends. Inexperienced sellers sometimes “drag” the decision, wait for the end of the auction and then say to the organizers: “I agree to give at the previous rate — offer to the buyer who made it.” This is a bad option for an auction. Having received such an offer, a potential buyer has the right to think that he was cheated — «raised» at a price during the bidding process. And when it did not work out, they came to offer again. Why doesn't he think so? Therefore, it is highly likely that in this case the bidder will either refuse the transaction or make a counter offer at an even lower price. In general, auctions do not like such conversations. This sets a bad example for sellers. And for auctions, this is fraught with reputational damage and loss of confidence on the part of buyers. Therefore: all price decisions must be made quickly and until the end of the auction. Checked.

From the main, perhaps, everything. There is nothing complicated. The main thing is to apply, and then experts will explain everything. If you decide to offer a work at the ArtSale.info Auction to us, the first step is to email to [email protected] or WhatsApp +7 499 398 96 99. Good luck with the sale!

Vladimir Bogdanov, ASi