Paul Mills of AntiquarianAuctions.com interviewed by Art Times

This interview was taken from the May, 2015 issue of Art Times.

Art Times: You are an antiquarian bookseller and auctioneer. What does "antiquarian" actually mean?

Strictly speaking "antiquarian" refers to anything pertaining to the study of antiquities or ancient artefacts but also to someone who studies and collects such objects. In the world of old books it has become the generic term for those who collect or deal in rare books as well related paper material such as maps, letters, documents, ephemera and vintage photographs. As a specialist auction platform for such material we provide a service and expertise to collectors, dealers and librarians world-wide.

Art Times: What lead you to develop the auction site 11 years ago?

I have been an antiquarian bookseller for over 30 years and besides running the auction platform, I also own Clarke’s Africana & Rare Books.

The site was initially developed out of the realisation that online trading would become both an important channel for the international rare book trade and a very convenient way for collectors to buy.

From the mid-1990’s it became evident that the internet would fundamentally change the antiquarian book trade. Our response in 2004 was to start an online rare book auction site. Over the past eleven years we have run 110 successful auctions attracting buyers from all over the world.

We were one of the first adopters of the new technology in our trade.

Five years ago we launched the site under the name www.AntiquarianAuctions.com and have run online auctions since then every 5 weeks.

Art Times: What role do you think online trading and auctioneering will play in the nearer future?

We can look back at 10 years of online auctioneering and we can see an increase in stock and value of the material that has been sold online.
The European Fine Art Fair (TEFAF) commissions each year an Art Market Report. The 2014 report states that the international arts trade has seen significant growth in its online sector in the past 5 years. Online auctions worldwide have been highly effective in attracting new, globally diverse buyers. It is estimated that online sales in the art market could grow at a rate of at least 25% per annum.

As a result you find a lot of Internet start-ups now trying to build a business online but it takes time to build trust and a relationship with the client. We are not an anonymous platform like some generic auction platforms. We can now offer an expertise in terms of stock but also in running online auctions for over 10 years. We are constantly in touch with our clients, we give advice and we assist with the bidding process which can be daunting when doing for the first time. Customer Support is very important even though we run an online business.

Art Times: Why would someone want to buy art or rare books online and how do you ensure the quality?

Looking at our own statistics, in the last 5 years we sold to bidders from 36 countries. Our site has evolved from a largely South African clientele to an average of 65% international registered bidders in 2014.

Buying at auction online allows you to bid from anywhere in the world. You can bid from the convenience of your own home or office and don’t need to attend an actual auction. But as the auctioneer we must ensure that all lots are vetted and catalogued correctly. Over the years we have built valuable relationships with our clients and our sellers who trust us and our expertise.

I must emphasize that all our sellers are vetted by our experienced team and all lots must be catalogued and described accurately.
All sellers must ensure to send condition reports and photographs if it is required by a prospective buyer before the auction.
We aim to always maintain a high standard of content on the site with the support of a network of experts in the trade.

Art Times: Finally, could you give us some examples of some interesting sales in the past and maybe an outlook to the next auctions?

Being based and operating from South Africa we always offer very interesting Africana material but with our growing number of international bookdealers uploading material we sell stock of international interest in the fields of Travel, Botanical art, Prints, maps or photography. We have just started to sell important contemporary South African prints and also sell a variety of art and art reference books. The paintings of Irma Stern are currently fetching high prices but so are her books. We recently sold fine presentation copy of Congo, published in an edition of 300 copies, for R250,000. Works of art reference are in demand, for example, Dalene Marais’ Maggie Laubser, Her Paintings, Drawings and Graphics is being offered in our current auction and is likely to fetch over R30,000. Our sellers, the booksellers, from other countries offer a wide variety of books such Thomas Gage’s The English America, His Travail by Sea and Land…, published in 1648 which is being offered with an estimate of R40,000. This is being by a dealer in St Paul, Minnesota.