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How To Sell Multimillion-Dollar Art At Christie's - YouTube
Channel: Business Insider
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John Hays: Who will give me
$275, $275, 80, say 80, 80, 80,
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$280, 280, now say now 290, 290, 290.
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Narrator: This is John Hays,
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an auctioneer of nearly four decades.
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Hays: Now $320, 320, 350, 380, 400,
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and 400 is that all?
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And sold American. That's
a tobacco auctioneer.
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Narrator: John works for Christie's.
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Founded in London in 1766, it's the
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largest auction house in the world
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and now has offices in
46 different countries.
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But in John's posh world of art dealings,
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selling to the highest bidder
sounds a bit different.
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Hays: An art auctioneer may say, 240, sir,
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thank you, sir, $240, 260, $260,
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at 200, 280, thank you,
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$280, and 300, thank you,
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$300, is that all?
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Selling then for $300, for $300, sold.
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Two very different approaches.
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Narrator: John has worked more than
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500 auctions in his 36-year career,
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bringing in about $1 billion in sales.
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He's one of 56 auctioneers
working worldwide for Christie's.
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Together in 2018, they racked in
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$7 billion in sales.
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Some of the priciest sales
have included a Harry Winston
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Pink Legacy ring that
sold for $50.3 million,
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Picasso's "Fillette 脿
la corbeille fleurie"
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for $115 million,
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and in November 2017, Leonardo
da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi"
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sold for a record $450 million with fees.
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Auctioneer: $400 million is the bid,
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and the piece is sold.
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Narrator: But auctioneers
at Christie's aren't just
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smooth talkers. They're
art experts, sales people,
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and performers, landing
multimillion-dollar bids
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with only a gavel and their voice.
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Hays: You're in a theater.
You have to be able to
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keep people interested. You
have to keep people amused.
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You have to be serious in your purpose.
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The art of auctioneering is probably
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the least understood and maybe perhaps,
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after the art itself, is the most
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important factor in what
happens at Christie's.
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Narrator: Becoming a Christie's
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auctioneer is highly competitive.
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Every two years, Christie's
holds an auctioneering school.
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Up to 40 applicants are accepted,
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but only two or three will move on
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to private instruction afterwards.
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Hays: I did the Christie's
program in London
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and got my master's
certificate there, and then
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I did every internship known
to man in the art world.
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I knocked on Christie's'
door 36 years ago,
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and they hired me in the American
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department in October of 1983.
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Narrator: Most auctioneers
have a background
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in art history and an area of expertise.
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John's is 18th-century American art.
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But since he sells everything from cars
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to jewelry to wine, he
has to do his homework
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before he ever gets up
on that auction block.
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We caught up with John at
Christie's in New York City
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before an auction of 18th-century
European decorative arts.
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Hays: We're in Christie's' warehouse
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looking at a Roman micromosaic table.
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This object is one of the
exciting pieces that's coming up.
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Micromosaic tables are a thrill to me.
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I like to call them Roman holidays
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because here you see
depictions of ancient Rome.
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The estimate is $50 to $80,000 dollars.
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Narrator: The weeks
leading up to an auction,
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John will visit the Christie's warehouse
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to become familiar with each piece.
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Hays: You want to have some
understanding of the material.
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You want to be able to
know who the artists are.
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You certainly want to be able
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to pronounce the names correctly.
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Narrator: While John's
doing his prep work,
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all the art is photographed
and then set up in the gallery
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for prospective buyers to
come check out the goods.
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Then on the morning of the
auction, John comes here
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to the bids office to go
over the auctioneer's book.
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This is essentially his
bible of auction secrets.
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It tells him a couple things: who has
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already put in bids for Christie's,
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the estimated sale price for each item,
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if the seller has set a minimum
sale price or reserve price,
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who will be bidding on
the phone or in person,
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and the general interest in each lot.
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But even with all this preparation,
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when John steps out on that podium
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in a Christie's-approved colorful bow tie,
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anything can happen.
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Hays: An auctioneer puts
himself or herself out there
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in a way that's very public.
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It's not for everybody because
if something goes wrong,
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you have to have the
coolness of a airplane pilot,
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you have to have the humor
of a standup comedian,
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you also have to be serious, and
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this is serious stuff for many people
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who are depending upon the auctioneer
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to deliver a very high-level,
a high-quality sale.
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Narrator: First, a lot is introduced.
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Hays: Right along to lot
55, ladies and gentlemen.
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Narrator: A lot is an item or a group
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of items that are up for auction.
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Each lot has a number.
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John will read off that number
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and give a brief summary of the items.
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Hays: 55, the early George
III giltwood mirror.
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Narrator: Then the first
bid gets the ball rolling.
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Sometimes it's on the auctioneer's book
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from an absentee bidder.
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Hays: And we can start
the bidding here anywhere,
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$10,000, bid at $10,000.
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Narrator: John states the price to beat,
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who's holding the bid, and the price
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needed to steal the auction item.
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Hays: For 10,000, 11,000, 12,000, $13,000,
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at $13,000, in at 13.
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Narrator: Typically, the
price increments go up by 10%,
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but it's up to John to alter those
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depending on energy in the room.
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Bids come in over the phone, online,
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or, of course, by paddles peeking up
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from the crowd in the sale room.
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Sometimes this process takes hours,
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and John says that a
good auctioneer's voice
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falls into a cadence.
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Hays: At 16,000 on the phone
now, 16, coming in 17,000,
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at the back of the room at
$17,000, 18,000 back to India.
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Narrator: A speaking rhythm that
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comfortably carries
through the entire auction.
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It's on each auctioneer to develop
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their style and learn
to find their pacing.
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Hays: Christie's does
have a very unique style.
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We're selling works of art. It's perhaps
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a little bit pompous from time to time,
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but down deep it's the same process
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as auctioneering cows at
a farm or thoroughbreds.
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The nature of different auctions
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has acquired a different criteria
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of what the audience expects.
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So tobacco salesmen who will break into
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"and now we've got the third
lot, and it's the tobacco,
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and here we are ladies and
gentlemen, it's the farm,"
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you know, and you see
that chant going through.
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If they heard a Christie's art auctioneer,
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I think the audience would be shocked.
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Sometimes I'll break into a farm auction
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just for the fun of it in an audience
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here in New York. It
always is good for a laugh.
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Narrator: Whether it's a
room full of tough Texans
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or New York's art elite,
John's goal is to ethically
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bring in the highest possible price.
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So how does he nab those sky-high bids?
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Hays: It's also knowing
when to fold your tent
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and to drop the hammer,
so there's two issues.
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If you hang in there,
and you hang in there,
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and you hang in there, and you wait,
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you'll loose your audience,
and they'll get angry.
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So it's being able to, at the
right time, on the right lots,
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with the right collectors,
and the right audience,
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being able to go a few more bids,
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and in this world with
million-dollar lots,
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one bid could be another $100,000.
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So I think one wants to achieve
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the highest price but not overdo it.
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OK, I'm out.
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Narrator: For an hour and a half,
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John masterfully guides
the vibe of the saleroom.
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His gestures command attention.
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His moments of silence
hold the room in suspense.
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His shooting eye contact
singles out the newest bidder.
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But just as easily, he
can flip the energy,
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joking with the audience and
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addressing phone operators by name.
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Then when the moment feels right,
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a swift pound of the gavel
rips through the space...
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Hays: Sold.
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Narrator: Closing the sale.
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Just as quickly as it began,
the auction is finished:
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214 lots down,
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185 items sold,
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$3.3 million in sales.
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