"How to Obtain Quality Art and Antique Appraisals" Article Published on Home Transition Pros

Recently I was honored when Anna Novak, CEO of Home Transition Pros, invited me to contribute an article to the Home Transition Pros blog. Home Transition Pros is a full-service team of transition specialists helping individuals and families downsize and move into a new space. This process often prompts questions about the art and antiques in a home, and my article focused on “How to Obtain Quality Art & Antique Appraisals” to help guide readers who find themselves in need of an appraisal. You can read the entire article and learn more about Home Transition Pros and their services at https://hometransitionpros.com/how-to-obtain-quality-art-and-antique-appraisals/

New Uses for Old Things: Thoughts in Support of Mixing Antiques in Modern Interiors

My latest article for Worthwhile Magazine™ shares my personal thoughts in support of mixing antiques in modern interiors. My article is republished below or you can also read it online at Worthwhile Magazine™:

“This is an opinion piece, and a manifesto of sorts, born out of my personal thoughts working in the appraisal field about the widespread confusion and discomfort about how to mix antiques and art in contemporary homes. 

For many years now, there has been an underlying pressure in mainstream culture that all furnishings in your home have to match cohesively, be from one distinct stylistic era, and also ideally be brand new, which has helped contribute to the commercial success of large furniture chains.  These stores offer new mass-produced inventory that satisfies these cultural expectations and also removes the perceived risk of having bad taste by making all the design decisions ahead of time for the customers.  Looking at it from a historical perspective, many notable 20th century modernists such as Georgia O’Keeffe and Charles Sheeler frequently mixed multiple design eras in interiors, so the expectation that everything must match is a much more recent development.

Skewering unique or atypical interior design choices has become a couch pastime in the nation (and yes, I’ve enjoyed my fair share of those television shows too, so I write this well aware of my hypocrisy!)  Considering the phenomenon over time though from the perspective of my professional role as an appraiser, I think these trends of popularizing design judgment as a form of entertainment have contributed to making many feel uncomfortable expressing their individual originality and stylistic preferences in their own interiors. 

Due to these conditioned fears of ridicule for “getting it wrong,” many people now feel more comfortable buying all of the items pictured on a catalog page of one of the popular mass-produced chain furniture stores, because they have the safety of knowing it was an already “approved” group of furnishings so they can’t make a mistake if they replicate the catalog page within their homes.  Many stores even offer coordinating mass-produced printed canvases to hang on the wall above the furniture instead of original one-of-a-kind artwork. 

This has been a real loss for our collective creativity and has robbed many of the opportunity to build a deep and intimate relationship with their home environments by selecting pieces that speak to them personally, regardless of whether they have been culturally approved as matching or being “in good taste.”  From my professional perspective as an art and antique appraiser, I can also see how this societal practice has contributed to the softening of the art and antique market, particularly in the category of antique furniture. 

I’ve had many conversations through the years with individuals who’ve inherited beautiful antique furniture from a family member.  In talking with them, I can tell how much they are drawn to it, both for the powerful memories and the solidity of the natural wood materials (which, by the way, don’t give off toxic chemicals like many new mass-produced furniture items and don’t consume precious resources from our already-beleaguered environment), but inevitably there is a point where I hear “but they don’t match my furnishings.”  In those instances, I try to brainstorm together and envision new ways the pieces can be integrated into the individual’s interior in a way that is aesthetically pleasing to them and also suits their practical daily life. 

Interior decorator Samara Goodman of Samara Interiors says, “A person’s home should weave a visual narrative about who they are and what they love. This is best executed when decor has been curated over time, or appears as such. At Samara Interiors, our specialty is expertly blending new items with existing ones to create an elegantly curated yet fresh and updated look. Some of our favorite client treasures to work with are antiques, cherished collections, travel souvenirs, family heirlooms, and sentimental items. In one design project, we skillfully incorporated the antique curio cabinet, vintage zither, heirloom rocking chair, and watercolor painting collection with contemporary new furnishings and custom accessories to create a welcoming and cohesive living room."

Earlier this year in the magazine, we were fortunate to publish an article by furniture restorer and blogger Karla Holley of City Limit Style that detailed how she had incorporated family heirlooms in her own home, and I am so grateful for her perspective as she generously shared real-life examples with Worthwhile Magazine™ readers.  Due to confidentiality restrictions for my professional work as an appraiser, I will not be sharing real examples in this article but rather exploring different commonly encountered antique furniture forms below and offering suggestions about ways they can be repurposed in contemporary interiors.

I’m not aiming to sway anyone to betray their inherent taste, but rather trying to encourage people to increase their own trust in it.

 Some people just don’t like antiques, and that is fine.  I’m not aiming to sway anyone to betray their inherent taste, but rather trying to encourage people to increase their own trust in it.  My goal in writing this is to help people who’ve inherited something they love but don’t know how to use it or worry they can’t keep it because it doesn’t “match” their home.  I want them to feel like they have an increased range of options to consider that allow them to use and enjoy treasured antiques in their homes.

The following are some of the forms I typically encounter in my work that I think hold great potential to be incorporated creatively in contemporary interiors:

Secretary Desk

Desk illustration.jpg

Secretary desks fell out of favor when computers were introduced because a large desktop computer couldn’t fit inside them, but now that laptops are widely used this is no longer an issue.  I’ve worked quite comfortably at a laptop on secretary desks, and when I am done the laptop can slide right inside for storage.  My favorite element of secretary desks is how they close and conceal all the necessary detritus of life that can clutter open surfaces.  They are a great place to store bills (most have little interior cubbies that are the perfect size), business papers or other important documents in the lower drawers, or frequently accessed office supplies.  As soon as you close the lid back up, all you can see is a beautiful wood surface with no clutter.  They take up quite a small footprint relative for the storage capacity they provide, and I’ve long thought they are a great option for apartments or other small spaces.

China Cabinet

I often hear china cabinets referred to negatively now, and it is true they tend not to sell well due to our culture’s abandonment of formal china, but the design features of china cabinets that did such a great job protecting prized china allow them to be very useful protecting other categories of valuables that have greater importance now in modern day life.  The glass-front panels to the cabinet doors help shield delicate electronic equipment like cameras from dust.  For households worried about childproofing, china cabinets are a great way to house easily broken or potentially dangerous items in secure storage that still allows them to be seen and enjoyed.  Most china cabinets have a lower section of drawers and an upper section of glass-front panels enclosing storage shelves that begin at about the height of an adult’s waist, so the raised elevation provides added safety for (and from) small children.  These design features also protect items in households with rambunctious pets rather than children.  Most china cabinets also can be locked for additional security. 

Tea Trolley

Tea Trolley illustration.jpg

Tea trolleys make fabulous bar carts (check out how Karla transformed her grandfather’s toolbox into a bar cart here).  They also are well-suited for portable storage, such as a rolling center for craft or art supplies in a studio, a flexible prep space in a kitchen, or an entertainment center holding a television.  Tea trolleys can also be an as-needed portable sideboard for people who only entertain occasionally.

Sideboard

Sideboards are stationary and generally larger in size than a tea trolley.  While they are extremely useful for their original intended use in the dining room, they are also handy to have in an entry area to store gloves, umbrellas, and the myriad things that are often discarded and dropped at the front door.  A bowl or tray resting on top can house your keys.  Due to their capacious storage, sideboards can also function well as a dresser in a bedroom.

Armoire

Armoire article illustration online.jpg

Armoires are the epitome of enclosed storage.  Traditionally used to store clothing in homes lacking built-in closets, they were popular in the era of huge and bulky television sets to be repurposed as entertainment centers (often with a hole drilled in the back for electric cords).  Now that technology has become more streamlined, I often see them disregarded and sometimes derided, but they remain exceptionally useful objects.  Do you have kid toys strewn all over your house?  Corral them in an armoire (the toys, not the kids…)  Does your crafting hobby routinely cover the dining room table?  Use the storage inside the armoire to hold all your supplies and simply open up the doors to access them when you are working.  Is your walk-in closet overflowing?  If you aren’t ready to streamline your wardrobe, you can use the armoire as auxiliary clothes storage, which ironically is back to its earlier intention.  An added plus to many antique armoires is they completely disassemble into a group of component parts, making it possible to fit them through small doorways, up a tight flight of stairs, or move them easily cross-country and just reassemble at your next destination. 

Blanket Chest

I find blanket chests to be an incredibly versatile form.  Placed at the foot of the bed they serve as a bench for putting on shoes as well as closed storage.  They also make great coffee tables around a seating area or a side table.  If you plan on putting lamps and other small items on top of them, a blanket chest can be perfect for storing the sorts of important documents you need to keep but don’t want to look at, like taxes and other documents too recent to shred.  In a kid’s room, a blanket chest makes a natural toy chest.  Blanket chests are of course also great for storing their namesake blankets.  Examples made of cedar provide some natural protection from insect damage as well. 

Drop-Leaf Table 

My drop-leaf table has lived multiple lives in our journey together.  In one life, it was a console with its leaves folded down, placed flush against the wall in a small space.  In another it stood partly open, with just one leaf up to serve as a desk working surface.  Right now, it is enjoying a life as my dining room table, with both leaves up and fully extended.  The adaptable nature of the form allows it to be incredibly versatile in a wide variety of different spaces and lifestyles.

Dining Table

Dining Table illustration.jpg

Prices for dining tables have gone down in recent years, in part because the schedule of many families sadly no longer permits them to eat together.  Dining tables are well-suited for many purposes beyond simply dining.  They are often long and rectangular in form, which makes a practical working surface for a desk, leaving room for both a computer and papers.  If children are being homeschooled or learning online, a dining table can be the home schoolroom.  Artists and crafters have room to spread out while working on a dining table’s expansive surface.  As working and schooling from home becomes more common due to the pandemic, having a sturdy, roomy working surface at a comfortable height is a valuable feature of many dining tables.”

A Client's Guide For How to Take Photographs of Art and Antiques to Send to An Appraiser

Written by Elizabeth Stewart, PhD, AAA and John Flandrick

This article was originally published in Worthwhile Magazine™ and has been republished here with the permission of the authors.

A Note from the Co-Editor: As an appraiser, I frequently invite new clients to send me pictures of their items so I can review them in advance and better assist with designing an appraisal scope of work that is most appropriate to their needs. Being able to see photographs emailed to me ahead of time by a client can reduce the client’s total project cost, alert me of the need to consult specialized reference books or outside experts, and help me assess whether the client even needs an appraisal report at all. Photographs are immensely helpful in the overall appraisal process, and as the COVID-19 pandemic disrupts the world as we knew it, they are even more important.

There are some objects that are not well-suited for evaluating through photographs. Every appraiser should use her or his own best judgment on a case-by-case basis on what is the most responsible scope of work for the objects to be appraised. The following guide is designed to help an appraiser’s clients take photographs of their items to be appraised that will be most helpful in conveying the specific connoisseurship details an appraiser needs to evaluate an item. It is one thing to say “send me pictures” and quite another thing for a new client to know what we need to see. Our field requires years of training, and it can be very challenging for someone outside of the appraisal, art, and antique industries to even know where to begin when confronted with the task of taking pictures to send to us.

I’d planned to write about this topic myself in the future because it is such a key element in the overall appraisal process, especially now, and I’d hoped to reduce client stress by preparing a systematic guide for them to follow. It was thrilling then to hear from fellow appraiser Elizabeth Stewart, PhD, AAA of Elizabeth Appraisals in California and learn that she beat me to it and has already prepared the following extremely comprehensive guide she wrote for her clients about how to photograph objects.

It’s a pleasure to share her original work here so that it will accessible to assist an even broader audience. The guide is informed by Elizabeth’s many years of work with her full-time photographer John Flandrick of Flandricka House Photography. It reflects his recommendations and insights as a professional photographer and he has also written his own “How To Photograph: A Professional Photographer’s Top Ten Tips For Photographing Objects” to help our readers included here right below Elizabeth’s object guide. Elizabeth wrote a personalized cover letter detailing her updated appraisal options reflecting the complications of the COVID-19 pandemic that she sent to her clients with this guide, and other appraisers may wish to consider writing their own cover letters for their clients.

To add a few notes of my own, I’d like to reassure readers that you don’t need to have a fancy camera to do this. The camera pictured above actually looks a lot like the one I use in my own appraisal firm for photographing client collections but your phone will be fine if that is what you have available. You may find that some of the characteristics listed below aren’t present in the object you are photographing, and that’s totally alright too. The beauty of having a comprehensive list is that it helps you assess what to look for, whether it happens to be there or not. Also, know that we as appraisers are grateful to our clients for helping us by taking pictures that allow us to better serve their needs. Thank you, Elizabeth, for sharing this guide with our readers!

-Sarah Reeder, ISA CAPP, Co-Editor of Worthwhile Magazine™ and Owner of Artifactual History® Appraisal.

VALUE CHARACTERISTICS THAT MATTER TO AN APPRAISER:

WHAT TO NOTICE AND PHOTOGRAPH

1.     FINE ART:

A.    How to photograph so an expert can see:

The author talking with a client in her temporary home office/dining room during the COVID-19 pandemic stay-at-home order

The author talking with a client in her temporary home office/dining room during the COVID-19 pandemic stay-at-home order

  • Photograph the entire piece with frame

  • Close up of “sight image” (just the image, not the frame)

  • Close up of signature and angled shot of signature

  • Shot of back with any markings

  • Shot of you measuring the piece

    • Image size only

    • Size of entire piece including the frame

B.    Characteristics; make notes on:

  • Artist

  • Date of creation

  • Where “shown,” previously exhibited, or owned (provenance)

  • Condition – front and back

    • Condition lighting: shine a flashlight to the angle of the side of an oil painting to show the raised brush strokes

  • Size (from the measuring described above)

  • Genre (what style) especially if unsigned

  • Multiple:

    • If a lithograph, etching, engraving, silkscreen, serigraph, note “fraction” (edition number, for example 37/225)

    • If a print of any type, including a photo-mechanical reproduction (better known as a poster) note if the work is signed “in the plate” meaning if the reproduction includes the signature, or if it is signed with an original or perhaps double (both in the plate and on the piece by hand) signature.

2.     SILVER:

A.    How to photograph so an expert can see:

  • Silver reflects, so shoot with dark background

  • Shoot close ups of hallmarks or any markings

  • Shoot around areas where there may have been repairs (spouts, handles)

  • Shoot any other material (glass, ivory, bone, wood) and how it is attached

  • Be aware of color changes which may not come out in photos – gold is often applied to silver (vermeil)

B.    Characteristics; make notes on:

  • Hallmark

  • Note if marked EPNS or “silver soldered;” this is not sterling

  • Sterling or silverplate? Note the thickness of hollowware. Silverplate is often thicker and heavier than sterling

  • Age

  • Style (for example, Nouveau is valuable, Rococo Revival less so)

  • Famous makers (such as Tiffany) or retailed from a famous shop (for example Liberty or Cartier)

  • Weight in troy ounces (this is different from regular ounces.  If you don’t have a troy ounce scale, measure in ounces but be sure to let the appraiser know so the conversion can be made)

3.     GLASS DECORATIVE ITEMS AND TABLEWARE/BARWARE:

A.    How to photograph so an expert can see:

  • Cut glass versus pressed – hard to see in photos. Check sharpness of the “dentils:” the cuts, which are “sharp” in cut glass; use close up feature on camera

  • Measurements, including diameter

  • Shoot in great outdoor light

  • Set closeup of the hallmark (which is often hard to find as they are not always on the bottom)

  • Blown or machine made? (The three categories are blown, blown in a mold, and machine made.) Shoot a close up of bottom, there, look for these features:

    • Pontil mark, which is where the glass blower would have attached his blow rod. These are sometimes ground down like an inverted saucer.

    • Look for a signature; good modern glass is often signed.

    • Look for a fraction or number. Fraction means a series (edition), a number may mean a style or model number.

B.    Characteristics; make notes on:

  • Sizes

  • Color (check to see if the colors of the glass seem to be in “layers” (cased glass)

  • Purpose – what was it used for? Art piece? Tableware?

  • Age

  • Maker

  • Period/date

  • Originality (Tiffany Favrile or Tiffany reproduction)

  • Condition; extremely important, but hairline damage is hard to see, especially in photos

  • Wear: on glass used often at table, you’ll see wear marks, which you should see if the piece is old and not a reproduction


4.     PORCELAIN and CERAMICS:

A.    How to photograph so an expert can see:

  • Shoot dimensions including a measuring tape in the image

  • Condition – porcelain that was used at table will have knife marks, etc. Shoot traces of wear with ‘raking’ light, which is a light source like a flashlight held at an angle while shooting

  • Repairs – on some old pieces a repair is acceptable and expected (for example Chinese Export porcelain or very old pieces)

  • Maker – or hallmark – or number – or signature of factory. Shoot also all undersides, and geometrical markings, numbers, (model, edition, series) and dates

  • Shoot closeup of decoration: hand-painted or hand-decorated design will typically not be “deep under” the clear glaze

  • Shoot whole set if there’s a set, or shoot a sample and tell the appraiser how many are included in the total set

B.    Characteristics; make notes on:

  • Set, services

  • Color, glaze

  • Condition, repairs

  • “Foot” – is the bottom rim glazed? Do you see kiln marks?

  • Signature, maker

  • Style

  • Age

  • Shape

  • Country or culture of origin

  • Decoration or enameling or painting or gilding (gold, platinum, silver)

5.     FURNITURE:

A.    How to photograph so an expert can see:

  • The whole piece front, back, bottom

  • Special shots of “joins,” dovetails, applied “gingerbread,” backs of drawers where drawer pull holes are evident, hardware, hinges, locks, escutcheons, casters, feet, mullions on glazed doors, bottoms of drawers, one shot where “air” exposure over time has NOT occurred /such as a drawer liner (board between drawer bottom and drawer slot)

  • Veneering, graining, a side shot of a veneered surface

  • Crawl underneath and shoot up

  • Labels, markings, numbers, any pencil marks

  • Dimensions – shoot yourself measuring

B.    Characteristics; make notes on:

  • Age

  • Style

  • Craftsmanship

  • Maker

  • Use

  • Country and culture of origin

  • Rarity

  • Added features (a dry bar for example)

  • Carving, decoration, additional materials (copper embossed straps for example)

  • Feet – wear and originality

  • Condition

  • Type of wood

  • Refinished?

  • Provenance

  • Paint?

  • Dust board on back, undersides

  • “Plane” marks, measurement marks, type of glues, hardware, glazing

  • Functionality

  • Genre or period

  • Geographical location

HOW TO PHOTOGRAPH:

A PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER’S TOP TEN TIPS FOR PHOTOGRAPHING OBJECTS

by John Flandrick of Flandricka House Photography


1.     Direct sunlight is not your friend; outdoor daylight in shade lighting is great, diffused light (under a tree) is excellent, or shoot by an open window, or in a garage with the door open

2.     Avoid glare on art framed with glass by angling the shot, not straight on, and never shoot art in direct sunlight (bad for art) and bad for shot

3.     If client can get a partner to hold a flashlight, shoot oil paintings with raking light: the flashlight held at a 30-degree angle to the painting’s side. And for any photo - when you are tempted to use the phone flash, try another light source first. (Like the flashlight!) You might suggest to your client to pull out a strong flashlight - before you ‘virtually visit’

4.     For glass or porcelain, do not use phone flash, use a table lamp with a shade and move it close to the object

5.     For furniture, ask the client to shoot when house is lit up (mid-day) but do not shoot pieces in direct bright light

6.     Indirect light at noon is best for most objects; ask client when house is the brightest, as this will change as the direction of the sun changes in each season through the year

7.     For valuable art, especially oil paintings, shoot outside during the “golden hour” between 4 and 5 pm

8.     Tell your clients to shoot everything with a ruler in the shot. For very large pieces, make sure you get “scale:” put a person in the frame (this can be especially important with insurance shots)

9.     Get 3 shots of any signature from varying angles

10.  Check how to read metadata on telephone shots for date stamps and research now how to take date stamped screen shot photographs as you “Face Time” a client. The technique for taking screen shots varies depending on which device you are using but can be determined by searching for “how to take screen shots on [your device model].” The date stamp is especially helpful because it establishes the exact day and time the image was captured, and documents the item’s condition at that time

Elizabeth Stewart, PhD, AAA is the owner of Elizabeth Appraisals in Santa Barbara, California and a Certified Member of the Appraisers Association of America.  You can visit her website at https://elizabethappraisals.com.

John Flandrick is a professional photographer and the owner of Flandricka House Photography. In addition to his work documenting California’s great collections of art and antiques, he also works extensively with members of the publishing and music industries.