First and foremost, we take pride in ensuring that only authentic pieces make their way into our shop. The internet is overflowing with cheap, unauthorized forgeries of many of the pieces that we have listed in our gallery. Also, it is extremely common to see pieces with mislabeled printings (e.g. second printing advertised as a first). Even for authentic pieces, correctly identifying the printing is crucial for determining value as the difference between a first and subsequent printings can be astronomical. While we encourage everyone to do their own due diligence and research before purchasing any piece advertised as authentic or original concert art, please don't hesitate to reach out with questions or concerns regarding the authenticity of any of our pieces. Additionally, if you have questions regarding the authenticity of pieces from other vendors or pieces you may already own, we would be more than happy to provide some good resources for you to do your own research.

Secondly, our business model is to offer a turnkey product that arrives ready to hang on your wall and enjoy from day one. While it's a wonderful feeling to purchase a rare Grateful Dead concert poster from the 1960's, the truth is it’s likely to stay in its packaging for months or maybe even years before it can be taken to and turned around by a professional framer capable of handling vintage artwork. Custom mounting and framing is also incredibly expensive, especially considering the archival techniques required to properly mount and frame vintage concert posters. In many cases the mounting and framing cost can exceed the cost of the piece itself. Additionally, we have discovered that there is a precise art to matting and framing these old pieces. At Gallery August West, we painstakingly cut our mats and mount these pieces using non-invasive, reversible techniques to ensure the perfect visual that displays all the wonderful little details of these incredibly special and historic events (e.g. printing dates, printing credits, ticket locations, etc.). All of our pieces are custom mounted, matted, and framed right here in Asheville, North Carolina.