Picks from my Ebay Watchlist
A Tool to Deceive and Slaughter
In preparing to write a short bit about the devastating effect of overexposure on a work of art – that is, how value tends to drop dramatically when a single work of art has been offered for sale multiple times over the course of a handful of years, I came across this small black box. And it is challenging that notion head-on. Let me back up and explain.
One of the key factors in a work of art’s value is its freshness to the market. If it’s been in the same collection for a generation or two (or more), demand tends to rise significantly over, say, if the same work of art is offered for sale a year or two after being sold. Sure, there are exceptions to this to be sure, particularly in the contemporary art market; but widely speaking, fresh works are king.
Sales venues like Ebay have challenged this notion, but not significantly: if a work of art is offered for sale and fails to meet reserve or garner an opening bid, the future value is still hurt, but there are not any lasting sales records to haunt it – Ebay’s completed auction records only last for a few months or so. Still, I’ve watched paintings that might have had significant value get completely pummeled by a seller’s repeated unsuccessful attempts at selling it. For that reason, I never recommend offering a work of art on Ebay more than once.
And now, Caleb Larsen’s A Tool to Deceive and Slaughter. A single work of art which, by way of its own internal programming, puts itself up for auction every week on Ebay. As an appraiser, my head is spinning. What happens to value when ownership is so fleeting as to only last a week? Motivation to sell is not a factor at all in this equation; it is part and parcel of the work itself. But what motivates the buyer? When I first became aware of this piece by way of Felix Salmon’s article, it was listed at $1500. Before the end of the auction, the price was upped to $2500, but failed to sell. It’s current auction ongoing, it started again at $2500, and bidding is up to $4250. Methinks that a rise in press coverage may be a large component of its rise in value. Therefore, the more publicity that this work receives, the higher its value? The seller, after all, isn’t “dumping” it back out into the market; the work itself, by design, is placing itself back out into the market.
According to the artist’s response to a question posed within the descriptive text of the auction site, “The perpetual state of uncertainty and the instability of ownership are primary components of the work”.
A work of art for the times, to be sure. And I will be watching with confoundment at how the market responds.
1/29/10 Update: Bidding on the piece closed yesterday evening at $6350 with 19 bids. It is currently en route to its next owner, and will presumably be set to auction itself again as soon as an ethernet connection is established. Wonder what the opening bid will be? Apparently that is at the discretion of its new owner, but I would still recommend an opening bid lower than the sales price.
Picks from my Ebay Watchlist
Is it just me, or does the quality of art offerings on Ebay seem to be ramping down lately? I usually associate November with a month of better-than-average offerings in the art categories. Still, as almost always, there are some attractive offerings amongst the bunch worth passing along to any interested collectors out there:
FERDINAND BURGDORFF “TEMPLE TO ATHENA”
Burgdorff was a prolific artist, stationed for the bulk of his career in a studio in Carmel, California. He had a very long career, stretching from the 1910s throughout his life to the 1970s. His paintings most in demand are with California subject matter, from the 1920s and 1930s. The painting in this listing is neither. The subject matter is European, and dated 1959. It is, however, a great example of his signature style; the light pastel palette and soft pointillist brushstrokes. The market lately has not been kind to Burgdorff’s work. It is an excellent time to snap up a gem like this painting for a heretofore unheard-of price of $230.
Le Petit Matelot (The Little Sailor)
Don’t let the French title fool you; Mary Ronin was an American artist and illustrator in the mid 20th century. I cannot find sales records for her paintings, but her style is highly reminiscent of a popular contemporary of hers, Ralph Cahoon. This is one of those artists that, in time, the market will recognize, and I’m sure that her paintings will be valued at much more than the $150 opening bid.
b.1906 CECIL HEAD Barnyard Cat INDIANA Regionalist NICE
Cecil Head was a Brown County artist, and is one of the up-and-comers in the market for Indiana art; he was too young to have been a part of the original Brown County colony, but old enough to have firm roots in the modernist WPA movement that sets his artwork apart from the older set. In terms of Head’s own career, this painting is late (dated 1984), which the art market would currently count as a strike, but this is also a Hoosier Salon painting, complete with tag on the reverse, which sets it apart from the crowd. Get it now while it’s cheap!
Picks from my Ebay Watchlist
Another small round of what’s caught my eye amongst the offerings in Art on Ebay lately:
Maybe I’m just a sucker for paintings of birch trees, but that issue aside, this is a fantastic early 20th century New England painting – the use of light is superbly rendered, and the subject matter of landscape with creek and cattle is charming. Hamilton is an artist without extensive auction records, but his auction record of $912 in 2002 was for a painting that, in my opinion, was only about 1/2 the painting that this is. At the opening bid of $500, it is a beautiful bargain.
I wasn’t at all familiar with this contemporary artist when I first saw this piece. The seller does a very thorough job though, in his description, of including pertinent information and links to the artist’s work, so I caught up quickly. Wow! Portraits from an alternate universe indeed! So delicately rendered in the anachronistic style of the Victorian daguerrotype, but his subject matter is so weird…….I love the juxtaposition. Reminds me of one of my very favorite artists of the 20th century, Frank Holt. Looks like Louie’s similar pieces are selling in galleries in the 2-4k range. This is a rare opportunity to purchase one on the secondary market.
Maurice Tanner is one of those artists that, if you’ve seen and noticed one of his paintings, you’ll be able to spot another one from across a crowded room. He had a very distinctive style, and his subject matter almost never changed. I imagine that he had a permanent post on one particular peak in the Smoky Mountains for the bulk of his career (the painting is listed as Brown County, but it is indeed Tennessee). But that shouldn’t diminish the individual paintings themselves, they are, without exception (from among those I’ve seen), beautiful. They are the kind of paintings that are a pleasure to look at – muted colors, strong use of light, but always a slight haze. As of now, Tanner is an artist without auction records. But I do predict a day wherein it will be hard to believe that a sizeable painting of his could be had on Ebay for a mere $150. There seems to be no slowdown in the market for 20th century Southern art – snap it up before the market catches up!
Picks from my Ebay Watchlist
First of all, a hearty congratulations to the new owner of the fantastic Guy Pene duBois oil that was on my last list — at 2627, it was a magnificent bargain!
This time, I’ve got a couple more that have hit my appraiser’s sweet spot:
- Walter Krawiec Art Sketch Circus Drawing Horse Clown I have a weak spot for Walter Krawiec, and for that matter, most early 20th century circus artists. Because he is an Illinois artist, I do see his work on a fairly regular basis, and have watched his prices rise over the last 10 or so years, as his appeal is crossover (that is, collected by two different groups: collectors of 20th century American art, and collectors of circus memoribilia). $150 for this piece, which because it is a circus subject is premier for the artist, is very very reasonable.
- Indiana Gyberson- Portrait of a nude – Signed Another artist I have a weakness for. Sigh. Another Illinois artist that I see with regularity. In fact, this is a painting that I’ve seen with regularity over the last five years. It sold at a Chicago auction house in 2004 for a jaw droppingly low $800. I actually was there to watch. Oh, why didn’t I bid?! She re-appeared again in 2005 at a Boston auction house with an estimate of 3-5k, but failed to sell. I’m sure because all of the serious bidders knew from sales records that it had sold for only 800 the previous year. But even so, that was then. Since 2005, Gyberson’s prices have been climbing, bringing a sales record of 11k for a painting of similar size and subject matter last year. It could be that this particular painting has suffered from too much exposure in the art marketplace these last years, but Gyberson is a definite buy.
Picks from my Ebay Watchlist
I am a professional art appraiser. I spend a large chunk of time each day watching the art market, and looking at sometimes hundreds of paintings. The area of the art world that I know best is American Art, from about 1880-1950. This is the sector that I keep the closest eye on (and I also frequently buy and sell in this market, so have a personal stake in how it’s doing), and let me tell you, in comparison to other art markets that I follow, this guy is alive and kicking. And in some cases, it’s doing better than ever.
It is no secret that the art market has outperformed the stock market in recent years; the stock market’s been pretty easy to beat lately. But I also get the sense that there’s a new influx of buyers to the market, who have money to invest but don’t want to risk putting it back in stocks, or in accounts that can promise only very low returns. If you have an interest in the art market, are a collector, or just like artwork, please bookmark my blog right now. In the coming months I will include a series of art buying recommendations that I have learned through years and years of experience as an appraiser, buyer and seller.
Starting today the series in which I throw out some of the most compelling works of art that I have on my Ebay watchlist. Since I cannot buy and sell it all, and since I am doing this out of a certain passion that I have for artwork, I offer it up so that someone might take advantage of my expertise in getting something that they love and admire. I will not post anything capriciously, but only those pieces that have passed my appraiser’s sniff test. Believe me, I look at loads of artwork for sale on Ebay daily, and am very very familiar with the fakes and the unscrupulous dealers and the too-good-to-be-trues. If anything smells wrong in the slightest, I will not post it.
Here we go:
ORIGINAL ISABEL BISHOP THE SUBWAY OIL ON BOARD PAINTING
Okay, okay, the 6500 price tag is steep, but the seller is entertaining offers. But here’s the thing: there is a 2004 auction record for this very piece with a sales price of 9200 (this price includes the auction house’s buyer’s premium; had been estimated at 3-5000). Even at the seller’s asking price of 6500, this is a Very Good Deal. The market for Bishop’s work remains strong, particularly for exactly this kind of urban subject matter.
BEAUTIFUL OIL PAINTING BY THE FAMOUS ARITST HENRY PITZ
A little gem of a painting and at a reasonable price. Pitz, a Pennsylvania artist, was best known as an illustrator in the second quarter of the 20th century, but it’s a landscape like this one that set a sales record of 2250 (albeit a larger piece) in 2007. A fantastic piece in its original frame, the seller connects the ownership of the painting directly back to the artist himself. Pennsylvania is big in 20th century regional art right now. At the opening bid, it’s a great buy.
GUY PENE DU BOIS OIL PAINTING, SUPERB
Oh my. This is a wonderful painting. This is also the third time that I’ve seen it listed on Ebay, with a lower and lower opening bid. I was thisclose to buying it when he had it listed at 5000 – even at that price, it would have been a good buy. Pene du Bois is a very well known early 20th century artist and a very good investment, and I think the painting is just beautiful. I didn’t buy it because my husband didn’t like it nearly as much as I did, and at that price, we should be in better agreement about it. But now here she is again at 2500. Someone please buy this painting!! I believe that she is a victim of a too-high opening bid (this can kill just about any art auction); not high for Pene du Bois, that is, just high for Ebay. But believe me, at this price the painting is a steal.
