after two years in the making we are getting ready to launch auctionthing at http://auctionthing.net.
the idea came to me more than two years ago when i wanted to buy an armleder print in berlin, but didn't have the necessary cash to do so. i did have this armleder multiple sitting in my place in nyc https://auctionthing.net/109/John-M-Armleder--Caprice, but i had no idea how i could sell the bowling ball and get the print instead. so i thought, why not create some liquidity for this market? we all have prints, multiples, photographs and stuff sitting around, but they are really hard to sell when you want to. auctionthing is here to solve this problem. don't get me wrong, i love my collection, but sometimes you just want to consolidate, get something new or just make room in your apartment.
at THE THING we pioneered online art auctions. the first one occurred in 1999 http://auction99.thing.net and actually some pieces that didn't sell back then made their way back into the new iteration. the difference is that the new site will stay open for business all year round, and you can become a seller too. if you are interested send me an email or request an invitation code on the site after you register there.
we are also looking for people who want to offer their whole collection or curators who want to put a show together under its own heading. art spaces can talk to us about setting up their online benefit auctions, we just did one for whitebox earlier this month.
auctionthing charges a 10% commission from the seller after a transaction has taken place. there are no membership fees, no placement fees and no buyer premiums. at least not at this time.
ten to twenty percent of the proceeds from the commissions will go towards funding independent art and media projects, things like THE THING @ WHITE SLAB PALACE tonight: http://post.thing.net/node/3271
what you can do is to spread the word among other art junkies and help generate some buzz for this project. this is just the beginning of THE THING RELOADED. more soon...
wolfgang