Modern and Contemporary Art

Conditions of sale for Auctions The translation of these conditions of sale is provided for information only; the German original is the definitive version. Participation in the auction, which will be transmitted live on the internet implies unconditional acceptance of the following conditions of sale: 1. The auction is voluntary and takes place in the name and on the account of the consignor, with the exception of items put up for sale by the auctioneers themselves, which are specifically identified as such. 2. Bidders and buyers have no entitlement to find out the name of the consignor. 3. The auction is conducted in euros. Starting prices are set by the auctioneer. Bids will normally be raised by increments of between 5 and 10%. 4. Objects to be auctioned may be viewed and inspected prior to the auction. They are, without exception, used and of some age. The actual condition of the objects – corresponding to their age and used state – is expressly never described either in the catalogue or on the Internet, but is agreed specification (German Civil Code Section 434 para. 1, sent. 1). Objects are sold “as is”. Coloured reproductions in the catalogue do not necessarily faithfully represent the true colour of the objects. All descriptions in the catalogue, including those pertaining to geographical provenance of items, have been made with due care and in good faith for informational purposes only. They do not constitute any agreement on the condition of goods and do not give rise to any guarantees in the legal sense. This applies even when objects are highlighted in the catalogue either visually or by other means and/or given special prominence beyond the catalogue for advertising or similar purposes. The only information in the catalogue deemed to be agreed specification is that concerning authorship‚ signature, material, restoration and provenance: on no account does the auctioneer assume any special guarantee regarding condition that gives rise to additional rights on the part of the buyer. The agreement concerning authorship‚ signature, material, restoration and provenance does not form the basis of any liability going beyond that laid down by statute (cf. German Civil Code, Section 276 para. 1, Sections 443 and 477). The auction house cannot be held liable for malfunction or non-function of electrical devices. Condition reports can be sent to interested parties on demand. They serve only to give a better idea of the object’s external appearance, based on the auctioneer’s assessment. If the buyer can prove to the auctioneer before expiration of the period of limitation, said period running – except in cases of legal infringement with wilful intent – from the date of transfer of the knocked down object and lasting for a year, that information in the catalogue regarding authorship, signature, material, restoration and provenance is incorrect, the buyer is entitled to claim a refund of the total purchase price (hammer price plus premium, value-added tax, and a proportion of artist resale rights) in exchange for the reciprocal and simultaneous return of the lot acquired. Alternatively, the successful bidder may choose a reduction of the purchase price. Claims for compensation made by the buyer based on material defects or any other legal grounds (including compensation for expenses incurred in vain) are excluded, unless they are based on intent or gross negligence or material breaches of contract on the part of the auctioneer or his vicarious agents. Liability for injury to life, limb or health is not affected. Under no circumstances does the auctioneer assume liability for unforeseeable or consequential damages. These principles apply correspondingly to breaches of duty by the auctioneer’s vicarious agents. 5. The auctioneer reserves the right to combine or separate lots listed in the catalogue, to offer lots outside the specified sequence, or to withdraw any lot from the auction. 6. The bid is awarded if, after three calls, no higher bid is made and the consignor’s reserve price has been reached. If this reserve price is not reached, the auctioneer may either reject the bid or knock down the lot under reserve; in this case, the bidder is held to his or her offer for the period of four weeks. If he or she does not receive unconditional acceptance of his or her offer within this period of time, the bid expires. The lot may be disposed of to a reserve bidder without further consultation. 7. The auctioneer is entitled to reject a bid: in this case, the bid immediately preceding remains the valid and binding offer. If several bidders submit identical bids, the lot will be sold to the person whose bid was received first. In cases of differences of opinion and any other doubts concerning the award, the auctioneer is entitled to re-offer the lot. The auctioneer is entitled to bid on the lot in the consignor’s interest up to the arranged reserve without indicating this to the public and regardless of whether other bids are made or not. If the reserve cannot be reached, the auctioneer has the right to knock down the item to the consignor, to protect the consigned object(s); in this case the unsold lot is “bought in”. 8. The award of the bid imposes the obligation to buy and pay. With the award of the bid, the risk of accidental loss, damage, mix-ups, etc. shall pass to the buyer. If the buyer, independently of the date of payment, does not collect the item within ten working days after the auction, he or she will be in default of acceptance. In this case, Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen will warehouse the item purchased by auction with a shipper, at the expense of the buyer. The auctioneer is not obliged to hand over any items before the buyer has paid in full all the amounts due and payable, neither to the buyer him or herself nor to any party commissioned by the buyer to carry out shipping. 9. The purchase price is made up of the hammer price, a premium of 23% and value-added tax, which is be levied on the hammer price and premium at the current applicable statutory rate (standard tax treatment). Alternatively, it comprises the hammer price plus a buyer’s premium of 29.5%, including statutory VAT that is not listed separately on the invoice (differential taxation). Unless otherwise indicated on the lots, the purchase price is, by default, subject to differential taxation; items subject to statutory value-added tax are specifically marked as such. Furthermore, the buyer is obliged to pay a proportion of the fees liable by the auctioneer to the Verwertungsgesellschaft Bild-Kunst [German association for reproduction rights in the visual arts] as compensation for the droit de suite (artist’s resale rights) (German Copyright Act, Section 26), in respect of all original works of fine art created after 1900 (with the exception of photographs, reproductions and serigraphs, and posthumous castings of sculptures), the sum payable being 1.5 % of the hammer price (plus VAT). 10. No value-added tax will be charged for objects that are to be shipped to countries outside the European Union (EU) or within the EU where the buyer is a company with a sales tax identification number. Value-added tax will be refunded to foreign customers upon receipt of proof of export. 11. As mistakes can easily be made in the bookkeeping department during and immediately after the auction, all invoices made out this time require particular scrutiny and possible correction. Errors excepted. Information given verbally without written confirmation is not binding. 12. The purchase or final price (hammer price plus premium plus value-added tax, as applicable, plus a pro-rata droit de suite charge) becomes due upon acceptance of the bid. Successful bidders taking part in the auction in person must pay the final price in euros in cash to Askan Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen München GmbH with immediate effect. If collection takes place at a later date, the bidder may also pay the invoiced amount by immediate bank transfer. 
Payments for bids accepted from bidders not present at the auction, i.e. in written form, by e-mail or on the phone become due within 10 days after the date of the invoice. Payment can be settled in cash, as an account-only cheque or via bank transfer. 13. If the buyer refuses to collect or pay or is in arrears with payment, the auctioneer has the right to demand either fulfilment of the sales contract or compensation due to non-fulfilment. The buyer is in arrears 10 days after the date of invoice. If the auctioneer demands fulfilment, he or she is entitled to the purchase price plus compensation for damage caused by delay. This includes any exchange rate losses, loss of interest and costs of legal action. If the auctioneer claims compensation due to non-fulfilment, he or she is entitled to re-auction the objects at some future point. Upon knockdown, the rights of the buyer arising from the previous award expire. The buyer is liable for any shortfall, has no claim to any surplus receipts and is not admitted to any further bidding. 14. Successfully auctioned objects shall be shipped only after cash payment has been effected. If payment is not received on time, the buyer is liable for any damage suffered as a result. Payment may not be deferred. In the case of payment arrears, interest is charged at the standard bank rate. The buyer reserves the right to prove minor damage. 15. The auctioneer is obliged to store all items for a period of eight working days from the date of the auction. Any objects that have not been claimed within this period may, after this period has been exceeded, be stored by the auctioneer with a shipping company in the name and for the account of the buyer, and at the buyer’s risk. The buyer can choose to collect the items purchased by auction him or herself, have them collected by a person so authorised in writing, engage a shipper of his or her own choice or authorise the auctioneer in writing to organise the transport of his or her purchase by a shipping company in the name and at the cost and risk of the buyer. In the latter case, the buyer authorises the auctioneer to pass on such data to the shipper as is required to carry out shipment and completion of the purchase. Upon delivery, commercial buyers have a duty to examine the goods immediately for damage and inform the shipper accordingly. Subsequent claims relating to non-concealed damage are precluded. 16. Visitors to our premises, especially in the case of viewings, shall be liable for all damage caused. 17. For customers who cannot participate personally in the auction, written orders are accepted and executed by the auctioneer in the interest of the customer. Orders must be placed at the latest at the close of viewing. In the case of written bids, interested parties authorize the auctioneer to submit bids on their behalf. If customers wish to participate bidding by phone, a member of staff present in the auction room will be assigned to take instructions from the phone bidder and make bids accordingly. Bids by phone or Internet during the auction must be registered and approved in advance with the auctioneer. The auction house does not guarantee the availability of phone or online services and cannot be held accountable for bids not transmitted or that are incomplete due to technical or other malfunction. 18. Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen GmbH stores the address supplied by the customer exclusively for purposes of transaction and execution of the orders placed, for further queries and customer support. The data, which are stored in Quittenbaum’s customer database, are handled in accordance with the statuary provisions (in particular, the Federal Data Protection Act). The customer may withdraw his or her consent at any time to the use of his or her personal data for marketing purposes by sending informal written notice to that effect by post to Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen GmbH, Theresienstrasse 60, D-80333 München, or by e-mail to info@quittenbaum.de. This right of withdrawal applies equally to the buyer’s consent to the future processing of his or her data after the purchase has been transacted. 19. The law of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply exclusively. 20. Insofar as this is legally permissible, Munich is agreed as the place of performance and the place of jurisdiction. 21. These terms and conditions of sale shall apply correspondingly in all cases of the 4-week post-auction sales of lots not knocked down at the auction. The post-auction sale is deemed part of the auction in which interested parties place an order, by phone or in writing, for a bid to be submitted for a particular sum. The provisions of Sections 312b–312d of the German Civil Code concerning distance contracts shall not apply in the above named cases. If one or more provisions of these terms and conditions of sale are or become invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions will not be affected. 22. If the terms and conditions of sale are available in several languages, the German version shall always prevail.