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This ceremony that is auction reminds me of the culture of lavish spectacle in 19th century France. The wealthy in the 19th century France went to the theatres not to see but to be seen, and the same seems to apply to the ritual of auction-going today. Thornton hints that people care considerable amount about what they wear to the auction (Thornton 16). As vain as these auctions have become, where they sit in the auction room is terribly important to the bidders because the location of their seats is a "mark of status and a point of pride" (Thornton 16). For buyers, buying is "winning" and the prize won acts as a testament to their wealth and status. For consultants and dealers, buying is an "advertisement for their services" (Thornton 26). There are understood rules in the auction room that are to be followed closely if one did not want to suffer from public embarrassment. This NY Times article spells out these rules: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/05/arts/design/05alle.html?pagewanted=all.
http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/vsh0341l.jpg
Another thing I learned is how big of a role an auctioneer plays in the game. Thornton's account of Christopher Burge was fascinating. I always saw this job as one of the most boring (to which he agrees) and unimportant because all that I ever saw auctioneers do was yell out numbers and banging their gavels. To my great surprise, Thornton reveals that the auctioneer has the "book" that contains all kinds of useful information like the seating chart of all bidders and their bidding behaviors (Thornton 4). I had no idea that the auctioneer knew so much about the bidders beforehand. Using the knowledge he has, an auctioneer can also influence the final price of an object being auctioned off. He is also responsible for picking up signs from the discreet bidders who bid with the slightest gestures (see cartoon). Christopher Burge's charming, lively disposition, direct eye contact, and calling bidders by their names, all of which can push the bidders to bid higher, can be shown in the YouTube video clip of the auction for Andy Warhol 's Soup Can with Can Opener.
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Andy Warhol. Men in Her Life. 1962.http://media.economist.com/images/images-magazine/2010/11/13/BK/20101113_BKP504.jpg
Andy Warhol. Soup Can with Can Opener. 1962.https://encrypted-tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS6CUfwb5BsG__-Izop6VV_Lpjl_6tvomwYckvdM1HoTnnu-k9t
Works Cited
"A Passion That Knows No Bounds." The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. 19 Nov. 2010. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. <http://www.economist.com/node/17551930>.
"Phillips De Pury & Co. to Launch Carte Blanche Auction at New Space on Park Avenue." Artdaily.org - The First Art Newspaper on the Net. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. <http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=41369>.
Thornton, Sarah. "Auction." Seven Days in the Art World. New York: W.W. Norton, 2008. 3-39.
Vogel, Carol. "Phillips De Pury Wants to Make a Big Splash." Rev. of The New York Times. The New York Times. 27 May 2010. Web. 10 Jan. 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/28/arts/design/28vogel.html>.