The Art Elevator Episode #47: Appraising African Fashion with Makeba Boateng

It was a delightful experience interviewing Makeba Boateng, APR of Boaten Appraisal Service about appraising African fashion on The Art Elevator Podcast! Larissa Wild and I are excited to share her radiant personality and deep expertise and passion for African fashion with you all! I especially enjoyed Makeba's comments about sustainability in African fashion, which helped shift my thinking about how I can be more sustainable in my choices going forward.

Anyone who wants to immediately brighten their day (which is all of us, right?), please go watch our latest episode and be inspired by Makeba! We want to extend a big thank you to our episode sponsor Appraisal Scribe - thank you Lydia Thompson for supporting the podcast and helping us share insights from experts in the appraisal and art world!

Samara Interiors Installation at the Washington Design Center Holiday Fete

Photograph of me by Kaz Sasahara for the Washington Design Center

This month I had the pleasure of attending the Washington Design Center's Holiday Fête in support of my dear friend Samara Goodman, head of Samara Interiors LLC. Samara created a beautiful holiday design installation in the DC showroom of STARK Carpet cleverly incorporating the Holiday Fête theme of "Parisian Holiday." In full disclosure, I had the gift of being able to do creative director-style brainstorming and advising about historical accuracy details with Samara in the process of developing her design concept (thank you for letting me have an insider's view of this Samara!) so now I get to share with you all the genius of her vision!

To set the scene, the DC area has been very fortunate to have the exhibition "Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment" on view at the National Gallery of Art this fall, which Samara saw and loved. This sparked her idea to use the exhibit as the foundation for weaving in the Parisian theme, and to ground the holiday tablescapes in a fun play on another famous French Impressionist painting which also happens to be in DC, Pierre-Auguste Renoir's painting "The Luncheon of the Boating Party," which is in The Phillips Collection. Renoir's color choices in the painting informed the elements Samara wove into the STARK installation, from the blue tablecloth speaking to the blue dresses the women are wearing to the red stripes above them that appear on the table below the mirror. Samara's design concept wittily played on the Boating Party's luncheon, and envisioned that the ghostly guests were now ready to sit down for a beautiful holiday dinner. I adored the STARK poms (used to design the colors in custom carpets) that Samara featured as dessert in the main tablescape, and my favorite part is WHO is coming to dinner... If you look at the photograph of the placecard I've included carefully, you'll get a clue about the identity of the ghostly dinner guests.

Samara and her design team impressively created a multi-part installation including two displays flanking the front entrance to the showroom: one evoking the visitor's [time] travel back to Victorian Paris with a beautiful STARK rug reminiscent of antique maps and a stack of vintage suitcases featuring an illuminated Eiffel Tower. The second vignette leads visitors through a portal back in time to glimpse a Victorian Parisian couple's evening at the opera, complete with top hat and opera glasses that have been placed on antique chairs awaiting them to return shortly. The artist's dinner party welcomes visitors in the main showroom area, and visible off the elevators is an additional installation Samara created showcasing a beautiful STARK rug in blue tones that accentuates the blue candles in the menorah.

I had the best time meeting the STARK DC team and appreciate how welcoming and friendly they all were. It was a joy to support my friend and witness her design brilliance! Congratulations Samara! (Pictures by me other than my photo by Kaz Sasahara)

Appraisers Association Annual Conference 2024

I'm still pinching myself to believe that my wonderful experience at the Appraisers Association of America annual conference in New York City last week actually happened! I'm incredibly grateful to have received the Regional Award and join my distinguished fellow awardees Jay Grimm, Alasdair Nichol (I'm reposting this photo kindly originally shared by Alasdair), Jessica Eisenthal, and Mary Pontillo. I want to extend a huge thanks to Executive Director Linda Selvin and Betty Krulik, AAA for their mentorship, the inspiring example of their leadership, and the way they seek to create opportunities for others to learn and grow. That philosophy is all too rare in this world and is so deeply appreciated. I want to thank Patrick McIntyre for always being such a joy to collaborate with and all the ways he has created opportunities for me to contribute--the Appraisers Association of America is so lucky to have you! I'm grateful to Teresa Caputo and Yasemin Yeldener and Lisbeth Sandø for your incredible work--including the amazing conference sessions! My fellow Membership Committee colleagues are a delight to work with and we truly have made it "the fun committee" as Betty said! I was blown away by the kindness and generosity I received from all my appraisal colleagues attending the conference, and it was particularly rewarding for me to meet so many recent CASP graduates and speak with them about their blooming appraisal careers.

To be able to finally meet people I treasure in person, to receive such a kind welcome from my respected peers, and to immerse myself in beauty and community was very moving to me and I'm so very grateful! I extend my deepest congratulations to the other award recipients and to the Appraisers Association of America for hosting a fantastic conference!

Regional Award from the Appraisers Association

I am deeply honored to receive the Regional Award from the Appraisers Association and am so grateful for this recognition. Joining the Appraisers Association and receiving their expert training impacted my life and career in a profoundly positive way.

I started their educational program in 2012 while working as an auction house specialist after a colleague who'd completed their training recommended I invest in myself & my career by enrolling in their classes (thank you, Sam!) The expert training I received from their wonderful instructors gave me the skills to expand my connoisseurship and merge it with detailed legal & economic knowledge plus the appraisal theory & methodology needed to write appraisal reports.  

Once I finished and joined the organization as a member, I founded my company Artifactual History Appraisal. I remain continuously grateful that I'm able to support myself financially & help others thanks to this profession and the training and continued support the Appraisers Association provides to their members.

In more recent years I've been delighted to have the opportunity to work with the organization's incredible staff in roles such as serving on their Membership Committee.

I want to thank Patrick McIntyre, the brilliant Membership Manager of the Appraisers Association, for giving me the chance to contribute to the work of the committee and for always being open to my ideas. It's truly a joy to collaborate with you!

I'm grateful to Linda Selvin, the amazing Executive Director, for her continued support and encouragement and the inspiring example of her leadership.  I have learned and grown so much from you thanks to your mentorship and it means a great deal to me.

It's always such a pleasure working with Yasemin Yeldener, Teresa Caputo, and Lisbeth Sandø at the Appraisers Association! I feel so lucky to be part of an organization where the entire team is kind, smart, creative & artistic!

My fellow Membership Committee members are a delight & inspiration.

Thank you Betty Krulik, AAA for your encouragement, kindness, & the example of your leadership.

To receive this honor from people I care about & respect is a rare gift and I'm so grateful.