Can Old Masters be Sold on the Internet? by Raichel le Goff

International

Can Old Masters be Sold on the Internet?

Framed, Diana D. Brooks, Sothebys CEO with Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos

In a press release dated June 16th 1999 Sothebys the world's most famous auctionhouse announced that despite a recent merger with Amazon.com's auction site "Sotheby's will continue its www.sothebys.com site, which will begin offering traditional fine and decorative art, jewelry and books online this fall". It is understood that "fine art" includes old master paintings. They claim that "More than 2,800 of the finest dealers from around the world have already signed up for www.sothebys.com." In a statement released July 27th, 1999 they confirm that "a large group of Old Master paintings dealers" will be selling their stock through Sotheby's online system "come this fall". Yet here we are in the "fall" and still no online auction in the "fine" category has been announced. Perhaps there are technical hitches with their IT department.

Amazingly, although Sothebys do not guarantee authenticity of the works of art they sell in their normal sales (quote : "any statement as to authorship, attribution, origin, date, age, provenance and condition is a statement of opinion and is not to be taken as a statement of fact.") they claim they will be doing so for their online auctions to be held through Amazon.com.

They do not even guarantee that the information they print in current catalogues relating to such vital details as provenance, documentation etc. is accurate. "Sotheby's is dependent on the seller for much of the relevant factual material pertaining to items offered for sale. Sotheby's cannot and does not undertake full due diligence on every item sold." They say the onus is on the buyer to do his own research and be satisfied prior to purchasing.
All this means that Sothebys will have to be extremely selective if they ever place old master paintings, drawings and prints on the internet for auction if they are going to stick to their promise of guaranteeing authenticity. Obviously the thing to do is to get around this authenticity problem by offering lots which are not attributed firmly to any particular artist. Works that fall into the "studio of, circle of, style of, manner of" and "after" classification leave Sotheby's with nothing to prove.

The internet seems a logical place to offload those "B" grade old master paintings that are sold in regional branches like Sussex where no seasoned collector or dealer would expect the auctionhouse to guarantee authenticity on any lot. It is understood by everyone who bids at auction that when you buy a painting categorised as "follower of Rubens" or even "studio of Rubens" that you are not buying a Rubens. Quality is lower, but prices are much lower and yet you can still wind up with a very attractive painting 100-500 years old. Interior decorators know this and often scour the "B" grade auctions for paintings that may be copies or are by completely unknown artists but that still look amazing. Some even buy terrible paintings for the beautiful period frames that surround them. The internet buyer is after a bargain. There is more chance a buyer new to old masters, as most internet buyers are sure to be, will bid on a copy of Rubens for $1,000 than surf for the real thing at $1 million.

Typical of the type of paintings that can escape the "authenticity" problem and might do well on the internet.

After Giovanni Antonio Canal, called Canaletto Venice, a View of the Grand Canal, oil on canvas, 25.5 x 45.6cm, A 19th century copy after Canaletto's original of circa 1730 in the Royal Collection, Windsor. Auction estimate £1,500-2,000 (Sotheby's, London 7/7/99 lot 576)

Sothebys originated in London in 1744 and is still largely thought of as a British company. It did not acquire Parke-Bernet, effectively launching Sotheby's in America until 1964. That the current CEO is American is obvious by the choice of "Baseball Memorabilia" for their debut on the internet (and from the publicity photograph at top). For an auctionhouse that is synonymous with the image of a gracious world furnished with rare antiques and old master paintings typified by legendary auctions such as the Grand Ducal Collections of the Margrave of Baden Baden and the Princely Collections of the Thurn und Taxis Family, it is a sad note that it will be remembered in the new cyber world of the 21st century as a seller of Baseball cards. That Sotheby's are anxious to continue being associated with the world of Old Masters seems evident by their choice of an antique frame for the publicity photograph above. In current terms, it would have been more appropriate had they donned baseball caps.
Would it not have been braver, more stylish if Sothebys launched internet auctions with Old Masters? They may have met with success proving the enduring attraction of history and art.

Report by Rachel Le Goff

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