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Report: #1236205

Complaint Review: Aaron Chang Ocean Art Gallery - San Diego California

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  • Reported By: Anonymous — San Diego California U.S.A.
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  • Aaron Chang Ocean Art Gallery 789 West Harbor Drive #156 San Diego , California USA

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Yes, I am a disgruntled ex-associate but before you dismiss this post as sour grapes, hear the truth about this operation. I am a professional and will provide an unvarnished picture of this business, without embellishment. I am simply trying to educate would be clients before they get taken by the sales tactics employed here and fleeced out of their hard earned money to buy something of questionable value. 

Aaron Chang Galleries is an artist owned entity, with a gallery in Solana Beach and another, newer one down at The Headquarters near Seaport Village in San Diego. 

Both locations are very posh, high rent facades designed to showcase the "art" in the best possible light. What constitutes fine art is a subjective question for many, but you have to wonder if this work really qualifies, and therefore can justify the pricing involved. According to many experts in the field of fine art, and the father of the commercialist approach applied to this particular medium, Peter Lik, it definitely does not. More on that below, see the link. 

When you go into this gallery, you will hear trained sales personnel say things like "Fuji Crystal Archive Paper" and "Optically perfect, laser inspected high grade plexi" and with any luck they will be walking you into the "closing room" (they call it the viewing room when pitching you) where they romance the art and put on a fancy light show designed to showcase different dimensions of the piece under various lighting conditions. 

Sounds sexy, I know... I used to do this and was very good at it. Unfortunately, when you get past the luxurious wrapping, essentially what you have is a fancy poster of a photo on a fancy frame with some fancy plexi glass on the front. Yes, it is a fairly sophisticated process to "cold press" (more sales talk) the various elements into the final product, but can one really justify referring to this as fine art?

Basically, and this is widely known internally and even externally, this is "fine art" for well to do people with significant disposable income who know nothing about real art. 

Essentially, what produces the picture you are buying is Photoshop. They will give you a bunch of objection removal sales talk about "artists interpretation" or "raw image files" and my personal favorite... "what you are buying is the artist's vision and 40 years of experience in that shot". All sales 101 BS designed to separate you, dear customer, from as much of your money as possible. 

The father of this process and business model whose name is Peter Lik, the person Aaron Chang is desperately trying to emulate, is about the money and aggressive sales tactics in the gallery. This is a complete departure from the traditional gallery sales model, and Aaron Chang galleries is no different. And if you were looking for a side of investment appreciation for your significant purchase, forget about it.

Peter Lik will tell you himself that this work does not appreciate in value and the "limited edition" game is precisely that, a game designed to artificially inflate the value of the pieces. In fact, here is a quote from an article written about Peter Lik, the real fine art market, this medium's place in that market and the tactics used to sell you these pieces directly from the mouth of Peter Lik. “It’s like a Mercedes-Benz. You drive it off the lot, it loses half its value.”

Here is the link, use it to educate yourself before purchasing this "art" and buy at your own peril. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/22/business/peter-liks-recipe-for-success-sell-prints-print-money.html

 

Aaron is now attempting to push his "artist proofs" because on paper, these are the prints with the most value that he has personally selected and signed, blah blah blah. The only value in an AP is the artist him or herself and really the perceived value of the artist as a brand or legend. Aaron has not achieved much brand value as an artist, so the values he attributes to his APs are arbitrary and very questionable.  

I will not use this forum to denigrate Aaron Chang or his wife/partner Erika Chang personally, but I will say that the true character of the artist is a factor when purchasing something that person created, and Aaron Chang makes Peter Lik look like a reasonable, charming and ego free individual and one whose core nature aligns itself well with the duplicity of the work that he sells. 

 

 

This report was posted on Ripoff Report on 06/17/2015 10:28 AM and is a permanent record located here: https://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/aaron-chang-ocean-art-gallery/san-diego-california-92101/aaron-chang-ocean-art-gallery-aaron-chang-beware-fine-art-collectors-and-potential-empl-1236205. The posting time indicated is Arizona local time. Arizona does not observe daylight savings so the post time may be Mountain or Pacific depending on the time of year. Ripoff Report has an exclusive license to this report. It may not be copied without the written permission of Ripoff Report. READ: Foreign websites steal our content

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REBUTTALS & REPLIES:
0Author
4Consumer
2Employee/Owner

#6 General Comment

Who Cares! Let the consumer judge whether they like the art!

AUTHOR: Angela - (United States)

POSTED: Sunday, July 15, 2018

This sounds like a jealous competitor who isn't as successful, not a former employee. 

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#5 REBUTTAL Individual responds

No record of a Glen Feb. 2017.

AUTHOR: Andy - (USA)

POSTED: Friday, August 18, 2017

Employees in Feb 2017 - Andy (Director), Vaughn (Consultant), Melissa (Consultant).  No Glen.

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#4 REBUTTAL Individual responds

Unfounded and misleading

AUTHOR: Andy - (USA)

POSTED: Friday, August 18, 2017

Rather than proceed down this rabbit hole of accusations, I will simply say Glen, if you're so adamant of a wrong doing why don't you contact me personally.  In fact, if anyone would like to know the truth, have questions of my character or the character of this gallery, please feel free to email me and I will call you personally.  Make your own choice regarding what's true or not.   

I find it disturbing, "Glen", that you not only do not know me, but you have not worked at the gallery while I've worked here, or with me as your director.  Which leads me to believe that you have filed this under a false name and pretense.  I hope the readers will consider this if you've taken the time to read through this chain. 

My email is andy@aaronchang.com.  I can be reached at 619-567-8088.  I refuse to hide behind an online anonymous ID.  

I wish you luck "Glen", and I hope that you've found a position in a company that appreciates your skill sets. 

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#3 General Comment

Andy!

AUTHOR: Glen - (USA)

POSTED: Monday, July 17, 2017

Andy, I was in the gallery during this time and you were the one who was rude to the couple. All they wanted to do was view the art and purchase it. I don't know if they did but they were not treated right by you. To blame another employee is really sad and you should be reprimanded or terminated for this post. I don't usually post negative responses but when I happened upon this I had to. I was there in February 2017 and you sir are not telling the true story. Very poor representation for a very good artist.

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#2 UPDATE Employee ..inside information

Ever experience fine art?

AUTHOR: Andy - (USA)

POSTED: Saturday, February 11, 2017

I'm a long time consultant at the Aaron Chang gallery and I find the previous post disturbing.  Mostly because if you take a moment and see all the great things Aaron and his business has done for not only the local community but the international community, you will have a better understanding what kind of galleries he runs and the kind of man he is.  Beyond that, we're talking about a man that has inspired over 4 generations of ocean lovers & surfers!  

The price point in the gallery is spot on.  Making the comparison between Chang and Lik is like comparing a tomato and an apple. Granted they're both red, both fruits but each have their own unique attributes.  Aaron has spent 4 decades building his brand.  He is the first to do so many things with his camera, but most importantly his love for what he does is shown with each work displayed in the gallery.  You will never see an article where Aaron compares his work to a Mercedes (see NY Times reference), but you will see a great article in Forbes forbes.com/sites/davidhochman/2016/09/06/a-12000-california-coastal-photo-safari-with-a-surf-world-legend-at-four-seasons-residence-aviara/#6e309b09637c 

Beyond that, take a look at all the happy faces, Facebook and Instagram followers, his interaction with his fans... It's heart warming! Final question, have you ever tried to get a 6' piece of art properly framed? If you said yes you're going to love Chang's price point! 

This may blow your mind but Chang is human (contrary to the previous posts depiction), and humans are, well humans.  I will tell you 100% that Aaron is the most down to earth man you will ever meet, his loyalty to his collectors is unparalleled!  Have you ever met an artist that wasn't a little eccentric?  That's what makes them great!  Don't take my word, reach out to him on Facebook or stop by his galleries... better yet say HI to him at the beach! 

 We had confusion while hosting a privet event and collectors not being treated right by the event hosts (not gallery consultants).  Not only did Aaron take the time to call the collectors to understand and take care of their concerns, he took them out to dinner!  Lik and NO OTHER world renowned photographer would do such a thing.  This is not an isolated incident, granted each scenario has different factors, but he truly cares about those who find inspiration in his work, as a single visit to the gallery will show you. 

 

In summary, it's easy to blame others for one's own misfortunes.  Also, thousands of positive pat on the backs shouldn't be over shadowed by one "disgruntled" ex employee.  Before you judge, visit the gallery.  Fine art photography isn't for everyone, neither is classical music.  That is why we are blessed to live in a time with so many options.  If you buy what you love, you can never go wrong.

 

Thank you for giving this a read!    

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#1 Consumer Comment

Exceptional Aaron Chang

AUTHOR: Tab Wrigley - (USA)

POSTED: Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Irrespective of your experience as a former employee, Aaron Chang is known world-wide as arguably the finest surf photographer ever. His work is nothing short of amazing and having the opportunity to showcase his work at home or commercially is a true gift. I have purchased 3 different works from Aaron (one in the downtown location, and two from Solana Beach). The sales staff did exactly none of what was described, allowed the work to speak for itself and on the largest piece I purchased, actually allowed a 'mock install' to ensure my satisfaction. I have 1 piece in my office and two in my home and could not be happier. His pricing is congruent with his talent. On a personal note, Aaron is gracious, polite, humble and does so much for the local community as well as the well-being of the surf community and environment.

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