Daniel Grant, writing for Gallerist, published an interesting article a few days ago about auction houses, reserves, and transparency (see “How Low Can You Go?: Should Auction Reserve Prices Be More Transparent?”). In his feature, he talks about how in nearly all cases, auction houses do not openly disclose the reserve (the lowest amount for which an item will sell at auction), and provides a variety of differing perspectives on how this practice impacts their respective markets and its participants. Of the auction houses specifically discussed in the article, only one – Heritage Auction – makes it known to the public what the reserve price is for every item that they offer for sale. [Read more…]
1970 Chevrolet Nova Screen-Used Movie Prop Car from Quentin Tarantino’s “Death Proof” For Sale on eBay
A good friend of mine is offering a piece for sale on eBay that I’ve always been a fan of, so I thought I would provide a mention here for others in this art market who might find it of interest. I’ve always been attracted to movie car props, and this is one of those cars that is immediately identifiable to fans of contemporary cinema – the Chevy Nova from Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof. [Read more…]
Premiere Props ‘Hollywood Extravaganza XII’ Auction Catalog Online, Television & Movie Prop and Costume Sale Event November 23-24
Premiere Props have listed their next auction with online bidding partners iCollector, LiveAuctioneers, and ArtFact as part of their “Hollywood Extravaganza XII”. The two-day auction is scheduled for November 23-24, currently featuring over 1,000 lots (though it appears more than half of that are not props and costumes but comic books, posters, and other memorabilia). As with past auctions, the sale includes a mix of original props, costumes, and other film and television artifacts, as well as general Hollywood Memorabilia. There are many vintage off the shelf antiques attributed to film and television productions with no explanation as to how and why such claims are made. [Read more…]
Catalog Now Online for Julien’s Auctions Collection of Props from the Lord of the Rings (“Trilogy Collection”) Sale on December 5th
As reported in early October, Julien’s Auctions will be holding their “The Trilogy Collection: Props & Costumes from Middle Earth” sale on December 5th, and the catalog for this event is now available online in FlipBook form as well as a download in PDF format. The sale features the largest offering of original material (props, costumes, and other original assets) from a single collector from the trilogy of movies directed by Peter Jackson (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King) and based on the J.R.R. Tolkien best-selling fantasy novel, The Lord of the Rings. The catalog weighs in at 121 pages with 92 lots, all part of a single franchise sale which is fairly rare in this art market, given the size, scope, and sale of the offerings. [Read more…]
Calendar of Live Auction Events: TV and Movie Prop & Costume, Hollywood Entertainment, Music, & Pop Culture Memorabilia
Below is the latest updated calendar for upcoming original movie and television prop, wardrobe, and memorabilia auction events. Please contact me if you are aware of any coming events of interest to collectors. Please also note that I update changes/additions to the calendar until the next update, in order to maintain as up to date as possible. [Read more…]
Premiere Props ‘Fangoria Horror Movie Prop Live Auction’ Catalog Online, Television & Movie Prop and Costume Sale Event October 13th
The catalog is now (partially) online for the Premiere Props “Fangoria Annual Horror Movie Prop Auction”, scheduled for October 26. Though the auction is only about a week away, some of the promised “over 500 lots” are now listed with online bidding partners iCollector, LiveAuctioneers, and ArtFact. Currently, the sale breaks at Lot 217 and then jumps ahead to Lot 467, and runs through Lot 509.
Nate D. Sanders ‘Fine Autographs & Memorabilia′ Auction Catalog Available for Online Sale Ending October 29th
Nate D. Sanders will be concluding their next online auction on October 29th and the catalog for this event is available on their official site. About 100 of nearly 800 lots is material under the banner of “Hollywood Memorabilia”. Their highlight from this auction is Bruce Lee memorabilia, as well as a variety of Hollywood and historical memorabilia, including props, costumes, set pieces, awards, and other material. [Read more…]
Revisiting TV Prop Studio Sanctioned Auctions: Descriptions, Research, Production Made, Multiples, Back-Ups, “Use” on Screen (ScreenBid/Breaking Bad, Profiles in History/LOST, Christie’s/Star Trek)
An issue that seems to come up with every official studio auction of original props and costumes from popular television shows is that of buyers feeling mislead by descriptions of auction houses, particularly use. We saw this with Christie’s and their official “40 years of Star Trek” auction, with Profiles in History and their sale of material from ABC’s LOST, and based on a reader comment today on my article about newcomer ScreenBid and their Breaking Bad auction, it would seem that the same issue is in play with this latest sale as well. Since people likely don’t check my articles for comments after reading it, I thought it might be worthwhile and productive to highlight that comment and my response in a new article, as it is an issue that seems to occur with each of these official studio sales, particularly because it brings in participants who have not participated in such sales before, and perhaps have not purchased or collected original props, costumes, and other artifacts from film and television. [Read more…]