How Auctions Work

Yes. Bidding is tied to a shop.vossevents.com account so we can notify you when you are outbid and give you the checkout when you win. Create one from the account link in the header or during your first bid.

The lot page shows the current high bid and the minimum amount for the next bid. You can bid the minimum or any amount above it. Whole dollars are fine; there is no fee to bid. If you win, a 20% buyer's premium is added to your winning bid at checkout, so factor that in when deciding how high to go.

Yes. Enter the most you are willing to bid and the house bids on your behalf — only as much as needed to keep you in the lead and never above your maximum. Your maximum is a bid amount; if you win, the 20% buyer's premium is added on top. Other bidders see only the current high bid, not your ceiling. If someone passes your maximum you will be emailed so you can decide whether to go higher.

The close is extended. If a bid arrives in the final minutes, the closing time is pushed back so other bidders have a fair chance to respond. A lot does not close until bidding has actually stopped.

No. Bids are binding once placed, so check the amount before you confirm. If you have made a clear typing error (an extra zero, for example), contact us immediately with the lot title and we will look at it, but we cannot promise a retraction once other bidders have responded.

A confidential minimum set by the artist. The lot page tells you whether it has been met. If bidding closes below the reserve, the lot does not sell and no one is charged.

Where the artist has agreed to one, a lot shows a buy-it-now price. Paying it ends the auction on the spot and the piece is yours. If the button is showing on the lot page it is available right then; it is withdrawn once bidding reaches a level the artist has set, so if you want the piece outright, do not wait.

Yes, on any lot marked for international shipping. Prices are in US dollars. If you pay in another currency you will see a converted figure, but the winner is the highest bid in US dollars at the close.

You will get an email when the lot closes, and a checkout button appears on the lot page when you are signed in. Check your spam folder if you were the high bidder and have not heard from us within an hour of the close.

48 hours from the close. If payment is not received in that window the lot is offered to the next-highest bidder or relisted. Accounts that win and do not pay more than once will not be able to bid again.

Everything the shop normally accepts at checkout: Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover credit and debit cards, and Shop Pay.

Yes. A buyer's premium of 20% of the winning bid is added at checkout. For example, a winning bid of $500 comes to $600 before shipping and any applicable sales tax. There is no fee to bid, and the full total is shown at checkout before you confirm.

Where the law requires it, yes; it is calculated at checkout from your shipping address, exactly as for the rest of the shop.

Because it never passed through anyone else. Every lot comes to us from the artist or their management with a signed attestation of ownership and authenticity, which we keep on file. We produce the shows these pieces come from, so in most cases we can tie a piece to a date, a city and a stage. Lots that also carry a production-issued or third-party certificate say so on the listing, and that certificate ships with the piece.

A Voss Events certificate of authenticity naming the piece, the artist and the event it is tied to, plus any additional certificate mentioned on the listing. Where the artist has included something extra — a handwritten note, a photo from the night — the listing says so.

Plainly and in full. Stage wear, makeup transfer, repairs, missing stones, loose stitching — if we found it, it is written on the listing and photographed close up. We also record how many times the piece was worn or used and whether it has been cleaned since. Anything disclosed on the listing is part of the piece and is not grounds for a return.

Yes. Use the contact page with the lot title and what you would like to see. We will do our best while the auction is open; requests made in the final hours may not be answered before the close.

Signatures on our lots are applied by the artist as part of the consignment, not authenticated after the fact. The listing states where the piece is signed and in what, and reproduces any inscription exactly as it reads.

Within 10 business days of payment, and usually sooner. Pieces are held by the artist until the auction closes and then released to us, so an artist on tour can add a few days at the front of that window. We email tracking the moment it ships.

Tracked and insured for the winning amount. Full garments, framed pieces and props are packed to suit, and the shipping cost is quoted on the listing before you bid.

Lots marked for international shipping ship worldwide. Duties, import taxes and any customs handling fees are the buyer's responsibility and are collected by the carrier on delivery. We cannot mark auction lots as gifts or under-declare their value.

Photograph the packaging and the piece as they arrived and contact us within 48 hours of delivery. Every auction lot ships insured, and we will handle the claim with the carrier on your behalf.

Auction lots are final sale. Each piece is one of one and its condition is disclosed in full before bidding opens. The exception is a piece that arrives materially different from its listing — contact us and we will make it right.

Some artists direct part or all of a lot's proceeds to a charity. When they do, the listing names the organization and the share. Voss Events remits that share directly to the charity after payment clears. Bidding, payment and shipping work exactly as for any other lot.

Generally, no. You are buying a piece at a fair price, not making a donation, and we are not the charity. If deductibility matters to you, speak to a tax professional.

The Auction House is open to the artists Voss Events works with. Ask your management contact for the intake form: one form per item, with photos. We take it from there — listing, close, payment, certificate, shipping and your payout.

Not at the moment. The Auction House exists so that pieces come with a direct line to the artist, and that only works with artists we produce or manage. If that changes, this page will say so.