Notes from a Trip to Palm Springs

Palm Springs holds a place in the popular imagination as a mid-century mecca, and while this may overstate its period glamor, it's not too far from the truth. Much of the landmark architecture was hidden behind gates we couldn't pass through, but there are many developments, such as Deepwell Estates and Racquet Club Estates, with some lovely, low, period style. We stayed here, and it's every bit as good as it looks:



We also had the great pleasure of meeting a bunch of folks in the mid-century furniture business. We spoke with folks at:

BLVD
Hedge
JP Denmark
Swank Interiors
Ventura

And other places whose names I can't recall. Every one of these places has items worth seeing, and people worth talking to.

It really was a great place. Looking forward to returning, and trying to decide if it will be worth it to participate in Palm Springs Modernism Week in February.

We're Open

Friday the 26th (today) through Sunday the 28th, noon to 6 p.m.

Closed next weekend though (December 3, 4, 5). Following weekend TBD.

Just come in this week, to be sure!

Appraising Mid-Century Furniture

I've had a couple folks come in and ask for appraisals. I'm happy to do it (you'd better be able to come up with ideas of value when you're buying and selling), but I also have to be honest - it's an incredibly science-less science. When I'm selling something for $500 that someone on 1stdibs is selling for $4000, there's more than a little play. When I see a pair of chairs selling at one place for more than a set of six is at another, there's a lack of consensus on value.

Why does this happen? I think there are a few reasons. First, there's really very little information available to demonstrate scarcity, or lack of it. Production runs are unknown, as are surviving quantities. The best we can do is ask "how often do we see these come up for sale?"

Second, people have differing opinions on condition issues. Does refinishing help or hurt? Is a small gouge a big problem? There doesn't seem to be strong consensus.

Third, and this is the one I can least account for, is audience and knowledge. The auction audience has little time for Knoll sofas or Paul McCobb Planner Group products. These were mass-produced and are visibly non-scarce. Nonetheless, the general consumer market seems to be willing to pay quite a bit more for these things. So should I appraise based on the possibility of an enthusiast's impulse, or based on the cool eye of the sophisticated buyer? The unlimited wallet of the SiliValley interior design client (which really can warp prices), or the more cautious mid-century fan?

The internet has also led to a breakdown of traditional ideas of retail, auction, and private party sales. Everyone on craigslist and eBay thinks of themselves as retailers, who should receive top-dollar for their items. This creates further confusion about pricing. If a price is visible on eBay, maybe that represents something. That eBay seller may sit on the item for years, hoping for that magical sale that never comes, but the unrealistic prices asked by some folks are nonetheless data points that have to be considered.

In short, appraisal is inexact, a bit chaotic, and you can get a lot of different numbers on the same thing.

Thinking about Warhol

Sotheby's just sold an Andy Warhol Coke Bottle painting for $35 million. There's not much to say about this, other than to note that when an artist becomes a universal symbol (well, for an incredibly tiny universe, anyhow) for "culture" and simultaneously appeals to our senses of whimsy and simplicity - "it's a Coke bottle! What's to think about?" - finding bidders is probably easy.

I'm not a big Warhol fan. I often look at his work and think it was high concept at the time, but also hedged its bets - not just commenting on iconicity, but cynically and easily trading in it. You'll get more of us to buy when we have our own simple, transparent associations with your subject.

That said, I'm really happy to have this in my collection:





It's from the 1964 "One Cent Life" book and portfolio of prints. Like many of the prints, it's accompanied by a Walasse Ting poem (it's really Ting's book). Unlike a lot of the Warhol stuff I see that seems so dry and end-of-empire, this one gives us what seems like a bit of joie de vivre. This is an icon (that's Marilyn, right?) taken apart and trafficked in, but with careful composition and the excitement of contrasting color. Despite the disembodiment, this is lively.

The entire portfolio is pretty fascinating. It features - and occurs early in the maturation of - Pop Art (including prints by Lichtenstein, Dine, Indiana, and Ramos) but also makes a few nods to the previous decade's Abstract Expressionism (Mitchell, Francis, Van Velde). It is made up primarily of New York artists, but also includes folks from around the world.

I'm thinking of putting it on display at some point, but I'm not sure about the logistics.

Anyhow, to see some of the other prints in the portfolio, you can have a look here:

http://www.woodwardgallery.net/exhibitions/ex-onecentlife.html

Tubbs Chair

I'm a sucker for string chairs. They may not be especially practical (I'm scared to sit in them), but they look elegant, futuristic, and mathematical - take a seat on the graph. This will be in the store in a week or so.

John Hoyland Print

I'm pretty excited about this. An early (1964) John Hoyland print in a very small edition (only 17 were printed). Hoyland is a British abstractionist and member of the Royal Academy of Arts. To read more about him, go here. When I obtained this print, it had some condition issues that needed to be addressed. After careful conservation work by the terrific Anita Noennig, it's looking just great. The picture really doesn't capture its combination of boldness and delicacy. It's quite large as well - the frame it's in is 40" wide by 29" tall.

Scene from a New Gallery

From our first weekend. The prints on the left side will be the subject of our first show - Late Career Prints from the New York School. They include Sam Francis, Jack Tworkov, Ibram Lassaw and Conrad Marca-Relli. If you want a better view, you'll have to come by! We will have an opening reception on the evening of September 24, from 5-8 p.m.

California Abstraction

The William Dole collage and Don Clausen painting in the store are discussed below. Right now, in addition to those, I have a John Saccaro watercolor, and a Guy MacCoy painting. The Saccaro is from 1958. It is black & white and jarring and slashing and terrific. He is one of the important exponents of "The San Francisco School." This work is notably different from his oils. The MacCoy painting, "Pagan," is multi-colored and sharp-edged. It probably dates from the 1960's. It comes from the shuttered Fresno Metropolitan Museum.

Here is the Saccaro watercolor:

Art Descriptions

Preparing labels with descriptions of the prints and paintings so I don't talk everyone's ears off about them - "Oh, I love this one, this guy is from . . . "

Now Open

Opening tomorrow. Hours will be Friday - Sunday, noon to six. Come by!

Hey, This Looks Like a Store

Opening Soon

I need to frame a few things and figure out how I want to hang everything, but I'm close to opening. Probably a "soft" open next week.

Furniture stock

Right now we have a Muriel Coleman desk, a McCobb Planner group small credenza, a Knoll credenza, a George Nelson steel frame sofa and coffee table, a pair of Eames DCM's, a collection of American of Martinsville pieces, and a sofa of unknown make - I would guess Thayer Coggin. A few other smaller pieces as well.

SFMOMA's "Calder to Warhol" Exhibit

I have prints from many of the artists in this exhibit. From the 1964 "One Cent Life" portfolio, I have works by Roy Lichtenstein, Joan Mitchell, Sam Francis, and Andy Warhol. This was a large edition, but its prints are hard to come by. I also have an unusual Agnes Martin print (she made very few), and a selection of Ellsworth Kelly lithographs (see the entry below).

William Dole - In the Mirror

This piece was exhibited by the Pasadena Art Museum in its "California Collage" show in 1962. This collage is later in the history of abstract expressionism, but it's as good an example of pure composition as I've ever seen. This is what abstraction is supposed to be - great choices, placement, and balance. Based on this alone, Dole should be mentioned with the greats of California abstraction - Diebenkorn, Kuhlman, Corbett, Dugmore, and others.

We Have a Logo!

Designed by graphic artist and designer Brian Mello. I am really crazy about this. It suggests the Herman Miller logo, while having a gravity all its own. It's also in Futura, the font of the future - and today. Thanks to Brian for his phenomenal work.

Here We Go

Dusty Modern will be opening in San Francisco in August 2010. It will feature fine art, prints, furniture, and other artifacts from the 1940's through the 1970's, with an emphasis on the sweet spot in between. The opening show will feature a few late-career prints by New York School abstract expressionists, including Marca-Relli, Tworkov, and Lassaw. We'll also have many other prints and unique works on hand, as well as furniture from Florence Knoll, Paul McCobb, Muriel Coleman, and others. Here are two of the prints we'll feature in our opener.



A Conrad Marca-Relli print from 1977, produced in an edition of 75. Marca-Relli is a key New York School collage artist, who produced a series of prints for Poligrafa in the late Seventies. We have a few from this series, none of which I've seen for sale in the U.S.



Ibram Lassaw was primarily a sculptor, but made a lovely set of synapse-like prints in the early Seventies. This print is from 1970, in an edition of 100. Early in the Fifties, he was a member of "The Club," which included artists like Willem De Kooning, Franz Kline, and Ad Reinhardt.

Updates soon on the start date and additional inventory.