4 Questions to Ask Before Donating to a Charity Photo Auction
JUNE 29, 2011
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© WILL RAGOZZINO/PATRICKMCMULLAN.COM Auctioneer Denise Bethel of Sotheby's leads the bidding at inMotion's annual Photography Auction & Benefit, April 2011. |
According to the gallery owners we interviewed in “Benefit Analysis: The Pros and Cons of Donating To Charity Auctions,” the explosion of fundraising auctions in recent years has not been a boon to artists who donated works. Many auction organizers say that the auction sales, and having work in a prestigious auction catalogue, can be good exposure, particularly for lesser known artists. Gallery owners, however, believe that at many auctions, buyers are looking for bargains. If a print sells for well below market price, it can confuse buyers about its actual value. Worse still, with so many auctions selling so many prints, some works won’t sell at all.
As we note in our July issue, gallery owners have different ideas about how to prevent prints from selling at bargain basement prices, such as setting a reserve price and issuing special editions just for the auction. Gallery owners have also become more selective in choosing which auctions they want to participate in. To make their selection, they ask a variety of questions to size up the quality of the auction. Here are some of the questions they ask.
How many prints will be up for sale? (And how many people are expected to attend?)
If an auction includes a large number of lots up for sale, at least some of the prints may go unsold. “If it doesn’t sell, people will maybe think that it is not worth buying,” says David Fahey of Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles. “As we know, this is not really the case, but often times perceptions carry great weight.”
Toronto gallery owner Stephen Bulger estimates that only ten percent of the crowd at a charity auction attendees is seriously interested in bidding for something. He prefers to see the number of bidders outnumber the auction lots by a ration of two-to-one, to ensure bidding competition and higher prices, he explains.
Some well established auctions have cut back the number of prints for sale. For example, Center for Photography at Woodstock cut its benefit auction lots by 75 percent, from 200 to about 50 a few years ago. At its annual auction gala last year, Aperture Foundation held back lots to match its audience size. “We want each piece to get enough attention,” says Yseult Chehata, manager of the individual giving program at the Aperture Foundation.
Who is attending, and who are the organizers?
The charity inMotion, which provides free legal aid to low-income victims of domestic abuse, is in the fortunate position of having to turn down photographers who want to donate to its annual auction. Its board is comprised of attorneys and investment bankers who attract a well-heeled, big spending crowd. The auctioneer in the past few years has been Denise Bethel, senior VP and director of the photographs department at Sotheby’s, who has experience in stoking the crowd to spend big.
But attendees who buy prints to support a worthwhile cause may be less interested in collecting photography. Los Angeles gallery owner Paul Kopeikin notes, “Is this someone who’s going to come to the artist’s next show? It’s difficult to say.” Non-profit organizations like the Center for Photography at Woodstock argue that their auction attendees are primarily interested in the Center’s mission, which is to support photographers. The relationships that are forged between photographers who donate to their auction and the people who buy auction prints, “can continue for years afterwards,” says Ariel Shanberg, executive director.
What information about sales and buyers will be available after the auction?
Julie Saul, owner of Julie Saul Gallery in New York, asks auction organizers to agree in writing to disclose after the auction how much each print she donated sold for, and to whom. “Particularly if it’s a unique work, you want to know where it is, and secondly you want to know what it sold for to evaluate, for example, if you want to donate to that cause in the future,” she explains.
The organizers of the inMotion auction inform donors of the price their prints sold for, and also provide contact information on the buyers. “Our goal is to help galleries and photographers build new relationships with collectors,“ says Carol Lindley, inMotion’s director of development and marketing.
Not all auctions will disclose their sales figures. But it's worth asking before you donate what the average sale prices have been for past auctions, and whether you'll be told the sale price of your prints after the auction so you can generate publicity if your work fetches a good price for a good cause.
Is the auction supporting a cause you believe in?
This question sounds obvious, but according to gallery owners we interviewed, photographers tend to think that if they help support an arts organization or museum now, the relationship might someday lead to an acquisition or exhibition down the road.
Paul Kopeikin of the Paul Kopeikin Gallery of Los Angeles says that when museums call him for donations to their auctions, he’s often very blunt. “Listen, in 20 years you’ve never taken an interest in any of the artists I represent, so I’m just curious, which artist is it that you’re interested in?”
When you understand what you can and can't expect from participating in charity auctions, you can donate out of generosity, not in hopes of publicity.
As we note in our July issue, gallery owners have different ideas about how to prevent prints from selling at bargain basement prices, such as setting a reserve price and issuing special editions just for the auction. Gallery owners have also become more selective in choosing which auctions they want to participate in. To make their selection, they ask a variety of questions to size up the quality of the auction. Here are some of the questions they ask.
How many prints will be up for sale? (And how many people are expected to attend?)
If an auction includes a large number of lots up for sale, at least some of the prints may go unsold. “If it doesn’t sell, people will maybe think that it is not worth buying,” says David Fahey of Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles. “As we know, this is not really the case, but often times perceptions carry great weight.”
Toronto gallery owner Stephen Bulger estimates that only ten percent of the crowd at a charity auction attendees is seriously interested in bidding for something. He prefers to see the number of bidders outnumber the auction lots by a ration of two-to-one, to ensure bidding competition and higher prices, he explains.
Some well established auctions have cut back the number of prints for sale. For example, Center for Photography at Woodstock cut its benefit auction lots by 75 percent, from 200 to about 50 a few years ago. At its annual auction gala last year, Aperture Foundation held back lots to match its audience size. “We want each piece to get enough attention,” says Yseult Chehata, manager of the individual giving program at the Aperture Foundation.
Who is attending, and who are the organizers?
The charity inMotion, which provides free legal aid to low-income victims of domestic abuse, is in the fortunate position of having to turn down photographers who want to donate to its annual auction. Its board is comprised of attorneys and investment bankers who attract a well-heeled, big spending crowd. The auctioneer in the past few years has been Denise Bethel, senior VP and director of the photographs department at Sotheby’s, who has experience in stoking the crowd to spend big.
But attendees who buy prints to support a worthwhile cause may be less interested in collecting photography. Los Angeles gallery owner Paul Kopeikin notes, “Is this someone who’s going to come to the artist’s next show? It’s difficult to say.” Non-profit organizations like the Center for Photography at Woodstock argue that their auction attendees are primarily interested in the Center’s mission, which is to support photographers. The relationships that are forged between photographers who donate to their auction and the people who buy auction prints, “can continue for years afterwards,” says Ariel Shanberg, executive director.
What information about sales and buyers will be available after the auction?
Julie Saul, owner of Julie Saul Gallery in New York, asks auction organizers to agree in writing to disclose after the auction how much each print she donated sold for, and to whom. “Particularly if it’s a unique work, you want to know where it is, and secondly you want to know what it sold for to evaluate, for example, if you want to donate to that cause in the future,” she explains.
The organizers of the inMotion auction inform donors of the price their prints sold for, and also provide contact information on the buyers. “Our goal is to help galleries and photographers build new relationships with collectors,“ says Carol Lindley, inMotion’s director of development and marketing.
Not all auctions will disclose their sales figures. But it's worth asking before you donate what the average sale prices have been for past auctions, and whether you'll be told the sale price of your prints after the auction so you can generate publicity if your work fetches a good price for a good cause.
Is the auction supporting a cause you believe in?
This question sounds obvious, but according to gallery owners we interviewed, photographers tend to think that if they help support an arts organization or museum now, the relationship might someday lead to an acquisition or exhibition down the road.
Paul Kopeikin of the Paul Kopeikin Gallery of Los Angeles says that when museums call him for donations to their auctions, he’s often very blunt. “Listen, in 20 years you’ve never taken an interest in any of the artists I represent, so I’m just curious, which artist is it that you’re interested in?”
When you understand what you can and can't expect from participating in charity auctions, you can donate out of generosity, not in hopes of publicity.
I must admit, I have never had much luck with publicity resulting from some higher profile auctions I have donated towards. I have however, enjoyed taking part in causes I believe in. I met some interesting people due to comp'd tickets to the events. And when you donate to an auction, oftentimes a reserve price will be requested. Don't hike it up too high - but don't sell yourself short either. There is nothing more you can do while you watch a unique image of yours sell for $20 while the piece next to you brings in hundreds!
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