Does anyone really buy the artwork??

[persephoneo]

I partook of too much cheap bubbly at a Park West art auction and ended up buying three paintings. It was the thrill of being at my first auction, sadly they are still in their shipping tube years later. I don't even know what the paintings look like any more! I should go take a look and get them framed or something.

 

It was a fun day though! ;)

[Nic6318]

I don't know if they still do ( I haven't been for quite a few years now ) but they used to give out some small prints if you attended their talks.

 

Some of them were quite nice so I matted and framed them myself with inexpensive supplies. I still have 3 hanging and have given some as presents if someone expressed an interest.

 

I agree that if you buy anything of value on a vacation you better be aware of real value. There is a big difference between buying a few souvenirs and spending many thousands in a moment of weakness just because you are having a good time and you like shopping. But, it's your money, if you can afford it and it makes you happy...enjoy.

[Velvetwater]

We found it was much busier when we went past on our North American cruise than our European one (both on same ship and same amount of days).

 

I thought both times that the art was a little dated for my tastes, the kind of stuff that sits in a hotel lobby and gathers dust but maybe they have better things on other sailings or on land? Or may be European tastes are different which is why the above was true.

 

I can pick up a stunning independent work on canvas for under £100 in London.

[pauleydm]

I have gone to the Park West art auction on every cruise. I have never purchased anything because the only pieces I would be interested in are the originals which are in the $5000-$15000 range. I do find them entertaining to see people spend good money on reproductions and serigraphs, which in my opinion, is a waste of money. The other thing that is disappointing to me is that the starting auction price for most of the works offered is the full reserve price. To me, that is not an auction.

[DavyJoneses]

Yeah I've seen many people buy it. We did 15 years ago on our first cruise... Not a bad deal then, but couldn't find a good deal today. The champagne also used to be free flowing and now it's one half glass. (Hmm maybe that's why I thought I was getting a good deal! [emoji16])

We even won the "free grand prize" in December by guessing the correct price of a Peter Max painting... Two "free" prints for the mere low shipping cost of $45 each.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Yes...the free prints are a real deal!:D

[ASchaff]

Lol I just bought a Thomas Kincaid on a Disney cruise- not as an investment but because it is a really pretty Little Mermaid print I had been eyeing for years that goes perfectly in our home. It is not fine art but it works for us. It was the same price as it is where we live, but with the high tax rate in our county we came out a little ahead.

 

Im a sucker for Thomas Kincaid Little Mermaid. I have the puzzles, which I have preserved, rather than prints. Which one did you get?

[maldenmusic]

Never and have never been interested. Most of the art isn't the type I enjoy.

[Aplmac]

We even won the "free grand prize" in December

by guessing the correct price of a Peter Max painting...

Two "free" prints for the mere low shipping cost of $45 each.

They make a fair chunk of their profit margin from outrageous shipping "costs"!

 

Been there, they tried that, I cancelled the sale when I heard the ridiculous shipping involved.

 

.

[CanWeGoYet?]

Might see a few pieces a cruise (just walking by the gallery / hallway) that seem nice enough. More that are to me completely hideous. Nothing I would consider trying to buy on a cruise.

As others have posted, someone must be buying because they have been in business a long time. A surgeon I visited a few times has his waiting rooms filled with paintings of those tall thin ladies - I know I have seen these & similar at Park West. He can definitely afford it. I do wonder if he intended to buy so many pieces to decorate his large office - or if he cleared it all out of his home after getting tired of them.

[samoan_bulldozer]

They make a fair chunk of their profit margin from outrageous shipping "costs"!

 

Been there, they tried that, I cancelled the sale when I heard the ridiculous shipping involved.

 

.

 

I have bought from Park West. Some of the descriptions in this thread are incorrect.

 

Shipping is $45/tube for up to six pieces.

 

Complete framed pieces have shipping included.

 

This is all clearly explained prior to auction and on the bid card.

[samoan_bulldozer]

If willing to pay four or five figures for the art, invest four or five minutes into onboard internet service.

 

Some items have value, others do not.

 

I have noticed the auction prices are somewhat fair. It's their appraised values that I take issue with.

 

Also - the price of their framing (very high quality) outweighs many of their pieces actual value.

[mzloolue]

I would not mind if they presented the art as decorative items, but they are pushing that supposed investment value.

 

If it makes you happy to look at it and you understand that it probably has little resale value, then have fun.

It should be fun.

 

I go to a lot of estate sales.

Art does not sell well.

 

I have bought, for example, a print that originally sold for two hundred dollars in a custom frame that was at least a hundred dollars and probably more, for six dollars.

 

So someone spent three hundred plus on this and it was sitting there marked six dollars and there was still no interest.

 

I have bought watercolors with the gallery tag on the back of the frame for a dollar.

 

If you are going to spend money on art, then make sure you love it or you have money to throw away.

[Rottweiler Puppy]

Ok so just getting off my 9th cruise and here's the big question I generated on this one:

Does anyone really buy the Park West art?

 

They put out so many flyers on it and frankly it is the one thing on a cruise that I have absolute 0 interest in and can't fathom anyone being excited to buy the art on a cruise.

 

Anyone?

 

I have a coworker who almost cruises for them lol. He always buys the crappy art. Not the good stuff but the headache inducing bad acid trip flashback stuff.

Edited May 10, 2015 by Rottweiler Puppy

[watermelonqueen99]

LOL, I've wondered the same thing!

[Barbluvstocruz]

We've bought several pieces of art work on our cruises. We enjoy going to the auctions, if we see something we like for a price we are willing to pay we buy it. When I'm at home we never have the time to go to auctions or look for art. Our house is filled with artwork we've bought. It makes me happy to look at.

 

It's like so many other things....if you like it, have the money and are willing to spend it...go ahead. If not...don't. It's all about what makes you happy!

:)

Barb

[elliair]

Ok so just getting off my 9th cruise and here's the big question I generated on this one:

Does anyone really buy the Park West art?

 

They put out so many flyers on it and frankly it is the one thing on a cruise that I have absolute 0 interest in and can't fathom anyone being excited to buy the art on a cruise.

 

Anyone?

 

My sister and her husband traveled with us on their first cruise. He's an artist himself, he draws Disney characters and is actually pretty good. Well on this particular cruise they went crazy with the Disney cartoon characters and spent several thousand dollars buying up Disney art work. IMHO, I thought they were crazy. I didn't say anything because my sister had breast cancer and I figure if it made her happy why ruin it for her and her family. As for us, we've never seen anything that appealed to us, and the flyers and announcements for free champagne just never sounded kosher to us. My sister has since passed on, but every time we cruise and they start the art auction hype, I think of her.

[LuckyZ]

I just don't get a place where you can participate in a hairy chest contest at 2pm, and then attend a champagne art sale at 4pm.

 

What a whacky ship

[elliair]

I just don't get a place where you can participate in a hairy chest contest at 2pm, and then attend a champagne art sale at 4pm.

 

What a whacky ship

 

I guess if there's free booze involved, people will do anything for it. I don't care for champagne.

[IPlayWithString]

Me neither...and yet we've got 4 bottles we got FOR FREE sitting in our fridge at the moment......

[PlayTheAces]

No, everything I've seen has either been misrepresented as to what it really is or priced just plain stupid.

 

But I keep ignoring all these emails I get from various Liberian politicians, businessmen and princes too. I probably just don't recognize a great opportunity when it's presented to me.

[MKDGDC]

We tried to buy a signed Sandy Koufax photo for $2500.00. Told us we would have it in 8 weeks. It never arrived. We ended up going on another cruise and got the contact info for Park West. They told us it was damaged and they could not replace it. I figured they found someone who ended up paying more.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Drazil65]

Just saw, on American Greed last Friday night, an episode about an art dealing company that used to sell to Princess cruises back a while ago (they mentioned there were a couple of other cruise lines as well). These people were doing a bang up business on TV and on the cruise lines, all fake, big fraud etc.

 

People were convinced they were getting original signatures on these prints/cells/lithographs and everything was reproduced/copied, no originals. Issued certificates of authenticity, the whole works.

 

In a million years I would not buy art (especially supposedly signed art) from a TV show/auction or a cruise ship (really???), I just don't get it.

[EnTnSA]

My wife and MIL had a bad run in with Park West, a few cruises ago. They got suckered into buying some prints for a fair price. When they went to sign the paper work, they got hard sold on all the insurance, shipping, framing, etc. It turned some 100 dollar "posters" into 600 - 800 dollar pieces of faux art.

 

She politely declined and got the closer, politely declined and they got rude. That's when i stepped in and said we were done, and they said we couldnt back out. I got into it with them, and the manager came out. We had it out a bit (as gentlemanly as I could) and he got rude with me. It ended up with him tearing up the bill of sale and throwing it on the floor, making a scene in front of all the folks there. We said thank you very much, have a great evening, and left for dinner.

 

I complained to guest services that evening, and then sent Carnival a letter when we returned. Was by far the worst customer service type experience I have ever had. I never got a reply from Carnival, but we have declined the auctions ever since.

[Jenhem31]

Somebody brought a Park West Picasso lithograph into the shop on Pawn Stars once. They had their expert come and appraise it. He said it was technically not a fake but was a copy made form some plates that Park West had acquired and pressed out thousands of copies. It appraised for something like $50. The Pawn Shop wouldn't buy it.

 

 

 

If you buy cruise ship art you had better know what you're doing. There's a million ways for them to press the envelope on the definition of "original".

 

 

It was actually appraised for 2k. They had paid 9k for it but at the height of the art boom. They sold it to the shop for $1500. I do agree the art on the ships is a rip off.

[Jay Sam]

Never purchased any art on a ship. Never been to one of the auctions. The free drink is not enough incentive. I do like to look at the art in the hallway and public areas. Some is great and some is a wreck.