Sorry for the bad English, it's just a draft: site & text still under construction.
What is the value of art?
Unlike a computer or used TV, pricing in art is extremely difficult, subjective and subject to chances.
Don't buy it if you can't afford it; art is a luxury.
Prices are a deal between the situation on the market and your personal taste.
Everybody has a different taste and a different estimation for what I offer.
Depending on what I buy, I'm not in a need to sell, and this site is frequented by so many different people that I find for most items
somebody ready to offer a good price.
Most works on this list doesn't belong to me; I'm simply offering them, for prices asked by their owners. (If they would offered it for an absolute bargain, it probably would have been taken by me, or gone without being listed here)
They usually have some knowledge about it's value, and more often simply tell me they have it, but they don't feel a special need to sell it; may they don't like it anymore, but contrary to many people hanging around on eBay, it is not that they scrambled together all their savings to afford one Giger print.
They may have their house full of much more expensive art, got their Giger item 20 years ago, but are not so rich that they don't care about earning some 1000's of $.
I know what galleries ask for art and the costs to run a gallery; so I don't mind to offer it here for people having sufficient cash.
I refuse to put it here if people ask an unrealistic price; on the other hand, if they have no idea about its value, I'm happy to do a good deal and to keep it for myself.
I don't say that you can't get it for a better price; it is just an offer.
There are definitively 2 markets: one at eBay, and one at real art galleries.
It is a very different kind of people frequenting this markets; most Giger related items on eBay are his books and posters for around 20 $, for kids or college students.
People having time to hang around eBay have usually less money, the more time they have for eBay.
They usually can' afford much more than 300$
They usually also don't expect much more than this amount when selling.
Also, there are people who got their Giger prints as a gift, or at a car boot sale, or at eBay.
So, specially for the newer items, which are still for sale at the official pages, you have a change to get a print for less than what I ask; this is why I usually don't offer what can still be bought at Giger's own sites. (Beside the fact that I respect and don't want to compete with Giger)
But I'm in touch with both kinds of markets; so I would be a fool offering it for nothing.
I pay 15 $ for the cardboard tubes and another 10 $ for the plastic wrappers; Shipping in 6 day is 50$, next day ups is 120-150$
I simply don't have time to pack and ship a poster for which I can get 20$
I'm not a college kid, nor a specialised eBay mass seller.
So each deal for less than 200$ is wasting time for me.
Sometimes I've seen some of the 4 Dutch posters for less than 30$ each, unsigned, at eBay.
If you wait long enough, you probably run across on of them; but I've also seen them framed,
but unsigned in gallery's for 300$.
This is why I ask 200$ for them (not to mention that they are signed)
Same about Cataract:
I've sold this print already several times: in a price range from 600$, 700$, 1200$, 1250$
As I know, Galleries used to ask 750$; this is why I ask the same; and I don't get it usually much cheaper. I got one for less, so I offered it with a lower reserve price; the other was for a friend.
finally, as I'm a in the first line a collector myself, I don't say that I never made a good deal, and got a print for a price much under it's value, but then there is a very large likelihood that it will be part of my collection; the less I pay for an item, the easier it is for me too keep it.
This is another reason I maintain this site and why I help to sell other people's prints: to get the best deals for me; but I'm living very close to the source, and I spend a good deal of time for it; so see no injustice in getting sometimes a better price.
May some people wonder how I managed to get such a large collection.
As mentioned, I often getting my share when arranging a deal in form of some print;
More important, being a collector and knowing people very close to Giger, I got some art with
the condition to keep it for me; so I got several very rare prints for very little money from
Li's brother; but I promised him not to resell them.
Same for the Biomechanics Portfolio: I own it completely in its original black box; but again,
I only got it under the condition of keeping it for me.
(The previous owner kept it for over 30 years, now he gave it away, being confident that it is at the right place)
I know most people reading this lines, can't afford the asked prices; I'm sorry about, I had myself for a long time the same problem, but I can't change it.
Still I can assure anybody that Giger is still much under valuated.
And I know too that a large Airbrush painting offered on the net has been sold; see yourself what price was asked for it.
Again, you can sometimes get prints at eBay for a better price than at official sites or at mine;
But the longer you are collecting, the better you know the limited offer in the low price range.
There are still some collectors like me, regularly checking at eBay, disposing of a higher budget.
But we are all for away from art collectors which my pass by a gallery and easily take out 20'000 $
of their pockets; If some of the 30 years old prints I'm offering would be for sale in a
specialized art gallery, imagine yourself what kind of prices would be asked there.
But most people nowadays have more money than time, especially people which are able to afford to play on the art market. I spend a considerable amount of time for my hobby; (I don't want to know the "value" of my collection if I would account the time I spent for it)
So I would be a fool to sell the items I have twice under their value.
Why aim I doing this:
I'm for the moment the most active collector in Switzerland, and I try (I think I managed quite well) to be some kind of Giger art collectors platform.
Most "senior" collectors don't need to spend their time to hang around on the net; they are collecting since many years, owning some of Giger's best work, and aren't very active any more.
I'm some kind of newcomer; I'm only since a few years able to buy real art.
As I'm already a quite specialised collector, offering mostly rare, near mint, over 20 years old Giger art, my offer isn't probably very interesting for people with a very low budget; or beginners.
Still, if you check the official sites or ever visited an art gallery,
You see yourself that my prices aren't so high. I'm collecting since many years,
And I prefer to keep a good relation with other collectors and to sell for reasonable prices.
To encourage everyone thinking about starting his own Giger collection:
I too began with his posters and books and disc covers ;
And I always try to have something for the little budget on my list.