New York 'Antiques Week 2010'

With such a bounty of antiques dealers here on the East End, one should seldom have to travel west to “Le Grande Pomme.” But when East End dealers hang closed signs in their windows stating that they are attending “Antiques Week” in New York City, then I’m definitely going to go where they’re going.

The last few weeks of January draw dealers, collectors, foreign buyers and antiques aficionados to Manhattan from all corners of the United States, Europe, Asia and South America for a few illustrious design world events. And with the low dollar and the questionable American economy, foreign languages were definitely the modus operandi this week.

Besides the “Americana Auctions” and “Old Masters Week” at Sotheby’s; “Old Master and 19th Century Paintings, Drawings and Watercolors,” as well as the porcelain auction at Christie’s; and all manner of antiques at Doyle New York and Tepper Galleries et al, late January ushers in the venerable “Winter Antiques Show” at the Park Avenue Armory and “Antiques at the Armory” on Lexington Avenue.

The “Winter Antiques Show” presented a lush exhibit this year, and despite the indicators, business was brisk and the aisles were crowded. Always informative is the corporate-sponsored display at the armory entrance where curators have gathered an ensemble of vetted, mouthwatering pieces collected from museums.

One of the displays was a spectacular looking glass, sporting extraordinary carving with asymmetrical “cee” scrolls and “ess” curves, cascades, grottos and Chinese motifs all rolled harmoniously into this rococo splendor from 1763. Most fascinating was the elegant stone-painted finish considered quite beautiful at the time and so au-courant-Belgique now.

Also on display was a curtain treatment in pristine condition dating from 1824. This particular treat was created for a Beacon Hill window by a friend in Paris who was instructed to create curtains that were “in the best style, rich but not gaudy.” The curtains were striking to view, especially since we are used to seeing period fabrics as being drab.

The dealers here ran the gamut. Carswell Rush Berlin (who doesn’t have a storefront), one of the foremost specialists in American classical furniture, centered his exhibit on a restrained but elegant secretaire á abattant made in 1820 by the famed workshop of Duncan Phyfe. Mr. Phyfe, whose home shop and showroom was located on Fulton Street, established himself as the greatest furniture maker in New York of his period (1768-1854).

Mr. Phyfe’s work guided the tastes of New Yorkers with his restrained neoclassic point of view. Seldom do we see pieces in this remarkable condition, and despite this period’s often clunky lines, Mr. Phyfe’s pieces are highly edited and terribly refined.

The Gerald Peters Gallery nearly stole the show with its parcel-gilt bronze reliefs mounted on hunter green velvet walls surrounding a 12-foot limestone urn. I cherish seeing architectural relief and ornament that have been rescued from Manhattan’s past. Commissioned in 1914 for the American Telephone & Telegraph building, located on the lower end of Manhattan, these panels reflect the confluence of Greek friezes, art deco and Chinese art.

The artist Paul Manship depicts the four elements—air, fire, water and earth—as powerful bodies whose musculature and anatomical parts as well are defined in bronze. As described by the gallery, “exquisitely chased high relief gilt detail that envelopes each figure gives the allegorical image an ethereal yet glamorous quality.”

Hopefully, these panels will be purchased by a local museum. But as elements, they would certainly look stunning in any East End home.

Cohen and Cohen, wishing to take the starch out of Chinese porcelain’s staid reputation, created a whimsical quasi-retro cartoon of a pagoda to display a formidable collection of Chinese export porcelain.

Generally, New York demands not only the finest quality but also a twist to surprise the jaded. Folk artist Peter Hunt, who has oft been described as a self-made celebrity and relentless entrepreneur, made a name for himself from the 1930s through the 1960s creating peasant decorations and art. At the show, his work was represented in an enormous charming quilt. Angels, hearts and peasant village structures are stitched onto plain muslin, showcasing an informed awareness of contemporary art along with a sophisticated interpretation of folk motifs. What a delightful wall hanging for your converted potato barn!

Carousel horses are somehow a 1950s collector’s cliché, but their provenance is actually right out of Coney Island, circa 1880s. When in remarkable condition (no matter how slasher-movie creepy their frozen expressions may seem), one stands up and takes notice. One such piece from Jeffrey Tillou Antiques gathered many a bridge-and-tunnel tour group.

Lost City Arts always presents a provocative display of arresting objects and this year was no different. Quite controversial was Harry Bertoia’s (of modernist chair fame) “Massive Bush Form” from the 1960s. This masterwork of thousands of ovular bronze buds, coppery stems and branches creates a rhythmic surface of bubbling, evolving verdigris. Huge in scale and somewhat out of place in an indoor setting, this piece must find its way out to the East End in one of our fabulous public gardens.

Kentshire Galleries hosted a seaweed marquetry chest attributed to Queen Anne’s royal cabinetmaker, Gerrit Jensen, circa 1690. Intricate swirls of elm, fruitwood and walnut veneers adorn this outstanding piece whose light colorations could whet the appetites of today’s collectors. It is a piece of art as well as a piece of furniture. A kingly price tag accompanied this piece as well.

Shuttling downtown to the “Antiques at the Armory” show on Lexington Avenue, one could find fewer investment pieces, but more affordable, stylish and quite negotiable offerings. These dealers (many familiar to our fair island’s summer shows), stockpile their unusual eye-catching, eccentric and offbeat pieces that can lasso any jaded New Yorker’s attention.

Praiseworthy Antiques displayed a collection of unusual Americana, including an African-American polychrome cabinet in kaleidoscopic, fragmented coloration. Other Praiseworthy finds included a walnut carved screen featuring New Jersey flora, an assembly of baseball mitts and a commercial portrait of a 1940s family celebrating canned orange juice.

Yet another booth brought forth an actual East African chieftain’s throne, complete with original leather hangings.

In yet another display, Margaret Doyle took two 1930s automobile headlight lenses and perfectly mounted them on brushed nickel stands; a modernist triumph with a common industrial element—so effective for our area.

Speaking of individual talent, Susan Parrish (of Susan Parrish Antiques) is still, thankfully, gracing the shows with her discerning eye and her cache of extraordinary artifacts. Front and center, she hung a remarkable quilt fashioned in the “New York Beauty” design with concentric rings of “echo quilting” framing the sunburst features. Could anything be more graphically appropriate?

And, of course, even if the dealer has less than special merchandise, the stories behind some of the pieces might attract a sale. Mano Vayis regaled me with the reupholstery job he had executed on some East Lake-style armchairs. Whether you found them attractive or not, the bottle green leather was attributed to recent leftovers from London’s House of Lords reupholstery commission. Could be an interesting tidbit to mention while entertaining.

Overall, the good news was that business was vigorous, the dealers were upbeat and the prices have bowed slightly to the tenor of the times. And though the weather was frigid, the armories were bustling with outstanding merchandise.

Marshall Watson is a nationally recognized interior and furniture designer who lives and works in the Hamptons and New York City. Reach him at 105 West 72nd Street, Suite 9B, New York, NY 10023.