Auction Results

Below are the results from the auction. For those winners who have not paid or picked up their winning item(s), you have been/will be contacted with further instructions re. payment and pick-up by an auction volunteer.

ITEM # 1		BID $15		WINNER N.Z.
2		$15		A.M.
3		$35		K.H.
4		$10		C.O.
5		$10		I.Y.
6		$40		N.M.
7		$10		D.N.
11		$30		K.F.
13		$20		K.
14		$40		Z.A.
16		$40		L.G.
17		$30		J.S.
20		$15		R.D.
21		$40		N.W.
23		$40		N.M.
24		$25		J.B.
25		$20		L.H.
29		$15		R.
32		$90		N.P.
34		$10		E.K.
35		$15		R.P.
36		$150		B.A.
37		$200		P.B.
38		$15		N.
39		$15		L.M.
40		$20		J.B.
41		$20		C.L.
43		$10		N.C.
46		$80		C.O.
47		$25		B.A.
48		$25		H.B.
52		$25		E.E.
53		$15		T.T.
54		$20		L.L.
55		$20		M.S.
57		$8		L.M.
58		$8		L.M.
59		$10		M.S.
60		$40		A.L.
61		$10		L.C.
62		$10		R.C.
63		$5		S.
64		$5		R.S.
66		$20		L.M.
70		$10		S.M.
73		$75		P.B.
74		$50		M.K.
75		$65		L.B.
77		$20		I.Y.
78		$20		J.V.
79		$10		D.
80		$15		R.M.
81		$25		R.D.
82		$40		L.L.
84		$80		J.P.
85		$35		M.R.
88		$50		E.K.
89		$5		B.T.
90		$10		B.T.
91		$5		L.M.
92		$10		A.N.
93		$10		P.T.

Want to bid, but can't make it to the auction?

Have we got an option for you! Proxy bidding!

Yep, see #5 in our post below.

Auction Rules

100% of our profits go to our beneficiaries!

1. All bids must be in increments of $5 or more

2. Payments can be made in cash or cheque (payable to 'EarthTones 2006 c/o UTIHP')


3. Bidding can take place when doors open at Convocation Hall (Saturday, Nov. 18th) at 6:30 p.m., during the 20-minute intermission and all throughout the concert.

4. The silent auction ends 20 MINUTES AFTER THE FINAL CONCERT PERFORMANCE. It is at this point that whoever has the highest bid for an item will be declared the winner.

*N.B.: For those who e-mailed bids before November 18th, please keep in mind that the auction officially ends 20 minutes after the final concert performance the evening of November 18th. Thus, if you bid online and do not attend the concert, in the event that someone else makes a bid on the same item during the concert, you will no longer have the highest bid. If no one else bids on your item of interest during the evening of the concert and your online bid remains the highest, you will be declared the winner.

5. For those who want to bid on an item, but CANNOT ATTEND THE CONCERT: we are giving you the option to use our designated proxy. In order to utilize this free service, you must tell us your maximum bid(s) on the item(s) of interest -- don't worry, this will be kept confidential! In the event that a bid is placed on your item(s) of interest by someone else on Nov. 18th, our proxy will place a bid in your name with the minimum $5 increase. This will continue back-and-forth, if someone else keeps on bidding, until your maximum bid has been reached.

No matter what the outcome, whether you win or not, you will be e-mailed with the final result on your item of interest.

If you are interested in using our proxy, please e-mail us at earthtonesauction@gmail.com

Annoucement: An Art Party

Do you miss the days of kindergarten where you had free reign to be creative with your finger painting (and where all the supplies were provided for you)?
Do you want to donate something to the Earth Tones Silent Art Auction, but are either a) lacking the motivation to create something or b) thinking that you are not "artistic" and could not make anything to donate?

Well, you're in luck! In conjunction with the Meds Fine Arts Society, we're providing the paints, the brushes, the canvas, the wood, etc.
No prior experience is necessary at all! When you paint or draw with no inhibitions, you create your best works of art!

Join in the excitement and see how high people will bid for your masterpiece.

NOTE: This art party is open to anyone, even non-U of T students. So, invite your friends and family who may be interested!

WHEN: Tuesday, November 7, 2006 at 6 PM
WHERE: A room in MSB to be announced
HOW MUCH: $10 and the canvas, acrylic paints and brushes are provided for you. You can also bring your own materials.
RSVP: No later than November 1st to utfinearts@gmail.com

You mean...spreading the word might actually work?

Thanks to Toronto Craft Alert for putting up a post about us on their blog. Totally cool and also a nice surprise! You see, Toronto Craft Alert just got a random e-mail from me and they were so kind to help spread the word amongst Toronto-area crafties (and I've learned the more proper term, "artisans").

Also, another surprise is how one of Laura's friends got one of our circular flyers from Nuit Blanche that was left sitting in some gallery windows. So, people actually read and pick-up those little flyers? They aren't just automatically tossed out? Nice! Anyone else who's done event promotions knows that you're never really sure who's actually getting your message, so it's always a good validation of the time and effort put into it when you see that maybe just two or three people noticed your work!

Flickr Account

We now have an account on the awesome photo-sharing website, Flickr, to show you the items up for sale. This is especially handy now that our server is down and you can't access our website (http://torontomeds.com/etauction).

Visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/51812458@N00/" to see our auction items on our Flick account.

Website Server Problems

Just letting everyone know that our website (http://torontomeds.com/etauction) is currently down for reasons unbeknownst to us. There's a problem with the torontomeds server, so we probably won't see any remedy for it until Monday.
But, our e-mail address still works, so you can send any questions or completed registration forms to us at earthtonesauction@gmail.com

Video: Rachael's Interview Post-Audition

We're taking a brief break from the auction, to give you some action about the EarthTones concert. Auditions for the concert started today, Oct. 16th, and Rachael was one of the many people to audition by playing the bassoon and piano. The audio and video don't seem to match, but at least it works!

Auction Items Not on This Blog Anymore

The items up for auction are now on our auction website: http://torontomeds.com/etauction/artists.html

Remember to pay attention to the size of the items; everything online looks like they could be the same size.

Update: Website

OK, our new website is live and running! Excitement.

http://torontomeds.com/etauction

Thanks so much to Thien for working hard on this last night. We hope that this will provide you with lots of information. As well, it will be easier for you to view the items up for auction once we start moving them from this blog to the new site.

Comments and suggestions would be appreciated. Don't be shy!

Update: Volunteer Info Session

Once again, Lesley pointing to the computer. Khaled, Andrea and Mike (not pictured) were also there. What's that? You don't see Khaled?


Why, there he is!

We had quite the turn-out for our volunteer info session! From two guys who just wanted to sit in room 3171 before their class at 1:00 p.m. (OK, they didn't really show up for the meeting), to someone who wanted info about auditioning for the EarthTones concert, to Mike M. in 0T9 who, while just standing in the hallway, was coerced to join us for the meeting, and, finally, to Khaled in 0T9 who was with us via the Sinai Scene newsletter (see picture above).

So, in all seriousness, Andrea (0T9) pumped up our self-esteem and showed up at the info session today. Janice went over the "manpower" that she and Haerin will need on the day of the auction, Sat. Nov. 18, for
1) set-up from 3 p.m. until 6 p.m.
2) shifts during the concert to watch over the art and answer any questions people may have if they pass by in the hallway en route to the washrooms/smoke breaks
3) dismantling of the works after the auction

Lesley, who is in charge of artist registration, sales and artwork drop-off, would need volunteers to help with any artwork drop-off. She is looking for people who live outside of downtown Toronto to be able to receive any artwork from people who live in the GTA, thereby making it easier for artists to donate things by removing the barrier of having to travel downtown. For example, Mike said he can safely transport any artwork that is dropped off in Etobicoke and Mississauga. From prior conversations, Elliott (0T9) and Dave O. (0T9) have also graciously said that they can cover any North York submissions.

The idea of storage of the pieces in MSB also came up. If we aren't able to find a secure place to store artwork for approximately one month (from now until November 18), then we might organize a drop-off date for the end of the auction, probably November 3rd. If this were the case, we would still want completed artist registration forms submitted ASAP, along with a photo of the work so that the website can be updated with the wares, but the pieces themselves would not have to be in our possession until November 3rd. This might alleviate any storage issues.

Andrea said that she could help Janice with the installation of pieces on the day of the auction. Mike also said that he could help out with installation.

Perhaps the fact that we got zero replies from our ListServ e-mails about today's volunteer info session was a bit foreboding of the low turn-out that occurred, but we're chalking that up to the upcoming Structure & Function exam for 1T0s and the fact that PBL and a free afternoon for 0T9s prevented some people from showing up. Whatever makes us feel good at night, right?

The website is coming along with Thien and Jen having many sleepless nights over the past few days, trying to get that up and running (for you people with your minds in the gutter, those were sleepless nights at their respective apartments, not with each other, and that would be the website that needs to get up and running). The bare minimum stuff should be on http://torontomeds.com/etauction by the end of this week. Watch for it.

Stay tuned for more updates and another volunteer recruitment thing in the near future.

Volunteer Info Session

Calling all 0T9s, 1T0s and anyone else who wants to help out with the silent art auction!!

We've got a lot of ideas, we're open to your ideas and we need your help.

If you're interested in recruiting artists, spreading the word about the event, helping with the installations on the night of the event or are just curious and know that you're willing to do whatever, then join us on Wednesday, October 4th during lunch (12:00 p.m. - 12:30 p.m.) in room 3171, MSB (Med Sci building) for a volunteer info session.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Update: New Website

Yeah, so, October 3rd is not this Wednesday, but this Tuesday! Ooops. The launch of the new auction website will not be ready for the advertised launch date, so continue to check out this temporary blog for the time being. Of course, once the new site goes live, we'll only be too excited to let you know about it.

Update: Nuit Blanche

So, yes, some of our circular promos to recruit artists were handed out during Toronto's first-ever Nuit Blanche. It's hard to say how effective these will be, but it never hurts to try.

Update: Cheques

For those interested, Laura has informed us that contributions, monetary or other, can be made to:
EarthTones 2006 c/o UTIHP
1 King’s College Circle, Rm 2171B
Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1A8

Meeting: Sept. 28

This is how we conduct our meetings. Gathered around a small computer and looking amazed at what Lesley is pointing to.

Present: Jen, Haerin, Janice, Lesley. Regrets: Justine
From our meeting on Thursday, Sept. 28, we discussed the following:

Deadlines

• Artist registration will begin Wednesday, Oct. 3 and ends Fri., Nov. 3.
• This gives us 2 full weeks to prepare for the presentation and set-up of the artwork for Sat. Nov. 18, the day of the concert and auction
• Online bidding? A possibility, but if it were to occur, online bidding would start on Friday, Nov. 3 and go on until 12:00 p.m. on November, 18.
• The auction will officially end 20 minutes after the end of the concert
• Buyers will have 2 weeks to pay for their artwork, by cash or cheque

Website

• Jen and Thien met the other day to discuss the silent art auction website
• Lots of ideas for showcasing the artwork to be auctioned, but questions in terms of whether we'll be able to pull it off on time
• Current blogger.com blog not adequate for all of the things we'd like to put on a website; e.g. it's not good to have the blog and the artwork up for auction posted in the same blog--it's difficult to separate the two things out using blogger.com
  
• Decided to set up a website on the torntomeds domain since Thien has access to TorontoMeds
• Launch date of the new auction website: Wednesday, October 3rd
• New website URL: http://torontomeds.com/etauction and will have prominent links to the offical EarthTones website (http://icarus.med.utoronto.ca/ihp/earthtones) with description of the concert
• Important that people realize that the auction is secondary to the concert, which is the main event

Artist Recruitment

• Jen and Justine will be in charge of artist recruitment. Justine will focus on recruiting artwork from our classmates in 0T9 and 1T0, along with other people within the Faculty of Medicine (e.g. Biomedical Communications students)

Artwork Drop-Off & Registration

• Lesley is in charge of artwork drop-off, artist registration and artwork pick-up (for purchased pieces and for those that went unsold). Essentially, her role is important prior to the event and for two weeks after the event. Buyers will have 2 weeks after November 18 (the day of the auction) to pick up and pay for their winning bid.
• Buyers can pay by cash or cheque. If they pay by cash, they can take home their purchased artwork the night of the auction. If they pay by cheque, they will need to pick up their purchased artwork at a later date at a location to be determined, after the cheque has been deposited.
• If someone is in North York, we can offer them the chance to drop off their artwork with any one of our classmates who live in North York. The same goes for those who live in Scarborough and other parts of Toronto outside of downtown. Just another option for decreasing barriers for those who can donate artwork.
  

Questions:
1) Who to write cheques out to?
2) Where can we safely store artwork for ~1 month?


Installation Team

• Janice and Haerin are in charge of the installation team. The installation team is in charge of setting up the artwork for Nov. 18. The bulk of their work will occur on the day of the event.
• Discussion of using portable walls for painting and drawings to be hung up; a table to be used for 3D items that cannot be hung up.
• Since Convocation Hall's main hallway is unique and presents interesting set-up challenges, perhaps signage to let people know that there is artwork extending throughout the narrow hallway.
• Janice and Haerin will have to recruit many people to help with physical work of setting up the pieces
• Janice and Haerin will have to coordinate with Lesley re. the item numbers so that bids will correspond the correct artwork
  

Questions:
1) Where to get portable walls?
2) Are they in a presentable condition? If not, use fabric to cover them? If fabric is needed, where will the money for this come from?
3) Coordinate table of auction wares with refreshment table...who is in charge of refreshment table?
4) Two screens were used last year to show photos of children...perhaps photos of the artwork could be made into a PowerPoint presentation and shown at certain intervals during the concert? Who is in charge of the PowerPoint presentations?

Thank You for Artists Donating

• Issue of compensating those who donate artwork; last year, no compensation in any form
• Compensation in some form is a standard practice for those donating artwork for an auction, whether it is for charity fundraising or not for charity
  
• Distinction between artists who do art as their profession, or are in school to do this as their profession, (i.e. outside of the U of T medicine community and those who depend on money from selling their artwork as their primary source of income, or hope to use their artwork as their main source of income) and those who donate pieces they do in their spare time (i.e. our classmates who are part of the U of T meds community)
• Some professional artists asked if there would be any compensation or splitting of the profits to cover their costs
• We liked the idea of offering free concert admission to those not connected to EarthTones in any way as a way of saying thank you
• We did not feel comfortable with splitting profits since we expect the average bid to be ~$30 (last year's figure) and bids in this range may not adequately compensate artists for the cost of the work, OR, there may not be any funds left over to go towards our three charities
• The distinction between professional artists and those students and faculty part of the Faculty of Medicine is important, since we feel that the free admission should only be granted to those who have no connection to EarthTones whatsoever and are not involved with putting on the show.
  
• Thus, our classmates who donate artwork would still have to pay for admission, especially since it is the 0T9 and 1T0 classes who are producing the show and should set the example and demonstrate that raising as much money as possible for Feed the Children, the Kampot HIV Village in Cambodia and the Panzi Hospital in the DR of Congo is our main goal.
  

Question: 1) Is this proposal of free admission a possibility for non-U of T meds students donating artwork, i.e. those who have no prior connection to EarthTones and who use profits from their artwork as their main source of income?

Upcoming Meetings (Wed. Oct. 1)

• An e-mail was sent out to the 0T9 and 1T0 social ListServs on Tuesday, Sept. 26
• With the recent 0T9 exam and the upcoming 1T0 exam, perhaps we should send out the email again?
• Purpose of the Oct. 1 meeting is for those who want to help to meet us (Jen, Haerin, Lesley, Janice, Justine), ask questions and for the team leaders to recruit people for their respective tasks.
  

Miscellaneous

• Established that we're working with no budget. So far, no foreseeable costs, but if there are inevitable costs, where will the money come from?
• Promotional materials can be given out during Nuit Blanche, Sat. Sept. 30
• We hope that there will be 1T0 team leaders to help out Lesley, Janice, Haerin and Justine with their respective tasks