Asian art

Some folks like to do things in a big way.  They enjoy the spotlight, and blossom with a little extra attention.  We’re sort of that way, too, so we understand.  Even when it comes to selling an antique or collectible, we think it’s always more fun to make a splash.  Why do anything the conventional way when you can make it fun? Do you remember that Super Hero Auction we had last year?  We had national news coverage for that event, plus plenty of local headlines and spots on our local news networks.  Our own John discovered he looked good in ...

Read Post

I recently finished a commission for a woman in my writing class. Connie is a person who is overflows with enthusiasm for people and life. She bubbles over when she is excited about a topic and she can cry in an instant at something that is sad. Well... She wanted me to create an oil painting of her sister and her sister's two daughters sitting on a bench in Laguna Beach. The mother lost her husband when the girls were just babies and has struggled to work and do her best at raising the girls alone in Taiwan. It turned out that the mother did quite well financially but in the stress ...

Read Post

We've all heard the saying "You can't take it with you." But what if you could? Death in pre-modern Chinese culture was of tremendous importance, and it was crucial that when one left this life for the next, the departed were given everything needed to enjoy the next chapter of their eternal life. This included everything from representations of houses, horses, guardians, camels and even young hand maidens, that stood as reminders of events that shaped the existence they left behind. The ceramic wares produced during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 C.E.) for this purpose are considered the most ...

Read Post

Fans of Antique Helper have had the opportunity to witness some terrific sales of Asian antiques during recent auction events. At our October 30 Art and Antiques Auction Featuring Mission to Modern and Tribal Art, the star of the show was a porcelain vase with oxblood glaze.  Mounted as a lamp, this object was given a presale estimate of $100 to $200.  Despite the modest estimate, as soon as the catalog was posted, the oxblood beauty began to receive plenty of attention.  Once the item opened at auction, the bidding swiftly surpassed high estimate and continued to rise, until it reached ...

Read Post

The Norton Museum or Art's Chinese galleries present a fascinating array of expertly crafted jade objects ranging from prehistory to the eighteenth century. The long span of production – up to 7,000 years by some estimates – indicates the significance jade possessed among the inhabitants of China’s earliest cultures, as well as the resonance of the material and its meanings throughout Chinese history. In the Meyer Gallery on the Museum’s second floor, some of the earliest jade forms are based upon utilitarian blades (such as the ceremonial blade known as a zhang). Others, in the form ...

Read Post

Upon entering the Hodroff Gallery at the Norton Museum, visitors are greeted by a deluge of colors sparkling from the surfaces of a multitude of porcelain objects. There are wares decorated solely in blue and white, with colors ranging from a deep violet-blue to paler hues. Elegant scrolling motifs, often depicting leaves and other floral designs, adorn these objects, as do narrative scenes, dragons and phoenixes. Deeper into the gallery, rich greens, pinks, golds, and reds accent flowers, animals, figures, and armorial designs. The shapes and sizes of these porcelains range from ...

Read Post

Candy may be the art world's answer to the recession blues. Sweet and palatable images abounded at last week's Los Angeles Art Show: Wayne Theibaud's ice cream cones, Jean Wells' giant chocolate Kiss and pink cupcake sculptures, and gummi bears expertly captured in oil by Jeanne Vadeboncouer. Beyond the theme of edible delights, a wide range of art styles, from California impressionists to New York abstract expressionists, Arts and Crafts-era prints to cutting-edge video installations, gave the Fine Art Dealers Association's (FADA) 15th annual show breadth. This year, heavy rains and a ...

Read Post