Looking Back, Looking Ahead
Winter is a time for reflection for many. We are taking a moment to relive the excitement and success of the past year and carry it with us into 2022 as we prepare for our upcoming exhibit and sale, “Parallel Visions: Shaker Design and American Folk Art.” We hope you’ll join us in celebrating the resilience of the Americana market as evidenced by our recent achievements highlighted below and that it will stoke anticipation for Parallel Visions.
2021 began on high note with the online Winter Show and the launch of Americana Insights. More than half the pieces exhibited in our virtual booth sold to established collectors, including first time clients. A full recap of this successful show is also available on our blog, here. The slideshow above features some memorable items from the Show.
January 2021 also marked the launch of Americana Insights, a free/open-access and non-profit online journal focusing on traditional American folk art and Americana established by our longtime friend Jane Katcher in consultation with David Schorsch. The project is assisted by a distinguished board of museum professionals and published scholars. We encourage you to take the time to explore the important resource that is Americana Insights—from the essays and briefs to the On Now section which aggregates exhibitions and events of interest—and to sign up for its seasonal newsletter to be notified of new additions to the site.
Several richly illustrated essays and briefs have been published by Americana Insights in the course of its first year, including the essay “Jewelry in American Folk Portraits” by our own Eileen Smiles. Eileen’s essay was also featured in a weekly email distributed by our friends at the Magazine Antiques highlighting new and noteworthy contributions in the decorative arts world.
The 2021 Philadelphia Show returned for its second year online and brought with it a competitive group of collectors and clients. We took the opportunity to reflect on David’s forty years of experience as a dealer and how he began his career at the Philadelphia Show at the tender age of fourteen. Highlights from this successful show are featured above.
In June 2021, the American Folk Art Museum opened the landmark exhibition “American Weathervanes: The Art of the Winds” curated by our friends Bob Shaw (also the Editor of Americana Insights) and Emelie Gevalt. Bob authored the first comprehensive scholarly book on weathervanes to accompany the exhibition, which you can learn more about here. We were proud that over 30 weathervanes featured across the exhibition and catalog were at one point bought and sold by us.
The Magazine Antiques launched a YouTube channel publishing short explainer videos covering various topics in the decorative arts and design fields. David contributed to the video “All About American Weathervanes” which was sponsored by our friends at Olde Hope Antiques.
Certainly, one of our favorite aspects of 2021 was the return of in-person shows. We participated in the 64th Annual New Hampshire Antiques Dealers Association (NHADA) Show at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Manchester, New Hampshire; our first live, in-person show in over a year. The warmth and camaraderie felt at the NHADA Show is unique in our opinion, and the early morning line of attendees that wrapped around the block was encouraging.
Although The Winter Show has been postponed until spring 2022, we have decided to forge ahead with our booth exhibit and catalog, “Parallel Visions: Shaker Design and American Folk Art,” on view in our Woodbury gallery by appointment and available as an ebook on our website. We have great expectations for 2022 and look forward to noteworthy sales, exciting finds, and good friends new and old in the year ahead.