The Bedford Historical Society presented its annual Autumn & Antiques Show, October 16‱7, at the Historical Hall. On what was the peak foliage weekend here, the color and the beauty outside were matched, if not surpassed, by the views inside the hall.
The show, with just over a dozen dealers inside the small historic building and a few more in a tent just outside, was compact but packed a punch.
Caravan Connection, Bedford Hills, N.Y., featured sumptuous examples of fine Oriental carpets. A highlight was a Turkish Oushak measuring 8 feet by 8 feet 5 inches.
Clover Design, Pound Ridge, N.Y., offered an eclectic booth highlighted by two unusual mirrors: a large square mirror with a bamboo reed frame and a mirror with a frame made from matchsticks.
The side entrance of the hall featured a fine Nineteenth Century tavern table, topped with a small paint decorated box, Nineteenth Century, from Donald A. Rich, New Canaan, Conn. Another fine piece of eye candy was an engraving after Heywood Hardy, English, Twentieth Century.
Appledore Books, Waccabuc, N.Y., offered several fine books, including an elegantly bound-in-leather copy of Andrew & Nathaniel Plimer, Miniature Painters, Their Lives and their Works by George C. Williamson.
Vintage With A Twist, Bedford, N.Y., filled its booth with everything to please any fashionista, from a Christian Dior black velvet hat, circa 1950s, to a set of Elsa Shiaparelli handkerchiefs with its original pink box, a Ghurka tote bag and a stack of tan and ivory Fortuny pillows in a naturalistic pattern.
A key piece on display at Bonsal Douglas, Haddam, Conn., was a circa 1950 oil on canvas by William W. Wright (American) titled “Acadian Morning,” painted at the St John Estuary, New Brunswick, Canada. Another standout here was a fetching street scene with hot air balloons overhead by Jean Daumier. The mostly monochromatic work was infused with pleasing pale blue tones.
Jaffe & Thurston, Wawarsing, N.Y., offered up a pleasing grouping of paintings, including Robert W. Van Boskerck’s (1855‱932) landscape with lily pond and canoe, 20 by 24 inches; an oil landscape by Giovanni Castano (1896‱978); and “Place De Lodeon” by Bernard La Motte (1903‸3).
H.P. McLane Antiques, Niantic, Conn., specializes in silver and featured early Irish silver, a five-piece place setting for a tea service by Joseph Seymour & Co, New York City, and a coin dessert service, circa 1865, Gorham, consisting of a service plate and six individual plates.
Designer names like Van Cleef & Arpels and Oscar Heyman customarily fill Brad Reh’s jewelry cases in Southampton, N.Y., but standouts here seemed especially dazzling. Fresh off a flight from Florida to visit his daughter who is hitting the books hard in law school, Reh, nonetheless, put together a well-stocked booth in short order. Eye candy came in the form of a Cartier ring in 18K gold almost dripping with seven carats of diamonds and a Verdura bead necklace with 18K gold and black jade.
Fair Trade Antiques, Shelburne, Mass., featured a Ken Keeley silkscreen, circa 1985, depicting a view of the New York City skyline as seen from the interior of an apartment on a high floor, along with a circa 1950 beacon lamp and a set of eight copper and brass dry measures.
Suburban Groove, Bedford Hills, N.Y., describes itself as “an eclectic trading company” and offerings were funky and colorful. Bright dinnerware from Paul McCobb and other designers and “modern” tables and chairs perfectly filled the dealer’s long and narrow space upstairs overlooking the main room of the Historical Hall.
A trio of original and signed silhouettes of George Washington by Grace Keough was catching attention. The works were intricately made using cut-out paper.
Maile Allen, Colonia, N.J., always has a fine selection of maps and prints in her booth. This time, a highlight was a double hemisphere map by Gerald Valk (Valck) with polar inserts in original color. The arresting map, circa 1686, had an illustrated border showing the four seasons.
For more information, www.bedfordhistoricalsociety.org or 914-234-9751.
