Cruise Ship Art Auctioneer: Not Your Average 9-to-5 Job
THE ART AUCTIONEERS representing Park West Gallery on cruise ships around the world certainly lead extraordinary lives. Though dedicated to their work and conducting Park West art auctions at sea, cruise auctioneers also get to have fun exploring the exotic locations they find themselves in – all while meeting fascinating people along the way. For more information or to apply for a cruise art auctioneer position, please visit www.artauctionsabroad.com
“Without question, one of the best career decisions I ever made was to work with Park West as an Art Auctioneer. I am an American and I was raised in Mission Viejo, California. When I was young I never got to travel further than Arizona. Everyone dreams of having that great jet-setting job traveling the world earning tons of money. When I finally decided to become an Art Auctioneer on a cruise ship I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I was scared because I knew very little about art; actually all I knew for sure was that this job was like nothing else I had ever encountered.
The training shoreside was intense, and the first four months on the job was a blur. As an Associate Art Auctioneer it was all about hard work and dedication, and you are constantly learning new things. Everything you do is preparation for the final phase: to become a Principal Art Auctioneer on your own cruise ship.
Needless to say, at some point pretty early on in the job I found myself typing away on Facebook on a Tuesday during a day off in port. One of my old friends was chatting with me while on a break in their cubicle at their 9-5 job. They asked me where I was, what I was doing, and what this new job was that I had gotten myself into.
I told them that I was on Cozumel Island in Mexico at a beach resort. I was lounging by a pool drinking cheap Coronas at No Name Bar (trust me, you will love it when you get there) after spending the morning SCUBA diving on some of the world’s best reefs. My new girlfriend from Sweden was sitting next to me and she was chatting with other shipboard friends from England and South Africa and Romania and Thailand. I was an art auctioneer / art dealer representing the world’s largest art dealer and I live and work on cruise ships all over the world.
My friend of course quickly replied “LOL – what are you really doing.” I think it was at that point that it hit me. I had found that dream job.
Working with Park West takes a lot of determination, hard work, creativity, people skills and a can do attitude. There are plenty of easy and fun days when the ship is in port and plenty of long hard days when the ship is at sea. The work is hard but the rewards are huge. This is not a 9-5 office job – you wake up in a new country every morning. You live for free on a luxury cruise line and have friends from all over the world. You have the opportunity and privilege to work with world class original artwork from some of the world’s greatest living artists and even some of art history’s greatest masters. The first time you ever pick up a 300+ year old Rembrandt your heart races; then it races even more when it sells to an excited client. You work with fun and happy guests who are on vacation and you can educate them and enrich their lives. You are part of a very strong team made up of top of their game outgoing go-getters who are wonderful to work with and call your friends.
Working with Park West is the best move I have ever made in my life, and I cannot wait to see what the next 5 years have in store for me, because somehow it just keeps getting better.”
Jason C. | Art Auctioneer
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
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