Art Auction

At the Eastercon there is an Art Show, which is a place for artists (amateur and professional) to display artwork, some of which may be for sale.

The usual method of selling art from the art show is by auction.

Written bids in the art show
Next to each piece of art in the art show is a bid sheet, which lists the title, the artist and usually the medium (e.g. oils, computer print, clay model, stained glass etc.). If the bidsheet has "NFS" written on it, it means the item is Not For Sale. Otherwise there's usually a start price, and perhaps a "Buy it now" price.

Write your name, your badge number, and your bid amount on the first empty line. If someone wants to bid more they write their name, number and amount below you ... if the form fills up, then the artwork goes to the Art Auction Voice Auction. This can continue until the form is full, or until the Art Show closes, usually around midday Sunday (just after the Bid Session).

When the Art Show closes on Sunday, if the bid sheet hasn't filled up, then it is at the discretion of the Art Show organiser whether it automatically sells to the last written (highest written) bid, or whether it should go to the voice auction anyway.

Voice Auction
Each piece of art is displayed and the highest written bid is announced ... if no one bids any higher, then the item sells to that last bidder at their written bid price. If someone in the room wants to bid higher then the auctioneer will continue to coax out bids until the highest possible price is found, and then it sells to the winning bidder. The winning bidder is usually asked their name and their badge number, and those, along with the bid amount, are recorded by the Auction administrator/assistant for settling up afterwards. If there are no bids on the bid sheet, and no-one bids in the room, then the item does not sell and is returned to the artist.

Paying for your auction wins
Money is not collected during the auction but instead a time is announced (usually at least 30 minutes after the end of the Art Auction) for people to return to the Art Show room (or similar). If you have won the auction for one or more items, then when you arrive at that time/place you'll be told the total of your winning purchases, your money to be taken and you can collect your newly purchased artwork. Sometimes the convention provides bubblewrap and tape, sometimes it is entirely down to you to find packing material.

Unsold Art Show Items
If you are interested in buying an item that didn't sell in the auction, contact the artist directly and make them an offer.

Notes to Artists
The convention will usually charge you either a hanging fee or a percentage of your sales (e.g. 10%) towards convention expenses. Once all payments have been received at the end of the Art Auction, the organiser (or their bookkeeper) will usually issue you with a cheque or cash for the amount of your sales minus any percentage towards the con. You are also responsible for collecting and removing any unsold artwork.