Art Auctions: Vintage Photography

Vintage photography gives us a glimpse into the past, and helps to allow people to gain some understanding of the world before us. Unlike many of the collections that are considered the staples of art collection, vintage photographs are truly a unique exploration of the recent past, and many eras of the current civilization have come to contribute their share of what makes up vintage photography. Though not the largest grouping of auctioned materials of artistic value, they are still valued for their recollections of past events, and even items relating to vintage modes of photography are included in the auctioning of these things.

Cameras and equipment, photographic books and photo postcards before 1940, and even Viewmaster reels are acceptable pieces of auctioning material. All these things have contributed to the overall history on film, and even as the motion picture took on a predominant role in culture, the photograph has still been a staple of this system forming the basis for it all. Much of what seems to have the most value are those photographs that come from eras predating this revolution in film, and even further back to those images captured years just after the invention of the camera. Some are standards to which we have become accustomed to considering is merely part of our past, and we have to know that these things also have worth.

It is with this in mind that one can better grasp the innate worth of the photographs that might have caught their eye, and to be most prepared for an art auction with vintage photographs as the focus a bit of research is in order, especially if you wish to get the most out of your money for a proposed purchase. Much as any other auction, the buying and selling of vintage photographs can done in a variety of places, and that even includes through the Internet. Today, the markets are wide open with many different examples from previous eras, and finding that photograph that can really capture your attention can be a difficult process well worth the effort.

There are many organized auction houses that conduct business every day, which could perhaps be of service for you and your needs for the art you choose to become more aware of, and you can learn much by consulting experts on such matters. For the most part, buying and selling art through auctions can be an easy process with the right amount of time and money spent in the right places, and you can always go back to your research when you happen to feel overwhelmed by how complex the bidding can get with these types of experience in life.

It is when you are considering the value of a piece that you already own, that consultation with an appraiser can be of much help, and the more professional ones will go out of their way to get you the best total for your items. When concentrating on just what you want, you be better adapted to finding those needs met more adequately, and you will have no need for fearing the system of rules when it comes to the art auction. The more research that you commit yourself to, the more worth your time it becomes, and the more you can have your money work for you.

American Indian Art Auctions: Beadwork

American Indian art encompasses many types of arts and crafts, from the more traditionally and / or stereotypically Native American art such as beadwork and pottery, to modern photography, fine paintings, sculptures and the like. There are many art auctions, both online and off, that feature this form of American Indian art.

In this article we’ll discuss one of the most traditional and historically relevant branches of American Indian art: beadwork. Beadwork of the Native American peoples had and has practical as well as decorative; utilitarian as well as rich symbolic meaning.

Beadwork and making of the beads themselves is a very old craft. Stone, bone and shell beads (such as turquoise and semi-precious stones) are still made the same ancient way. Little affected by modern technology, the making of beads is still carried out in nearly the exact same way as peoples did thousands of years ago.

Sea shell bead pieces are among the most popular and well known pieces of regional trade importance for thousands of years. Nearly everyone has seen American Indian art pieces, from beaded necklaces to purses, belts and such.

For the last several decades modern beadwork has been replicated in oriental factories and very cheaply imported. This makes it a competing factor against the top quality beadwork done by American Indian craftspeople. The native American crafts people have lost several millions of dollars (just over an eight year period during the 1980s) to these fake native beads and beadwork pieces.

Historically, beads were carved from turtle shell, animal horn and deer hooves. These were often used for making rattling or tinkling pieces utilized in dance. Hunters often wore necklaces put together with animal portions, such as bear claws or wolf claws. These indicated a hunter’s prowess. Bones and seeds were often steamed to soften them for stringing and /or bending into various shapes.

As an example of beadwork used for a most practical purpose, the Iroqois League (Haudenosee) used white and purple wampum chains made of fresh-water clam shells to record sacred ceremonies, treaties and songs. This practice was used both before and after the coming of European settlers.

Many types of agreements were recorded with such beadwork chains. They were highly valued and cared for by their owners. European settlers mistook this care and reverence for wampum beads as a sign that the beads held monetary significance. As such, they mistakenly assumed that the word ‘wampum’ referred to money, when in actuality these important beads were much more like very important original documents.

To string beads, Native Americans used animal sinew that is split very fine with which to attach beads to clothing, though infrequently strong plant fibers such as hide thongs or nettle were used for these purposes.

Today, the Navajos as well as some pueblo people still make the ancient bead type called the heishii. This is by far the most popular and high quantity type of beadwork that is still made today as it was in ancient times. These necklaces are also referred to as story necklaces as they can be used to tell stories, with each bead representing a character.

Beads and beadwork are a very important part of archaeological explorations of pre-European history. Beads have survived thousands of years and tell many fascinating stories about times we weren’t around to witness. This is particularly true with respect to beadwork mad of sea shells. Ancient shell beads have been found thousands of miles from seas, which indicates various trade routes and contacts among different groups of people.

Today American Indian artists even create digital beadwork designs to help them make actual beadwork pieces. In this way complex designs and pieces can be tested on the screen before the project is begun. This has certainly added to the creative process for many beadwork artists.

Beadworking weaves through native history both in ancient times as well as in today’s modern computer technology. The most important aspect of beadwork, though, is not what can be sold or gained, but personal pieces that are only given among family and friends. The true meanings behind these pieces are personal associations tied to visions, important perspectives and other things that an individual wishes to be reminded of.

Art Auctions: Early American Art

There are many very good examples of what you could call early American artwork that has survived to this day, and as time passes to create particular movements in style throughout the world, fundamental ideas change with a variation in locale and timeframe when it comes to the individual artists and their brilliant visions. Each artist certainly contributing something to the overall picture of the world as it shapes and changes around them, it takes an artistic will strong enough to transcend any particular era to convey the feeling of the period in such a condensed format, and the various forms that this artwork can take is numerous.

There are many styles and mediums from which to choose your vintage piece of artwork, and when you do the adequate amount of research on the subject, then you will be better prepared to find that ideal painting or work by an artist that you can relate easier to. With early American artwork, it can be a much shorter time to find and acquire a print of the piece that you would wish to own, and this can also be a more cost effective way of getting those works that can best be appreciated by your tastes in artwork and artist.

Early American art runs the spectrum from Native American art to the modernist painters and artists we can see presently, and their artwork can all be summed up under the category of early American art, creating a totally unique perspective on the American landscape. When you wish to see a museum-quality piece in your own living room, there can be multiple ways to acquire the ideal artwork you find, and not all of them have to cost an arm or a leg. If you think that the buying experience has to be an expensive one, then you are sorely mistaken, but any museum piece can be considered priceless in some hands.

There are various ways to deal with finding the bargain that suits your needs, and it does not always affect you to find a print and put a frame around it, the worth of many prints can be a way to bypass the expense of trying to buy one of these improbably affordable pieces. If you happen to be cautious about buying a piece of questionable value, then perhaps purchasing an art print of such works can make it more worthwhile, and especially if you find yourself to be a novice in the art scene. There are many places where you would be able to find printed reproductions, and can have them bought right on the premises of the location.

There is still much American artwork being produced that is quite relevant a reflection on the state of affairs as they stand throughout time, and no matter the period, there is certainly a way to find an example of what you are looking for whether the artist happens to be involved in a particular movement or otherwise at the time. There are many various definitions that American art falls under depending upon when the work was made, though only after the nineteenth century did movements begin to be started in America, and it was then that artists like Jackson Pollack were given the freedom to express themselves.

This lead to the outgrowth of the Abstract Expressionist movement in art, came up out of the colliding of influences between Ashcan artwork and the modernists from Europe like the Cubists and abstract painters, and appeared in the years after World War II. Within the mindset of this movement, the abandoning of formal composition gave way to arrangements that concentrated on space and color to represent the physical act of painting on the canvas, and created works based around instinct instead of representation of real objects. These works would eventually affect the works of pop art that would come to prominence later in the century.

Books about Dale Chihuly

Books about art sell well in art auctions. I have found many publications that feature my favorite artist, Dale Chihuly. There are books, catalogs and even magazines routinely up for auction.

Chihuly Gardens and Glass is currently for sale in several art auctions. This book is beautifully illustrated and shows installations at the Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago. The book has an essay by Barbara Rose addressing Dale Chihuly's place in art history. There is another essay by the Garfield Conservatory director that provides a history of garden conservatories

Chihuly at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew features more than one hundred photographs that captured this event. An art auction for this book sold for fifty dollars. The exhibit at the Royal Botanical Gardens was Dale Chihuly’s first botanical garden exhibition outside of the United States.

Chihuly Seaforms has an excellent value at an art auction. It depicts forty four color photographs of his most ethereal series to date. The pieces he created for this series have been called not only "reflections of skill, passion, teamwork and sheer genius" but also "tributes" to the sea. He is truly a master.

Chihuly Form Fire was published in 1993 and it only occasionally shows up in art auctions. The book is hardcover and 144 pages long with over 75 color reproductions of his splendid work. There is a very informative commentary in the book about Chihuly’s career.

Chihuly has been exhibited all over the world and the accompanying catalogs sell for a lot at an art auction. The catalogs have a value to people that cannot possibly afford to ever own an actual piece of his art. I bought a catalog at an art auction that depicted his installations from the years 1964-1992. I have spent a lot of time looking at the photographs and have determined that Chihuly is pure genius.

I really want to find a copy of Chihuly Jerusalem 2000 at an art auction. The book sells new for fifty dollars. I think that the story of this journey and exhibit is extraordinary and I want to own a copy of this book. This book contains 117 full-color reproductions and from what I’ve seen they are all extraordinary.

I was surprised that even the book of Chihuly’s drawings has tremendous resale value at an art auction. He is able to convey such beauty and energy with his work and these drawings actually do the same thing. These drawings are what his ideas start out as before they are fully realized in glass.

There is one inexpensive Chihuly book that I rarely seen in art auctions. It only contains 17 color reproductions. It does cover the installations that had 20,000 pounds of ice. These were called the neon-and-ice installations and they had a powerful effect on the people that viewed them. This book is soft cover and it is better to buy it new from a website than from a previous owner at an art auction.

I’ve lost countless art auctions for the book that contains photos of his exhibit at the Marlborough Gallery in New York City. I just never bid enough. At some point, I will probably just have to bid more to win it from an art auction. I know that the 51 images are dramatic, but the book is a soft cover and I just don’t think I should pay $25 for it.

My mother won a Chihuly book for me at an art auction last year. It chronicled the installation in Japan at the Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art in 1990. I loved each and every one of the 54 images contained in this book. I have been asked several times to loan it to friends, but I have refused. This is one book that I refuse to lose.

In 1986, Chihuly was only the fourth American to get a solo exhibition at the Louvre in Paris. There was a soft cover book published with 33 photos in it that chronicles the exhibit. Also in the book is an introduction written by the chief curator and director of the Centre du Verre. This is the next book I hope to own and I’ve been watching art auctions hoping to see it pop up.

Unique Faberge Eggs

Faberge Eggs have always been special to me. I’ve been searching them out at art auctions since I was in my early twenties. I did a term paper on the Faberge Company and their history of making eggs for the Russian Tsars between 1885 and 1917.

The first Faberge Egg that I ever found at an art auction was actually quite by chance. The Faberge Egg was not one of the advertised items and was actually a bottle topper. I instantly fell in love with it and took it home from the art auction for one hundred dollars.

I saw an advertisement for a tropical Faberge Egg from a collection St. Petersburg. It was set to be up for sale at an art auction in New York City. I knew that I was going to be unable to purchase it, but I wanted to see it in person and at least put in one of the lower bids.

The tropical Faberge Egg at that art auction in New York City ended up selling for over six thousand dollars. That is out of my price range, but I was happy just to have been in the same room with this masterpiece. The eggs themselves are just exciting to be near.

The first Faberge Egg was made in 1885. I know that it will never turn up in an art auction, but hopefully I will see it someday in an exhibit. The first one was commissioned by Tsar Alexander III and was given to his wife as an Easter present. The surprise inside the egg was a golden hen in a golden yolk. The hen was wearing a tiny crown with a ruby hanging inside.

The antique Russian Faberge Egg that I found at an art auction recently was so detailed. The silver enamel egg has rubies and eagles and is marked with Faberge hallmarks. I was able to win this egg because I was bidding with someone else’s money. The best eggs always end up with the richest people.

The piece that I want in my collection is a genuine Lillies of the Valley Faberge Egg. I found one at an art auction I went to ten years ago. I was unable to buy the one I saw, because I didn’t have the money at the time. I’ve been saving for the time that I see another one.

The Lillies of the Valley Faberge Egg is covered with pearls and pale pink enamel. The egg is on a stand that has legs of matte green-gold leaves with rose dewdrops. The gold-stemmed lilies of the valley have green enamelled leaves and pearl flowers. I will look for this egg at every art auction I ever attend.

This Faberge Egg is delightful. It is surmounted by an Imperial crown of rose crystals. There is a pearl knob that reveals the surprise of this egg. The surprise is portrait miniatures of Czar Nicholas II and his two oldest daughters. The portraits are framed in rose crystals and backed with gold panels. I have heard a rumor that one will be at an art auction next year in Miami.

The last art auction I attended I purchased a Faberge Egg called the Imperial Clover Egg. It was for my personal collection and I won it for under a thousand dollars. I felt like it was quite a steal at that price.

The Imperial Clover Faberge Egg was originally made with a four leaf clover inside of it that had portraits of the four daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra. The portraits went missing during the Russian Revolution. The egg that I bought at the art auction had a stem of clovers standing upright. Two clovers in green enamel and the third, a four leaf clover, was done in diamonds. The diamond four leaf clover is a pin that can be worn.

Art Auctions: Greco-Roman Statuary

The ancient civilizations that have come before this present period of time have always left behind some truly unique pieces to others after them to gain some insight as to what that society may have been like. We learn much from the artifacts collected by archeologists, and their attempts throughout the Mediterranean region of the world, where the peoples of Greece and Rome had originally found their home. Though much of these items are priceless works that cannot be just bought and sold, there are versions of some famous works that can be much cheaper for the casual shopper to purchase.

Many pieces of the genuine article are sometimes found wherever the Greco-Roman styling of things has been prominently featured in architecture or artwork, and there are very many varieties that you might consider as being included in the category with statuary, such as ornately crafted vases and busts. Some of these aspects are certainly more common than many other varieties of this kind of work, with replicas of all of these items is much more common then one may think before coming to understand the rarity of these things, and that genuine articles will be priceless artifacts in some cases.

With the auctioning of statuary from an era previous, though, you can expect the pricing to be an obvious obstacle. Unless adequate replicas can be found in someone’s catalog for a much cheaper price, then the buying of these curious grouping of items should be left to those with skill to know what they are getting. Though this opinion may seem conceited, a person determined to find and retain a piece of Greek statuary should never feel as though it is out of their grasp to do so, and one should always know the rules when coming to realize what it can take to get such a wonderfully preserved piece of work.

In this light, replicas can be a much cheaper and functional means of finding the many differently appealing styled pieces to complete your collection of Greco Roman objects, and there are many prints of Greco Roman artwork for sale to be had for those art collectors thinking within a budget. The actual pieces can be too much for any collector to reasonably purchase, as many pieces of that nature are housed within established places like museums, and exclusively linked to one association or another of experts that collectively buys and cares for the pieces.

For some of the smaller pieces from the age have been passed between collectors for many, many years, and still retain some hint of the past that created them. Art auctioning has the flavor for some peoples’ tastes in the expensive, but the point of an art auction does not have to exclude anyone excited by the items put up for sale, anyone that feels an urge to acquire pieces from an ancient past should be able to participate with a little research into auctioning. Though it may seem overwhelming at first, the experience of an art auction can be a truly special event, and the pricing should never spoil an art auction for those new to it.

With statuary of as historic a nature as the Greco-Roman period, and you consider the history behind some of the pieces, you will better understand somewhat the reminders that float through to us from history’s fingers. Much of what know of their culture has been passed down for many thousands of years, and it is remarkable to see how the themes and subject matter has evolved as it relates to the centuries gone by, as all manner of time period has broken down into our own present day settings. Greco Roman statues give us a literal model of how they perceived the world around them, and though similar and plausible for making comparisons against our own culture, those cultures from a distant past can be great reminders for us to look to for inspiration.

Looking for Collectible Postcards

I’ve found that the best place to find collectible postcards is at art auctions. I was at an art auction in Eastlake, Ohio looking for stained glass and found them auctioning a lot of vintage collectible postcards. I bought the lot at the art auction and it contained almost three thousand beautiful collectible postcards.

About thirty percent of the collectible postcards were pre-linen. These are postcards that were all made before 1930. The linen collectible postcards were made from 1930 to 1945 and the lot I won at the art auction had thirty percent linen cards as well.

Forty percent of the lot I won at the art auction was for early chrome collectible postcards. Most of them were from the fifties and sixties. There were also collectible postcards from the British museum series from the seventies.

The collectible postcards that are my favorite are all turn of the century and were sent for holidays. Valentine’s Day collectible postcards from the early 1900s are very romantic. The Christmas postcards have some really nice artwork. I was really fortunate with the purchase at the art auction because the assortment was so varied.

My collection of collectible postcards contains many different themes. I like the non-US card. I found an art auction that had a shoebox full of these postcards and they were from places like Bermuda, Zurich, Rio de Janeiro, Dresden, Germany, Ireland and even Istanbul. I had never owned a collectible postcard from Niger before that art auction.

People who do not collect vintage collectible postcards just don’t understand their value. They are usually not even mentioned as being part of an art auction. I go to art auctions every other weekend on the off chance that there will be collectible postcards on the auction block.

I am always so pleased when I find linen ere collectible postcards at an art auction. The auctioneer at most art auctions does not even announce the lot as linen postcards; he usually just announces it as vintage or old collectible postcards. His lack of knowledge of the subject almost always works to my advantage.

I have various collections of collectible postcards within the main collection. I tried for awhile to complete a set of state views in all linen era postcards. I can’t even count how many art auctions I attended before I even had thirty of the forty eight states. I know that I finally tired of the pursuit and have just put it on the back burner.

The holiday collectible postcards go to collectors of more than just postcards. I’ve seen people buy holiday collectible postcards at an art auction just to frame and decorate with them during certain holidays. I actually found five really nice vintage Christmas collectible postcards at an art auction and had them framed for my mother as a Christmas gift.

I went to an art auction and estate sale of a man whose grandfather had been a colonel army officer. The collectible postcards that I found there were fantastic. The officer had amassed 353 different postcards from India. It was amazing. They had been tucked into an album and never used and were in perfect condition.

For awhile, I thought that I wanted to collect postcards from soldiers in WWI. I found a two hundred piece lot of this type of collectible postcards at an art auction in New Haven. The mix of cards was British, French and German. It was interesting because some of the collectible postcards were censored. I’ve never seen censored collectible postcards before.

The most I’ve ever spent on collectible postcards at an art auction was $530 for four postcards. They were all from 1904 and they depicted automobile racing. They were in pristine condition. I doubt that I will ever find any more even remotely like this the rest of my life. They were exceptional.

The lot of collectible postcards I found last weekend was really fun to look through. The art auction had a lot of things from a family that had emigrated here from Serbia. The postcards were all from either Serbia or Belgrade. This was a good lot and it went for the opening bid.

Art Auctions for Vintage Posters

Vintage posters are always available at art auctions. I have found all kinds of vintage poster art auctions lately. I really liked a vintage poster I found that was from the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam. The poster is rare because it is one of the only 500 of the 10,000 printed that is in French.

Another vintage poster I found in an art auction was from 1917. It depicts French woman in war time performing various tasks. The poster celebrates the contribution of French women in the workforce. During war time, French women made up forty percent of the workforce.

I’m always a sucker for old vintage posters of rock bands. I look for them in art auctions all the time. I like ones that are autographed, like the one from The Who that I saw recently. I felt like the starting bid was a little high and so I didn’t try to win it.

I have been leaning more and more lately toward French vintage posters. I found a vintage poster for Orangina that was printed in 1970 at an art auction recently. I thought that the art auction would only get to one thousand dollars, but I was wrong. The vintage poster sold for twelve hundred dollars.

My older brother needed something interesting for the walls of his new apartment. I started looking for vintage posters in art auctions and found the perfect poster. The one that I found featured race cars and he loves race cars. The poster was from the 1965 Nurbergring Grosser Preis Von Deutschland and looked fantastic for being forty years old.

French advertisements seem to make the best vintage posters. I like finding art auctions for posters advertising products like Lu Biscuits. I found a great vintage poster for less than a thousand dollars and it looks great in my kitchen.

Vintage posters that relate to travel always get a lot of interest at an art auction. I saw a lovely poster that was advertising the English Lake District in France. The poster was produced in 1905. I like viewing them, but I do not personally collect posters in this style.

I found a vintage poster at an art auction that advertised shoe polish. This was a French poster that was made in the 1930’s. I framed it and put it in my dressing room. It fits in there perfectly and really adds to the feel of the room.

My sister married a man with a cycling shop. They have used a variety of cycling related items to decorate their home. My favorite piece is an old fashioned tricycle they keep in the formal living room. I found a vintage poster in an art auction that depicted an advertisement for Celtic Cycles and they loved it when I gave it to them.

I found set of vintage posters of The Beatles that were made in 1967. The posters were for sale an art auction I attended. I have seen vintage posters designed by Richard Avedon before and I really liked his vision of The Beatles. These vintage posters were well worth the two hundred dollars each I paid for them.

The vintage poster that I have my eye on right now is up for sale at an art auction coming up. It is an Andy Warhol advertisement for Chanel perfume. I want to win this vintage poster and frame it and hang it on the wall of my master bathroom. It would be perfect there and would absolutely complete the look I was going for.

Finding Maritime Items at Art Auctions

I find some really nice maritime items for my collection at art auctions. I went to an art auction in Charleston last month and found a pair of candle powered navigation lights that were used on ships in the 19th century. These types of candles were also used in lighthouse stairwells.

My collection also includes a maritime item that was made in 1891. It is a chronometer and it still keeps great time. It is very special because the broad arrow on it indicates that it was purchased by the British Navy and they are known to have only the best time pieces. I found this piece of my collection at an art auction in New Hampshire.

I have another chronometer in my collection that I found at an art auction in Dallas. It was sold to me in a wooden box from someone that had owned it for fifty years. They had kept this maritime relic in a closet. I plan to keep it on display.

I was at an art auction in Miami a couple of years ago and found a fantastic maritime item for my personal collection. The compass that I won was over 100 years old and was made in Persia. The compass face has all twelve signs of the zodiac engraved on it. I thought that this was a great find.

My kids thought I was crazy when I drove to an art auction is Hartford and drove back with three hundred pounds of maritime Navy anchors. I thought they’d look great in the yard. I like to have art in my yard, in the beds I made around my trees. No one wanted to help me unload them.

I found myself in a bidding war at an art auction in Mississippi over the original builder’s plate from the SS Contessa. It is truly a unique and wonderful maritime item. I have polished it and it gleams in the display case I bought for it.

Maritime items don’t seem to be in as much demand anymore. A few years ago, my collection got easier to add to for some reason. Art auctions everywhere I went started having really great things on the auction block.

The brass plaques from old ships have always been one of my favorite things to find up for sale at art auctions. One of my favorite maritime plaques came from a ship that was used in WWII. The ship that the plaque was on was called the Marechal Joffre and it was taken from the French in 1942. The Maritime Commission renamed the ship USS Rochambeau.

I had a friend of mine that was going to attend an art auction in Anchorage a couple of years ago bid on a bell for me. I had no idea how much the freight charge was going to end up being, but I wanted this maritime item in my collection. It was magnificent.

There is going to be a really nice maritime item at an art auction I intend to attend this weekend. Lighthouse items are of interest to me more and more lately. I have found that there is going to be an antique brass oil lamp up for auction and I plan to win it. The price will probably get up to fifteen hundred dollars, but I don’t care. I need this maritime item in my collection.

Folk Art Auctions

Folk art auctions feature a wide range of objects that reflect the artist’s craft traditions, and traditional social values. Folk art is generally produced by people who have little or no academic artistic training. Folk artists usually use established techniques and styles of a particular region or culture.

Folk art auctions include paintings, sculptures and other decorative art forms. Some artists also consider utilitarian objects such as tools and costumes as folk art. For the most part, the category of folk art auctions exclude works by professional artists.

It has been my experience that folk art auctions have something for just about anyone. I found a folk art painting of a cat in a peach tree that was done by the artist Tascha. The artist also noted on the folk art auction that they create unique ceramic tile art.

My mother purchased a blanket chest for me years ago that I listed recently in a folk art auction. The chest was made about two hundred hears ago and is very beautiful. The original painted decorations are still intact.

I found an interesting folk art auction for a carnival knock-down dummy in the shape of a large cat. It was made around 1930 and is twice the size of similar items. I researched the item on a non-auction site and found that it is worth a lot of money.

My heart is still swayed by Americana folk art auctions. I recently fell in love with a painting I found up for auction of Elvis on a Harley in front of a large American flag. It was spectacular! The stretched canvas was painted with acrylics.

I especially like the Halloween themed folk art auction I found that was offered by Sister Raya New Orleans Folk Art. The title of the painting was Little Spooky the Cat – Awaiting the Great Pumpkin. The painting was painted in classic vintage style and used gold maple, red sapphire, blue pearl, white, pumpkin orange, sable brown, amber rust and jet black. I would love to have this hanging on my wall all through the autumn months.

Another folk art auction that I found and was sad to bid up past my budget was a handmade set of miniature dominos. The set was in a folk art decorated maple case. The set dates from the mid to late 1800’s. It was really exquisite and I’m sorry that I missed out on it.

I really liked another folk art auction that I found for a modern fraktur. A fraktur is a specific kind of Pennsylvania German folk art. The fraktur I found was a watercolor of a marriage record. It was very colorful and looked like it held very special significance to its original owners.

I found a wood box from Maine in a folk art auction that really appealed to me. It was rather small, but was painted chrome yellow and was trimmed in forest green. The paint was crazed and worn and it was made in the late nineteenth century. There were no visible nails and the hardware was reported as looking original.

The folk art auction that I missed out on that was way out of my price range was for an Andrew Clemens sand bottle. The sand bottle was date 1887 and was covered in patriotic decorations. It was an apothecary style bottle with a stopper and it contained at least ten different colors of sand. The bottle ended up selling for eighty five hundred dollars. I’m sure that it has ended up in an excellent collection of folk art.

I found an amusing folk art auction for three wooden carvings. The name of the piece was Three Articulating Folk Art Whimseys and were all made by the same artist. The carvings were accented with sheet metal neckties. The first carving in the folk art auction was of a cobbler, a blacksmith and a gentleman with a donkey. The second carving was a diminutive soldier and the third was a cobbler smoking a pipe. I think that this piece of Americana was purchased at a low price of three thousand dollars and was worth much more.

Upcoming Trip to Sotheby’s

I am planning a trip to an auction at Sotheby’s in June. I have a real interest in 20th century British art and they have an art auction scheduled. I have spent a great deal of time planning this trip.

While I was browsing the Sotheby’s online catalog, I found a signed Sickert named South Façade of St. Jacques. I saw this painting once in London in 1971. It has been in Canada since its purchase around that same time.

The painting is thought to be painted around 1900 after the artist had been in the town of Dieppe for two years. He found a great deal of beauty in this medieval place. He loved the architecture and it was the subject of a lot of his work. Sotheby’s has several pieces of his work up for auction at this event.

I also noted in the catalog that Sotheby’s will be auctioning off a watercolor of a cat by the artist Gwen John. She painted a lot of cats and also portraits of seated women. She was known to paint the same picture over and over again like Monet did.

There was another lot listed in the Sotheby’s catalog that interested me. I really am partial to Sickert and there was a painting that he completed in Venice while he was there with his wife. There are stories of marital troubles between them and the trip to Venice is thought to have been taken to repair their marriage.

I can’t wait to see the painting Thunder in the Mountains by James Dickson Innes. His watercolors are really splendid. The painting is thought to have been painted in 1910 in the mountains of North Wales. Sotheby’s has such an extensive catalogue for this auction.

I’m anxiously awaiting my trip to London. I love Sotheby’s art auctions and going out to expensive restaurants at night. I plan to go to the Mango Tree while I’m there. It is the best Thai food, hands down, that I’ve ever eaten.

My business partner was really taken with the Landscape Near Lyons painted by Sir Matthew Smith. I liked this oil painting as well. The Sotheby’s catalogue reported that the painting was done in 1922 and that there is a still life of flowers on the reverse. My partner will be unable to make this trip and has asked me to bid on it for him.

I have a small private collection of pencil drawings. I liked the Flower in a Glass Vase that was penned by Christopher Wood in 1925. I think that it would display nicely with other still lifes that I have. I think that this pencil art may well go for twelve thousand dollars. My favorite pencil drawings have all been found at Sotheby’s auctions

I have a patron that is very interested in a lot at the Sotheby’s auction that contains Poppies by Ivon Hithchens. She has authorized me to bid up to sixty five thousand dollars for her. I hope that I am successful in acquiring it for her. I know that this Sotheby’s auction will be well attended because they all are. It is too much to hope for that no one will notice this fantastic painting.

After looking forward to this trip for so long and poring over the Sotheby’s catalogue so intently, I must say that I have my heart set on Broomswade by John Piper. I absolutely must have this watercolor. The person that is selling it has been the only owner. He bought it directly from John Piper in 1966. If I win nothing else, I will win this painting.

The only other painting that I plan to bid on at the Sotheby’s auction is one by William Turnbull. There is a collector that I know that desperately wants this painting. He owns several of this artist sculptures and has now started to collect his paintings.

Decorative Collectibles at Art Auctions

I have found many decorative collectibles at art auctions over the years. I have a display cabinet filled with all of my finds. My favorite of all of the decorative collectibles are Pendelfin rabbits.

Pendelfin rabbits captivated my interest when I was a young girl. My dad was stationed in England and my mother bought me my first of many decorative collectibles at an art auction. The bookends that she bought for me are extremely rare and I recently had them appraised at more than fifteen hundred dollars.

I’ve been searching at art auctions in my area every time that decorative collectibles are advertised as being up for sale. My greatest hope is that I can find a Pendelfin item named The Shoe. I’ve been looking for this particular piece for about five years.

The larger pieces of decorative collectibles seem to get really expensive really fast at an art auction. I’ve seen three people at once bidding up the Pendelfin rabbits to a point where the price is just out of my reach. I love these rabbits, but I have to stay on budget when I attend an art auction.

There is one Pendelfin item that I found at an art auction early in my collection that I spend a lot more money than I wanted to. I just had no idea how much a love of decorative collectibles could end up costing. The item I bought was a three inch by four inch little plaque with Robert the rabbit depicted.

I sell decorative collectibles with online art auctions. I find the items at art auctions and sales that I attend in person. I have never resold a piece of Pendelfin. I keep them in my own private collection. My husband bought me a Pendelfin figurine named Auctioneer. I love it.

Almost all of the rabbits produced by Pendelfin are small. These decorative collectibles have retained their value for a long time. Art auctions are a great place to hunt for really cool pieces that are larger and rare. I’ve been looking for one named Aunt Ruby for a couple of years, now.

Aunt Ruby is one of the large size rabbits. I already have Uncle Soames and Mother. These were actually some of the first pieces of decorative collectibles. I found them at an art auction I attended with my husband before we married.

There was an anniversary piece put out by Pendelfin. I don’t think that it is worth what I keep seeing it for new and in stores that sell decorative collectibles. I’ll just keep looking for it at a reasonable price at the art auctions I attend.

I was so excited when I found two big pieces of Pendelfin decorative collectibles at the last art auction I attended. I bought both the one named Toy Shop and the one named The Castle Tavern. They look great with all of the others that I’ve bought and won at auctions over the years.

My sister called me from an art auction last year to tell me that she had found a treasure trove of decorative collectibles. She said that there was one lot that contained nine Pendelfin pieces. I authorized her to pay up to four hundred dollars for the lot because some of the pieces were chipped. I was shocked when the lot went for eighty dollars, the opening bid.

Native American Art Auctions: Art Antiques

Whether traditional or contemporary, Native American artwork is both highly collectible and universally appealing. Native American art forms the basis of many exemplary public as well as private art collections. People that collect Native American artwork can be very passionate about their collections.

Older, more traditional Native American artwork and cultural artifacts are not merely revered and / or emulated by modern artists, they are also held dear as parts of art collections the world over.

Fine Native American art done by well known American Indian artists, such as Nampeyo, the Hopi potter, can raise the caliber of a private or public art collection quite significantly. Iris Nampeyo lived on the Hopi Reservation in Arizona. She made a good income making pots and selling them at local trading posts.

A remarkable aspect of Nampeyo’s work is that over time she became more ad more interested in making pots according to ancient ways, as opposed to the modern pottery that was being made by people at the time. The quality of her work, as well as her interest and use of ancient pottery techniques certainly add to the demand and high price tags of her work.

If you find yourself in the market for Native American art antiques, be prepared to pay the price. Particularly with Native American art, availability doesn’t correlate to demand or cost, as is the case with many other highly collectible art types.

Items such as early Plains beadwork or late nineteenth century basketry are certainly examples of what would be considered extremely rare finds in the world of Native American art auctions.

When choosing from various art pieces, compare styles, read and research. This is really the only way to educate oneself about the various types of American Indian art. Then it’s time to shop around. Just like anything else, you won’t know what’s available unless you take the time to comparison shop.

During the 1900s many of the Native American art and crafts that other peoples associate with American Indians began to be commercially produced, especially by Asian nations. These Native American fakes became so widely purchased that several millions of dollars were taken from the American Indian artists in the form of cheap imitation Native American art.

Before purchasing Native American art antiques it’s a good idea to perform additional research has to the authenticity of the piece or pieces. Unless you’re highly knowledgeable on the topic and have experience spotting fakes, this type of art can be extremely hard to verify by inexperienced sight alone.

All in all, collecting American Indian art antiques is just like collecting any other antique, the definitive and primary timeframe is anything that is pre-1950s. Although a name that is well known can seriously increase the value of an object, condition, workmanship and prevalence are factors that are just as important.

Increasingly, even seasoned art dealers that deal in American Indian art find it difficult to discern authentic art antiques from imitation pieces. For this reason, it is particularly important to opt for dealing with reputable sources. In order to ensure that your perfect Native American art antique is the real deal it’s worth taking the time to locate such a well known art dealer or museum.

There are specialized art museums and dealers that offer Native American art pieces. These organizations generally are most interested in promoting Native art and cultures. The better of these institutions and organizations directly invest many of the profits gained from the sale of art pieces back into the Native American community.

When it comes to collecting Native American art antiques or any other type of art, don’t buy it unless you absolutely love it. Your best pieces are going to cost a pretty penny. If you don’t fall in love with a piece, chances are you’re not going to like it any better once it’s on your wall. So hold out for the perfect piece, you’ll be glad you did.

Stained Glass Art Auctions

I have found some really beautiful pieces of artistic stained glass at art auctions. The worship committee at my church asked me to find some church window stained glass when I went to an art auction last fall. I found an excellent piece for them that was framed and 73” X 38.5”. The congregation loved it.

I found some wonderful stained glass at an art auction for a client that was trying to complete his new kitchen. The three windows I won were exactly right for him. The stained glass had a Victorian star design in shades of blue. The borders were all beveled and the piece was hand cut and soldered.

The modern stained glass windows sometimes come sandwiched between two pieces of tempered glass to protect them for years of use. The windows I bought at the art auction were framed in vinyl. Each of the stained glass windows was 30” X 30”.

Stained glass art auctions always include lampshades. I went through a period of time where I purchased every stained glass lampshade I would find at an art auction. I am a little more discerning, now. I found a stained glass lampshade not long ago that I purchased for my mother.

My mother just redecorated her bedroom in green and mauve. The stained glass lampshade that I found for her only had variations of those two colors running through it. It was perfect for her and she really liked it when I gave it to her.

I had a call from a client last week that asked me to find a piece of stained glass to hang in a picture window. She always had a curtain hanging over that window, so I had trouble picturing what it looked like. I stopped by her house and chatted with her before I went to the art auction so that I could get better idea of what would delight her.

I talked with this client for awhile and found out that she used to grow roses competitively, but that since her arthritis had gotten worse, she was no longer able to garden. She had a curtain hanging over that window so that she wouldn’t have to look into her bare backyard. I instantly knew exactly what kind of stained glass art piece she needed.

The art auction was a lot of fun and I found a large oval stained glass piece to hang over the picture window for my client. It was almost three feet tall and just under two feet wide. The red roses done in stained glass were just magnificent. She was so happy after the stained glass was delivered; she thanked me with coffee and bagels.

She hired me again to find a special piece for her bedroom window. She liked the idea of replacing the curtains in her home with stained glass pieces of art that I could find for her at art auctions. I looked at the way her bedroom was decorated taking special notice of the colors she used.

I found a fantastic stained glass piece for her at the art auction of a peacock with lavender in the background. It fit really well with her existing decorating. She hired my son to hang this piece for her. She was pleased with his work and has promised him future jobs that require more strength than she possesses.

I was asked by a friend of mine to find a special piece of stained glass for his office. I went to three art auctions before I could find something that felt right. His taste and furnishings run the direction of more contemporary than most pieces of stained glass usually represent.

The third art auction I attended had a contemporary piece of stained glass art that depicted a landmark in Anchorage, Alaska. I did not know it at the time, but my friend had family in Alaska and was actually familiar with this landmark. I purchased it because I liked the style and the coloring, but it turned out to be an even better choice because of its subject matter.

Art Auctions for Drawings

Art auctions for drawings are categorized into antique, modern and contemporary. Antique drawings are any drawings that were produced before 1900. Modern drawings have to have been created between 1900 and 1949. Contemporary drawings are drawings that were created from 1950 until the present.

There are a lot of contemporary drawings listed in art auctions that never get a bidder. There are many reasons for this. One of the main reasons is that the starting bid is set so high that it discourages interest. There was an art auction for a drawing that was created in 2000 that depicted James Dean welcoming Elvis Presley into heaven. The starting price for this art auction was twelve million dollars. I am not surprised that it did not get a bidder.

I found another pen and ink drawing in an art auction that was listed for a lot more than it was worth. The original listing started at $825,000.00 and when it didn’t sell, the artist lowered the price to $545,000.00. He offers the copywrite to the design, which he thinks would translate well for prints, posters or greeting cards.

There was an art auction for a drawing that was purchased in 1971 London that did very well. The seller of the drawing inherited it from his grandfather, who was the original owner. He started the bidding at a reasonable $599.00 and the drawing ultimate sold in the art auction for over twelve thousand dollars. He did a great job describing and picturing the drawing.

Antique drawings in art auctions can garner a lot of interest. I saw a drawing of two men in the nude that was drawn in the 1800’s go for more than eleven thousand dollars. This drawing was pen and ink and had a brown wash and traces of charcoal on lines of black pencil.

I was very taken with an antique drawing made by Sir Francis Grant in 1832. The drawing in the art auction was of a woman and her daughter in Scotland. The drawing was a signed original and sold for two thousand dollars. I hope that it ends up framed and hanging in a collection of similar pieces. It was really nice.

Another reason that art auctions for drawings don’t sell is that they are listed in the wrong categories. I found several contemporary pieces that were listed in the antique category. With so much competition in art auctions, it is important to make sure every detail is noticed.

Modern drawings are by far my favorite art auctions. I wanted the stamped Degas I saw up for auction, but it was way out of my budget. I’m sure that the person that ended up with the highest bid at the art auction will love and treasure it.

Well known artist’s drawings can fetch a lot of money in online art auctions. If the title of the art auction contains the words original Picasso, for example, it is sure to go over two thousand dollars. If the item is signed, it can go for much more.

I really liked a drawing I found in an art auction from an artist that I was unfamiliar with. The artist was Patrick Caulfield and he titled his drawing Grapes. He used colored pencils on black paper in the late 1980’s. This drawing sold for the opening bid, $4,250.00.

Christie’s in Amsterdam

There are so many good lots up for auction this summer at Christie’s in Amsterdam. There is a lot by Petrus Paulus Schiedges called Sailing on open water that is oil on panel. This is supposed to sell for more than two thousand euros.

There is another lot up for auction at Christie’s that is of a busy canal near a Dutch town. It was painted by Joseph Bles. Joseph Bles was Dutch and he signed his painting “J Bles”. This painting should go for about fifteen hundred euros.

Albertus Verhoesen was Dutch and he painted a lovely painting called Cattle in a Sunny Meadow. The painting was created in 1845. It is up for auction in Amsterdam at Christie’s this summer. This painting will sell for more than twelve hundred euros.

Louis Smets was a 19th century Belgian. His painting of a horse-drawn-sled on a frozen waterway is up for auction this summer at Christie’s in Amsterdam. It is possible that this painting could fetch six thousand euros.

There is a nice painting by German Johann Erdmann Gottlieb called The Runaway Carriage that is dated 1844. It is one of the lots up for sale at Christie’s in Amsterdam. This is a rather large painting at 59.5 x 89 cm. The auction house thinks that it could sell for as much as five thousand euros.

The most expensive painting up for auction at Christie’s in Amsterdam this summer is called Setting Out. Setting Out was painted in the nineteenth century by Abraham Hulk. The painting is oil on canvas and it is estimated to sell for up to twenty thousand euros.

All of the top five paintings at the summer auction at Christie’s in Amsterdam were painted by Dutch painters. I think that I like the Jan Cossaar painting depicting playing in the snow after school better than I like the painting entitled Bollenveld by Anton Dircks. They look like they will sell for similar prices.

The oil painting of a lake in a panoramic Alpine landscape by Swiss artist Jacob Joseph Zelger is very large and very beautiful. I liked the style that he used for his creation. Christie’s estimates that this painting will sell for five to seven thousand euros.

There were less than twenty lots that Christie’s estimates will auction for less than a thousand euros. I found one of the most inexpensive paintings listed in the catalogue to be that of a clown with two yellow balls. It really did not speak to me at all and I’m not surprised that it will sell for one of the smallest amounts.

I actually liked the Dutch artist Simon Maris’ oil painting of pumpkins, grapes and elderberries. The painting is signed and may go for as little as seven hundred euros. Simon Maris lived from 1873-1935.

Another piece of art up for auction at the Christie’s in Amsterdam is a lithograph printed in colors from 1978. The artist is Bram van Velde and he signed his piece in pencil. Bidding for this piece may go as high as sixteen hundred euros. This artist was very poor as a child. He first entered into an apprenticeship as a painter in 1907 in The Hague.

Another painting that is going to be auctioned off at Christie’s in Amsterdam this summer is a flower still life with chrysanthemums. This oil painting was painted by Willem Elisa Roelofs. He was from The Hague and his painting should go for about seventeen hundred euros.

Art Auctions: Art Deco

In the field of modern art, art deco plays a large and impressively lavish role. The strong colors and sweeping curves lend art deco the trademark boldness that expressed much of the progress and modern advances of the twentieth century. Art auctions around the world still move many art deco pieces of various kinds. If you’re interested in collecting art deco, there are many art auctions both online and off that deal primarily in art deco.

In the twentieth century the decorative arts converged in what is known as the art deco movement, which grew to influence architecture, fashion, the visual arts as well as design. The term ‘art deco’ was derived from a World’s Fair held in Paris, France, called the Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes in the year 1925.

Though the movement and term comes from the Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes, the term was not widely used until the late 1960s. Especially pre- World War I Europe influenced the art deco movement, though many cultures influenced and were influenced by this art movement. Much of the world was experiencing similar shifts in modern technological advances.

For the most part, the art deco movement was brought about and inspired by the rapid advances of technological and social facets of the early twentieth century. As culture responded to these increasingly changing times, the art deco movement was an outgrowth of these modern phenomena.

Art deco is considered generally to be an eclectic type of decorative modernism that was influenced by a variety of artists and particular art forms. Art deco includes furniture, metalwork, clocks, glasswork and screens as well as paintings and other fine art types of pieces.

The art deco style is known for its lavishness and epicurean flairs that are attributed to the austerity of culture brought about by World War I. Strong patterns and bold colors and shapes were used, as were many particular motifs used universally.

For example, the sunburst motif was used in everything from the Radio City Music Hall auditorium, images of ladies’ shoes, the spire of the Chrysler Building and several other pieces of art, architecture and design. Other ubiquitous motifs found in art deco were stepped forms, the zigzag, chevron patterns and sweeping curves.

In the West, art deco lost its steam around the Second World War, but continued to be used all the way into the 1960s in colonial countries such as India, where it served as a gateway to Modernism. Then in the 1980s art deco made a comeback in graphic design. Art deco’s association with 1930s film noir led to its use in both fashion and jewelry ads.

Today art deco is revered by many and dismissed as old news and overly gaudy by others. Though it undoubtedly played a major role in art history, as with most art, individual taste frames the individual’s interpretation and like or dislike of art deco styles.

Art deco is one of the most well known art movements. This is mostly due to its wide base of influences and influenced art forms and cultures. Since much of the world was experiencing many of the same advances in technology and mass production, many of the same ideas and symbols were relevant in various parts of the world.