Alex Colville, The English Patient, and Good Antique Advice

A GREAT DAY FOR HITTING THE OPEN ROAD - A SPRING IN WINTER'S STEP

AUTOGRAPHS AND ART HISTORIES ARE ALWAYS A GOOD FIND -

ANOTHER WONDERFUL DAY WEATHERWISE, TO GET OUT ON THE OPEN ROAD, AND ENJOY A REALLY EARLY SPRING. WE DID TAKE A RUN THIS MORNING TO ORILLIA, WITH THE WEE LADS IN TOW. FOR THE COLLECTING FAMILY, ORILLIA DOES OFFER US FROM BETWEEN FIVE TO SEVEN BUSINESS RELATED STOPS. ANDREW AND ROBERT COLLECT VINTAGE VINYL, AND 78'S, IN BLUES, JAZZ; VERY EARLY COUNTRY AND BLUEGRASS. TODAY IN VINYL THEY GOT SOME GEMS OF ROCK 'N ROL, PUNK (PLUS TWO VINTAGE POSTERS) AND THE LIST GOES ON. THEY OF COURSE, LOOK FOR VINTAGE INSTRUMENTS, GUITARS, UKES, BANJOS, MANDOLINS, ELECTRICS, AMPS, SPEAKERS, AND OLD RECORD PLAYERS. THEY HAVE A TALKING MACHINE FOR PLAYING CYLINDERS AND ANOTHER VICTROLA FOR THEIR 78'S, BUT THEY ALSO BUY AND REPAIR STEREO SETS AND PHONOGRAPHS. A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO THEY WERE ABLE TO BUY A HUGE COLLECTION OF 1960'S AND 70'S RECORD NEEDLES, AND BELTS, WHICH HAS HELPED THEM RESTORE MORE THAN A HUNDRED TURNTABLES THAT WERE MISSING PARTS. THEY REFURBISH THEM AND RE-SELL THEM, AT THE MAIN STREET SHOP IN GRAVENHURST, (OPPOSITE THE OPERA HOUSE), AND THERE HAS BEEN A WAITING LIST FOR CERTAIN MODELS. WE'RE FAR MORE BORING AND MAINSTREAM, WITH WHAT WE COLLECT OUT THERE, UNLESS I GET A GOOD PRICE ON A VICTORIAN COFFIN, A MEDICAL SKELETON, A SHRUNKEN HEAD, OR A HORSE-DRAWN HEARSE. SO TODAY WE FELL A LITTLE SHORT, BUT I DID GET AN AUTHOGRAPHED COPY OF CANADIAN WRITER, MICHAEL ONDAATJE'S "THE ENGLISH PATIENT," A 1997 REPRINT OF THE ORIGINAL 1992 FIRST EDITION. I WOULD OF COURSE LIKE THE FIRST EDITION BUT JUST GETTING A SIGNED COPY BY ONDAATJE IS PRETTY RARE, AT LEAST FOR ME. I HAVE AUTOGRAPHED COPIES FROM MOST OF THE LEADING CANADIAN AUTHORS, BUT GETTING HIS AUTOGRAPH HAS BEEN MUCH MORE DIFFICULT. IT IS A FINE CONDITION COPY, WHICH MAKES UP FOR THE FACT IT ISN'T A FIRST EDITION. THE SECOND BOOK I GOT, FOR MY CANADIAN REFERENCE LIBRARY, IS NICELY CONSERVED, LARGE FORMAT SOFTCOVER EDITION OF THE BIOGRAPHY, "COLVILLE," BY DAVID BURNETT, A 1983, ART GALLERY OF ONTARIO RELEASE, WELL RESPECTED ARTIST ALEX COLVILLE (SEE GRAPHIC OF BOOK). THIS IS ONE I DON'T HAVE, AND ALTHOUGH I'D LIKE TO HAVE THE HARDCOVER RELEASE, THIS WILL DO NICELY UNTIL THEN. I DO HAVE AN EXTENSIVE LIBRARY OF CANADIAN ART BOOKS, AND AUCTION GUIDES, PLUS A FEW SIGNIFICANT AUTOGRAPHS OF CANADIAN PAINTERS. I MAY NOT BE ABLE TO AFFORD THE ART PANELS THEMSELVES, BUT I'LL GLADLY PURSUE THE MUCH LESS EXPENSIVE BIOGRAPHIES AND EXHIBIT FOLIOS.

I ALSO PICKED UP AN ANTIQUE REFERENCE GUIDE BOOK, ENTITLED, "DAVID DICKINSON - THE ANTIQUES BUYER," IN HARDCOVER, 1999 EDITION. I DO POSSESS MANY BIOGRAPHIES FROM THOSE FOLKS WHO HAVE SPENT THEIR LIVES IN THE ANTIQUE TRADE, (BOOKS, ART AND FURNITURE) AND THIS IS A GOOD ONE. EVEN FOR US, WITH OVER THIRTY YEARS IN THE BUSINESS, WE STILL HAVE LOTS TO LEARN, AND DICKINSON'S BOOK GIVES US A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE WE WANT TO KNOW ABOUT.

"If there is one thing I would say to you which has stood me in good stead through the years, it would be simply, 'buy quality.' It may seem expensive on the day and you might wonder what on earth you've done the day after, but it's my experience that quality wins out in every aspect of antique buying and selling." writes Dickinson. I concur. Of course, there are a lot of points to consider before this, so that in the antique domain, whichever avenue you wish to take, you must not short-change yourself of education and enlightenment. "My early experience of going to antique shops, going to sales, going to fairs, looking, touching, getting my hands on, not being scared to ask questions, perhaps making one or two mistakes along the way, but all the time soaking it up like a sponge, and learning, learning, learning, served to 'get my eye in.' It was also great fun," he writes. "Getting your eye in, sums up how you can become an expert, how you can gain knowledge and appreciation until you reach that sublime point when you look at a piece and instinctively know that 'it stands right'." He begins the book by recalling that, "At school I was always swapping marbles and generally trading small things as a matter of course. And although we didn't have a car, I was always looking at other people's and admiring them. I can remember running alongside particularly flashy cars, not with any degree of envy, but saying 'Mister, it's magnificent! Can I have a look at it?' I wanted to taste all the experiences and learn about the very best, never from an envious point of view but because I admired it.

"I started buying for myself in a small way with jam pans and small oak chairs, selling them on to other dealers, perhaps making a few pounds; but I always had big eyes. Even if I couldn't afford the best quality then, I always thought that some day I would be up there with the big boys. My natural inclination, when I was bidding for the coal scuttle was to look longingly at the Georgian table. I'd say to myself, 'I think it's wonderful and I want to buy it, and some day I will'."

Mr. Dickinson notes that, "But, although I had a taste for beautiful things in those early days, I didn't have any knowledge of the styles of master designers. I didn't know a Chipendale from a Hepplewhite; while if someone had mentioned the work of fine English cabinet maker, Gillows of Lancaster, I'd have looked at them blankly. And I would have been astonished at the idea that one day I would actually buy such pieces, and for very large sums of money." He comments, "The joy of antiques comes not only from knowing their history but also from understanding the quality of craftsmanship involved in their making. Appreciating a room full of beautiful objects such as these, has a lifetime of learning in it." You can find this book online via the Advance Book Exchange, by entering the title and the author. I strongly recommend this book, if you are interested in furthering your investment knowledge in antiques. This is a well organized, effective, inspiring glimpse into the world of antique collecting and dealing.

"Like me, you might start off collecting jam pans or a little country chair. Whatever it is, it arouses your curiosity. What is it? What was it used for? Where did it come from? Who did it live with? Old objects have a fascination and nostalgia about them; and as you learn about them you tend to hone your tastes. And the more you know about the craftsmanship and the skill of the designers, the more you start to see what they saw. There is a lot of new terminology to absorb in buying antiques, but it's not the words that matter, so much as what they imply or mean. You hear people say, 'Well that stands very well,' but what does that mean? It means that when the man designed that bookcase, perhaps without even a piece of paper or a pencil, he instinctively knew what looked right because he had years of experience of understanding about balance, style and proportion. If you see something and you instinctively think, 'It looks a bit dumpy - I wonder why?' It's probably because it was never meant to look like that. It's been cut down, for instance, and has lost its legs. All good furniture has a certain line to it, a certain look, and you'll acquire that appreciation. The more you see, the more examples you study, the more you'll recognize it. I recognize it without even thinking. When I walk into a preview at an auction, if I see a table and my immediate thoughts are, 'it's too low,' its because it is too low. I know it's been cut down. It doesn't stand right and I know it doesn't. Years of experience have taught me this, because I've seen over 300 examples." This is a good and honest look at the antique industry, and as a handy advisor, can save you thousands of dollars, by teaching you how to be thorough in your study of period furnishings, for example……., before investing heavily in pieces you're not quite sure about. Actually, you will appreciate fully, that "being not quite sure," is the absolute reason, to reconsider making a bid, or initiating a purchase. You have more reading to do, more experience to acquire. In time, you will know for sure what, and when, to bid on an investment antique.

The investment value of an antique table, for example, that has been cut down, loses substantially as an "antique" and becomes an just interesting piece of old furniture. If you are paying the antique value of the piece, in a shop or at an auction, it has to pass the quality and authenticity test. A lot of dealers will tell you what the problems are, with "as is" items, because they want to protect and maintain their customer loyalty. I can remember, a strange situation, when Suzanne and I decided to purchase a nice, round oak dining room table, with two leaves, from a local antique dealer. I told the proprietor, who I knew quite well, that I wanted six original press back chairs go with the table. He had at least four groupings, and when he took me around to see them, every time I went for the chairs I liked, he shook his head. He did that three times, on the first three lots of press backs. On the fourth, he nodded. What that meant, by the way, was that the first three groupings were re-production press-backs that, while looking quite old, were no more than thirty years off the factory floor. I wasn't particularly happy about this, and I didn't buy the table or the chairs. I was writing an antique and collectibles column at the time, and I just didn't like the idea of being warned off pieces, just because I was a friend of the dealer, and as a columnist who might, if feeling ripped-off, might have written a story about the secrets of the industry, I'm also a member. There are dealers who would not tell you a table was cut down, or had replacement pieces. If I remember correctly, an antique piece can have up to 25 percent replacement pieces, to cover damage, without seriously losing its "antique" status. Antique, in respect to furniture, for example, would mean having an age of 100 years old. I think this is clearly defined for customs purposes, for transporting declared "antique" pieces between Canada, the United States, and Europe specifically. The key here, is to know your stuff, in advance, so you can question a dealer in this regard. If you "stump" the dealer, and they truly don't know if a piece has been altered, make sure you're the one who knows for sure. It pays to be smarter than the dealer.

I remember buying a pottery tea pot that was made by a friend of mine in Muskoka. While we have purchased pottery cups and a pitcher from the studio, I was tempted, one day, at a flea market in Bracebridge, to buy one of the gentleman's teapots being offered by a vendor. Now Suzanne and I both knew, well in advance of asking the price, that the tea pot was worth more than forty dollars new, and that if it was in good shape, ten dollars on the rebound wouldn't be too bad. Here's the thing. We knew what the pot was worth, new and used, and we also understood clearly, the person we knew running the booth, was a scamp if ever there was one. Suzanne went over the piece carefully, and inspected it for cracks and chips, before asking the woman what the price was. When the vendor spotted us examining the pottery, she threw out a price of $20.00. "It's a signed piece you know. It's a genuine Muskoka antique." Nonsense of course, as it was no more than five years old. True, it was signed. Suzanne went to put it back on the table, and the price dropped by ten bucks. Suzanne said she would gladly take it for five dollars, and the vendor shot back, "I need to get seven dollars for it." I don't haggle myself, as a principle, but Suzanne is pretty good at it. She runs all our special sales, and yard sales here at Birch Hollow, and it's often been said of her, that if the ghost of Will Rogers saddled-up to her, at one of the sales, and wanted to make a deal, she'd gnaw the spirit right out of him. (Will was one of Hollywoods best known, and true to life, horse-traders, who always claimed he got the better deal) "Okay, I'll give you seven bucks. But I want it wrapped." I think the vendor mumbled something like, "I hate that woman….she'd skin a louse for its tallow!" Can't be sure about that, but Suzanne is a blue-ribbon haggler, no doubt about it. Got it home, washed it out, put some hot water in it for a trial run, and the sucker leaked like a sieve. Right beside the handle was a tiny crack that you couldn't see even in the sunlight. So we put a plant in it, and resolved to get even with the lady when she shows up at our next yard sale. It was stupid on our part doing this, just because we saw a perceived bargain. We vowed we'd buy direct the next time, and we know the potter will give us a guarantee, should something like a leak develop on an otherwise mint condition arts and crafts piece.

I don't know how many people have told me this story, over the past 30 years, after I tell them I'm an antique dealer. "Oh so, you're an antique dealer are you," they ask. "Well then you've heard this story, haven't you?" Well, I let them have their folly, at my expense. So they set up the story like this. "We had a friend over to the house the other night. It was a beautiful moonlit night, and we decided to go for a little walk down the avenue. We could hear, from quite a distance, the rhythmic thumping, coming from a neighbor's back shed. When we got a clear view of the out-building behind the house, we could see through the window, beneath an overhanging lamp, the silhouette of a man, whipping what appeared to be a chain, from over his shoulder, and whomping it down without mercy, on something or other in that building. There was also a sort of grunting, groaning coming from the same shed, in between the wraps against an unidentified object. Over and again, the figure pounded down what appeared, in the light, to be a thick length of rusted chain. The visitor, standing with her mouth hanging open, asked "What on earth is that man doing in there? He's not hurting someone is he?" "When we first moved here, someone told us our neighbor had a violent temper, and he could get rough very quickly if things weren't working out the way he wanted them too," the neighbors chortled in unison with the visitor, still staring intently as the silhouette kept up the cadence, as if the pace keeper on a dragon boat. "Tell me he's not beating his child or his wife," she asked, with a look of concern in her eyes. "Oh nothing like that," they laughed. "Well then what's going on in that shed," she asked more firmly, as if ready to trot down the hill and confront the man in the midst of some dastardly deed. "No, no, no……Bill's an antique dealer, and he's just distressing a piece of pine."

I don't know how many versions of this story I've heard? More than a dozen. Truth is, I've known this too happen. Distressing a piece of pine, such as a replacement top for an original table base, helps match the appearance of legs and top, such that you just might be fooled into thinking the pine surface is original. Now most dealers I know, would warn a buyer, that the top was new, and distressed purposely. But there are always exceptions, and there is truth to the old carney saying, "There's a sucker born every minute." We still have the pottery teapot-planter. Well it can happen with a table just the same. If you're paying the investment price of a actual harvest table built by pioneer hands, a chain and new planking shouldn't enter into it. But it's buyer beware. So don't think for a moment, there is any short-cut to becoming a careful, shrewd, intelligent antique buyer……and most of us veterans of the industry, could write our own "we got screwed" books as well. I've had many misadventures, and they have cost me a lot of money in the past. So from my own experience, and what I see out there on the antique hunt, there are a lot of disasters yet to occur……just not to me. I might be able to save you as well.

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