Unique Design and Positioning
ULTIMZ’s Exclusive Approach: ULTIMZ stands out by offering a distinctive and exceptional platform where potential buyers actively seek special and captivating items. Our dedicated in-house experts meticulously curate each piece featured in our auctions, ensuring that they meet the highest standards of quality and presentation.
Enhancing Excitement: This expert selection process fuels excitement among our bidders, enabling them to discover rare and unique treasures that resonate with their passions. Simultaneously, this commitment to excellence ensures our sellers enjoy outstanding selling experiences.
Diverse Auction Focus: ULTIMZ specializes in the auction of decorative and collectible posters, targeting items that are both hard to find and particularly appealing to enthusiastic collectors.
Forward-Thinking Approach: We maintain our dedication to progress and innovation, with a strong emphasis on premium offerings that capture the attention of discerning buyers. ULTIMZ’s monthly visitor base of over 10 million individuals provides invaluable insights into their interests and buying preferences.
Guidelines for Success: Within this comprehensive set of guidelines, we define the specific characteristics that bidders seek in our Poster auctions. We also provide detailed instructions on how to successfully present your posters for auction. Our team of seasoned experts and dedicated account managers is ready to offer support and guidance, ensuring your success on ULTIMZ.
Product Criteria: For our poster auctions, we seek a diverse array of posters from various periods and covering different subjects. To meet the rising standards of quality, posters submitted for auction should:
- Be in good condition, relative to their rarity.
- Be thoughtfully presented.
- Intrigue our bidders.
- Have a minimum estimated value of €75 per lot.
- Feature shipping costs proportional to the object’s value.
- Note that objects valued below €200 will not be accepted with a reserve price.
Desired Artists & Themes:
Artists
- Toulouse-Lautrec
- Alphonse Mucha
- Leonetto Cappiello
- A.M. Cassandre
- Jules Chéret
- Jean-Gabriel Domergue
- Villemot
- Savignac
- Lucio Fontana
- Christo
Themes
- Travel
- Winter sports
- Automobile
- Ocean Liner
- Liquors
Submission Guidelines:
When using our website to upload your objects, you’ll find fields that provide guidance on the information we require. The fields you complete ensure that the information is presented clearly and effectively for potential buyers. Required details include:
- Object
- Designer
- Poster Title
- Year
- Estimated Period (newest printing period)
- Subject
- Country
- Condition
- Size (an important indicator for spotting reproductions)
- Shipping: Shipping is mandatory for poster auctions, with posters to be shipped in a tube to prevent transport damage. Offering competitive shipping rates is crucial for attracting bids.
Effective Object Descriptions:
To encourage potential buyers to bid on your items, it’s essential to include a detailed description of your object(s). These descriptions should be thorough, honest, and follow these guidelines:
- Mention the condition.
- Include details about the manufacturer or artist and approximate age.
- Provide evidence to support claims of limited edition, uniqueness, or provenance.
- Maintain correct grammar with appropriate capitalization and punctuation.
Categories of Art Posters, Decorative Posters, and Vintage Posters:
Categorized as Art Posters:
- Exhibition posters that aren’t readily available from renowned artists like Picasso and Chagall.
- Mourlot editions and other high-quality editors.
- License posters from pop artists like Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, or Roy Lichtenstein.
- License posters from modern, contemporary, or Street Art artists.
- Vintage museum posters.
Not Accepted as Art Posters:
- Generally available museum posters.
- License posters.
- Unofficial exhibition posters from artists like Banksy or Mr. Brainwash.
Categorized as Decorative Posters:
- Original or licensed posters from artists such as Villemot, Savignac, Razzia, Bruna, etc.
- Advertising, Circus, Sport, and posters with strong design and decorative value.
- Original Pop, Icon, Music & Cinema, and Brand posters (e.g., Apple, Beatles, Marilyn, Elvis).
Not Accepted as Decorative Posters:
- Non-authorized reproductions.
- Posters with poor visuals.
- Text-focused posters.
Categorized as Vintage Posters:
- Original vintage posters created by renowned Poster Masters.
- Lithographic posters from the 1920s until the 1960s.
- High-quality posters (including reprints) from later periods.
- Advertisements by artists like R. Savignac, Bernard Villemot, Leonetto Cappiello, AM Cassandre.
- Travel posters from British Airways, Air France, Iberia, TWA from the 1920s and 1930s or from PLM (Paris Lyon Méditerranée).
- Art posters from Mourlot editions and vintage Art Posters from the 1920s and 1930s.
- Sport posters related to Olympics and the World Cup.
- Posters from International Exhibitions and Expos.
Not Accepted as Vintage Posters:
- Reproductions, especially recent ones.
- Generally available posters.
Items Not Accepted: The following items are not accepted in our poster auctions:
- Large edition posters with low demand.
- Text-only posters.
- Recent reproductions.
- Non-rare posters in poor condition.
- Nazi and Fascist memorabilia.
- Generally available posters.
- Compiled lots of unrelated, low-value posters.
Exceptions – Reproductions: Our poster auctions primarily feature original posters. In most cases, we do not accept reproductions, especially new or recent ones. However, exceptions include:
- Special editions from reputable institutions like museums.
- Official reprints by the original publisher (e.g., Martini posters from the 1970s published by Martini following the pre-war original design).
- Rééditions in lithographic technique (solid colors, no halftone dots) from the 1950s and early 1960s after well-known pre-war designers like Cassandre.
Exceptions – Large Edition Posters: Since posters were produced for utilitarian purposes, they were often manufactured in large editions. Some larger edition posters can still hold value exceeding €200. To maintain quality management, we implement these guidelines:
- Large edition posters with results below €50 in three consecutive auctions will no longer be accepted.
- Potential reconsideration may occur once demand stabilizes.
- The expert will decide when a poster can be reattempted.
- We will only accept 20% of these posters at a time.
- Our expert may request resubmission of your poster at a later time.
Condition Grades: Posters, originally intended for temporary advertising, often exhibit a range of conditions. Ideally, we seek posters in good to excellent condition, with exceptions made for special and rare items. Following the International Vintage Poster Dealers Association (IVPDA) grading system, posters are categorized from A to C:
- A: Excellent
- A-: Very good
- B+: Good
- B: Fair
- B-: Poor
- C: Very poor
Photography Guidelines: High-quality photographs play a pivotal role in attracting buyers who cannot physically inspect the items. To provide potential buyers with a comprehensive view, submit a minimum of five high-resolution images that showcase:
- Complete views of the front and back of the poster, including details, signatures, stamps, editions, watermarks (if applicable), and any damage or restoration.
- For paintings, include a photograph of the rear side.
- For prints, offer detailed images of numbering, editions, signatures, and watermarks.
- For sculptures, provide detailed images of the base, signature, numbering, and foundry marks.
- Maintain a neutral background for the photographs.
- Capture images in natural daylight or with professional lighting, avoiding flash or artificial lighting that may distort colors.
- Include additional images of documents supporting authenticity, provenance, and references from books or media articles related to the artwork or artist.
- Clearly show any blemishes, signs of wear, repairs, or restorations to prevent post-sale cancellations.
- Crop the primary image of the lot to exclude background, frame, or mounting.
- Ensure that the images are original photos and not copied from the internet.
- Refrain from including body parts in the photos, using white gloves for capturing details.
- Focus solely on the items intended for sale, avoiding room details (e.g., furniture, curtains), domestic settings, or outdoor photographs featuring landscapes.
- Avoid using digital mock-ups of the artwork in an interior setting, images edited in Photoshop, or filters.
Reserve Price Consideration: Lots without a reserve price tend to attract approximately 15% more bidders and generally result in higher selling prices. ULTIMZ is committed to helping you maximize your revenue, offering various resources such as selling guidelines, trend reports, and photography tips to enhance your success.
As a digital platform, we assist sellers in creating an exceptional buying experience by providing support and expert advice on best practices for presenting their items. We appreciate your participation in this exciting journey with ULTIMZ!