John William Godward. "Summer Afternoon." English.
The Palm Beach Jewelry, Art, and Antiques Show was held in the Palm Beach
Convention Center and is said to be the largest in the world. There are several
hundred exhibitors. I decided not to rush this year, so I spent two complete days
at the show, meeting and talking with many of the gallery owners.
Antonio Melissa Gallery from Rome, Italy.
I met Mr. Melissa Jr. and had a nice long chat. He brought all of these pieces, plus many
more you cannot see. Note the small picture frame on the table in the foreground.
It is micro-mosaic, and the Melissas are the largest dealers of micro-mosaic in the world.
"St. Peter's and Castel San Angelo in Micro-mosaic."
The image was made in Rome of tiny pieces of glass the size of a grain of rice.
Tiffany and Co. "Silver Tureen." U.S.
Tiffany and Co. "Silver Coffee and Tea Service." U.S.
Cliff Lee. "Three Dragon Vase." Crackle-Glaze.
I met Cliff and his wife. Cliff is Chinese-American and is trying to revive the
most unusual glazes, colors, and forms of classic Chinese pottery. This vessel
makes use of a crackle glaze, but also delicately carved fantastic figures,
all in porcelain.
Cliff Lee. "Two Yellow Porcelain Vessels."
"Pink and White Diamond Necklace."
The show had more than four dozen large jewelry displays. Three of them were
particularly rich and gorgeous. Necklaces like this started at $465,000.
But the women of Palm Beach have many occasions each year to wear jewelry like
this, so there is a huge demand for fine jewelry.
"Emerald and Diamond Necklace."
"Emerald and Diamond Necklace."
"Sapphire and Diamond Necklace."
I learned about tanzanite for the first time, and I liked some pieces in
tanzanite even more than sapphire. There is that slight purple tinge.
"Sapphire and Diamond Bracelet."
William Winstanley. "Portrait of George Washington." 1790.
Winstanley was a young English painter in Philadelphia at the end of
the 18th century. Washington hired him to do some portraits; the demand
for his portrait was very great from towns and civic groups.
Thomas Hudson. "Prudentia de Parc." English 18th century.
Three famille rose Chinese Export Porcelain Urns.
Two excellent dealers showed Chinese export porcelain = made especially in China for
the European market. Famille Rose had soft pastel colors, especially pink.
Decoration is overglaze = it was painted on top of the clear glaze and fired again.
A garniture of five vessels in famille rose on a black ground.
These were meant for display on the mantel of an aristocratic mansion, not
for functional use. The rooster motif is common.
A garniture set of five blue and white porcelain vessels.
The Chinese invented blue-and-white porcelain 500 years before they brought it to Europe.
The white body of the vase was painted with cobalt blue and then a clear glaze was
applied to the surface, so it is called an underglaze decoration.
Bernard Buffet. "Still Life." French.
Bernard Buffet. "Clown Violinist." French.
Marta Klonowska. "Red Poodle." Shards of Glass.
Luigi Benzoni. "Face." Gold leaf in clear Murano glass. Italy.
Massimo Lunardon. "Aliens." Murano Glass. Italy.
Massimo does these playful figures, but he also designs and makes glasses
and plates and vases and chandeliers for the most expensive stores.
Jennifer McCurdy. "Gilded Water Lily." Porcelain with Gold Leaf.
Jennifer lives on Martha's Vineyard and creates these amazing pieces of ceramics.
Jennifer McCurdy. "Gilded Fire." Porcelain Ceramic.
Frederick Got Gallery, Paris.
Paintings by Hunt Slonem, large sculpture by Jacques Lebescond of France.
Richard Smith. "Hare." England. Bronze.
Smith seems to be extremely popular, and a number of galleries handled his work.
The patinas he is able to achieve on the bronze statues are exceptional and very
difficult to achieve.
Art Deco Room with life-sized silver hounds.
Two Fernand Leger Prints on wall. Two Gold candlelabras. Side table with inlaid wood.
Inlaid Wood Panel on Front of Console.
Jenny Wheatly. "Havana Chatters." English.
Jenny is an English artist who enjoys traveling and painting
wherever she goes. Her scenes of Havana were bright and vibrant.
Ray Gross. "Gucci Loafers."
I met Ray several years ago, and he likes to talk. The shoes are made entirely of
porcelain, as are everything he makes.
Ray Gross. Everything is made of porcelain; the tubes of paint
are about five feet high.
Alfons Mucha. "Hallowed be Thy Name." Czech.
Mucha was one of the leaders of Art Nouveau, with its organic shapes
and intricate patterns. This is one page of a large folio of pages decorating
each line of the prayers "Our Father" and "Hail Mary."
James Austin Murray. "A Half Remembered Time."
The entire work is created with a single stroke, using a special
tool with a number of wallpaper-paste brushes screwed together.
It is perfectly flat, but looks like it undulates and has great depth.
J. A. Murray and Jane Manus. "Untitled." Steel.
This a maquette or model for a sculpture forty feet high erected in front
of a hotel.
Persian Carpets from "The Emporium" in Ankara, Turkey.
This dealer had the equivalent of three booths filled with gorgeous traditional as well
as contemporary carpets. They were all of the highest quality. He sold many.
These are traditional serapi carpets.
A beautiful serapi carpet at The Emporium.
A gorgeous carpet in soft greys with intricate patterns.
Claude Venard. "Still Life." French.
Richard Smith. "Curious Otter." Bronze.
A 19th century Copper Weathervane.
Steinitz Gallery Display
Steinitz is one of the finest antiques dealers in the world and located in Paris. It was
started by Bernard Steinitz and now run by his son, Benjamin. All the wood paneling
of two rooms was brought to the show. If you live in Palm Beach and have money,
you can buy all your elegant furnishings here in one afternoon. Highest quality.
Everything from classical busts to Sevres porcelain vases to inlaid tables.
Springtime in Chicago - coming soon.
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