OldAndSold.com has
suspended the sale of "Yellow Roses," a controversial painting
which may or may not have been the work of Vincent van
Gogh.
Trade News
from Around the World
Auction giants Sotheby's and Christie's have
reached a tentative agreement to pay $512 million to
settle claims they conspired to manipulate prices they
were paid by sellers and buyers, The New York Times
reported September 23, according to the Associated Press. The
auction houses are each responsible for $256 million of the
settlement, the newspaper reported, citing unidentified lawyers
involved in the negotiations. The proposed settlement comes after
a three-year Justice Department criminal investigation into
whether the two auction giants, which control 95 percent of the
$4 billion worldwide auction market, stifled competition by
colluding on several business practices. In a statement to its
shareholders, Sotheby's revealed it will be receiving $156
million from former chairman A. Alfred Taubman toward the
settlement, who will be paying an additional $50 million in cash,
and will be issuing discount coupons to the class with a value of
$50 million, which the class members can use as a credit against
future vendor's commissions. The settlement of the shareholder
class action lawsuit provides for a cash payment to the class of
$30 million. Mr. Taubman has agreed to pay Sotheby's $30 million
in cash, which will be applied by Sotheby's towards this
settlement. Additionally, the class will be issued $40 million in
Sotheby's Class A Common Stock. Sotheby's net cash outlay as a
result of all of these settlements will be $50 million.
"Yellow Roses," a painting reportedly the work the
Post-impressionist Vincent van Gogh and offered for sale
online at Michigan-based OldAndSold Antiques Auction
(oldandsold.com), has been pulled from the site and the auction
suspended. The authentication of a possible Van Gogh would be
crucial to such a work's success at auction. Experts use
technical analysis to determine not only whether the painting is
of the period its owner asserts, but also, more importantly,
whether it is the work of the artist himself. Representatives of
OldAndSold.com declined to comment on the action.
And speaking of Van Gogh, the "Van Gogh: Face to Face"
exhibit at the Detroit Institute of Arts, Michigan, made a
$92.7-million impact on the city's economy, according to
an economic impact study released September 21 to the Associated
Press. The study, which polled 600 people who attended the show,
was done by Southfield-based Yee Minard & Associates and
commissioned by the DIA and the Detroit Metro Convention and
Visitors Bureau. "Van Gogh is powerful proof that art and
economics are compatible," W. Frank Fountain, president of the
DaimlerChrysler Fund, told The Detroit News. The
DaimlerChrysler Fund sponsored of the exhibition, which cost $3.9
million to produce in Detroit. Museum director Graham W.J. Beal
said the 315,350 tickets sold for the exhibit, which ran March 12
to June 4, totaled $3.1 million and attracted visitors from 48
states and as far away as Russia and Japan. Museum shop sales
totaled $800,000 and $300,000 was made in food services. Museum
membership increased 20 percent for $750,000 in additional
revenue.
Resaleworld, Inc., a turnkey web-enabling inventory
management and POS system out of Minneapolis, Minn., has
partnered with Antiques & Collectibles Associations,
an umbrella organization representing the NAAM, ACDA, ACSPA, and
NAC. The partnership will allow antique mall and store owners to
sell items simultaneously in their stores and on multiple Web
sites; when an items sells online, it will automatically become
unavailable in-store.
Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, N.Y., has concluded its first
capital campaign in the history of the college, raising
$42,874,529 in less than four years, exceeding its goal by
over $800,000. The funds raised in the first phase will be used
to support "brick and mortar" projects, scholarships, and to
increase the endowment.
go2sell, an independent sales agent on the Internet based
in Chicago, Ill., will welcome several antiques and collectibles
authorities to its advisory board. The team includes
authors such as Harry L. Rinker, Nicholas Dawes, and Susan and
Al Bagdade - providing an "in-house" base of knowledge in a
broad spectrum of collecting fields.
The National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., has
launched a children's Web site, NGAkids, at www.nga.gov.
The site features stories, activities and information on gallery
collections.
