The dealers on hand for the ribbon cutting were, from left, Jeffrey Cobb, Ann Cobb, Chris Cobb, Mary Cormier, Edwin Guatinuala, Michael Kreiger, Robin Miller, Richard A. LaVigné, Peter Murphy, Stephen Concannon, Robin Stephens, Irina MacPhee, David Anthony, James Coviello, Sherri Buxton, John MacPhee, Anika Weatherley, David Buxton, Robin Greeson, Pasha Pchelnikov and Zach Strouse.
Onsite Review & Photos by Madelia Hickman Ring
LEE, MASS. — People looking for history and culture can find many places to visit in The Berkshires, the globally popular region in Western Massachusetts: Tanglewood Music Center (Lenox, Mass.), The Norman Rockwell Museum, Clark Art Institute and MASS MoCA (Stockbridge, Williamstown and North Adams, Mass., respectively), Hancock Shaker Village (Pittsfield, Mass.,) and Historic Deerfield (Deerfield, Mass.). Now, there is another must-see venue to round out a weekend (or longer!) getaway of outdoor pursuits and dining: Knollwood Antiques in Lee. The brainchild of co-owner Richard LaVigné, Knollwood is a 5,000-square-foot gallery at the southern end of the town’s historic district that was built in 1935. In its nearly 90-year history, the building has housed a grocery store and two consecutive hardware stores before LaVigné and husband, Stephen Concannon — Knollwood’s other co-owner — rented it from Paul Aronofsky. Housing 30 dealers whose areas of expertise span a broad range of antiques, fine and decorative arts and things geared towards interior design, Knollwood Antiques hosted an open house on July 4, with local officials on hand for a ribbon cutting and refreshments while singer and antiques dealer Sherri Buxton provided some musical atmosphere.
“We signed the lease in March, dismantled walls, took down old canvas shrouds, put in a window display and poured a new floor. The town of Lee has been wonderful to work with, helping throughout the entire process of what was more or less a gut-renovation and we’re still working to get better accessibility,” said LaVigné. “We have vendors that don’t ordinarily come to Western Massachusetts — including ones from Maine and Maryland — and it’s been terrific to include them. We hired Erik Long to handle all of our e-commerce, including Instagram; we went from 0 to 170 followers in two days.”
Knollwood Antiques is at 57 Park Street, facing the historic district in Lee, Mass.
“We allow vendors to express themselves and their brand,” he continued. “We expect to offer a broad range of antiques and estate goods. Our vendors include four interior designers and one who specializes in upholstery. Sean Scherer, author of Kabinett & Kammer: Creating Authentic Interiors (Vendome, 2020) is scheduled to move in soon, as is Marion Harris. In September, Elizabeth Winslow will sell things from her first shipment from the United Kingdom.”
The weekend was so busy with sales that LaVigné and his staff were busy rearranging the gallery with more inventory, but he took a break to speak with Antiques and The Arts Weekly to convey his thoughts on the success of the opening weekend.
“It has been a sensation and one person commented that we’re bringing back the ‘Antiques Trail’ of the Berkshires. We had more than 400 people come through in the first five days, many of whom had never seen this in another shop or collective. We’ve received many very nice calls and bouquets of flowers. It’s hard to keep up with what happened; sales have been beyond our expectations and the vendors are very, very happy!”
“I’m grateful for so many people who helped make this possible: Clark’s Nursery in Lee for their invaluable assistance in plant and tree selection and Walpole Woodworkers for the stylish yet rugged planter boxes along the Main Street façade of the galleries. Bruce Emond of Village Braider, and Tom Seaver and family of Seaver and McLellan for the timely and much needed delivery of goods I purchased from them at the Rhinebeck Show in May. And Francis Nestor of Cottage + Camp, whose kind patience and collaboration has resulted in my new found internet capabilities!”
From left, town officials Bob Jones (Select Board Member) and R. Christopher Brittain (Town Administrator) look on while Knollwood Antiques co-owners Richard A. LaVigné and Stephen Concannon cut the ribbon, officially opening the gallery.
“On Saturday, we had a New Jersey-based couple — a professor and his wife — who came in and explained that they’d recently purchased a home in the area and understood that we offered a certain white-glove level of service. They spent the better part of the day here, left only to go rent a U-Haul truck, and came back and loaded it themselves!”
LaVigné, a self-described “visual architect,” has one of the booths right inside the front door of the gallery. A large Nineteenth Century mirror with carved floral tribute decoration anchored a pair of Spanish hand-carved limestone architectural fragments on specimen marble plinths. A pair of brass Aesthetic Movement side chairs sported red “sold” tags and flanked a carved blanket chest. A George II style sofa in another part of the gallery was also marked “sold.”
Designer James Coviello, based in both Brooklyn and Hudson, N.Y., is also right near the gallery’s entrance, next to LaVigné. In addition to his own line of glasses, candles and soaps, Coviello had an extensive assortment of brass candlesticks in a variety of sizes and forms, painted and country furniture, mirrors, a long hooked rug runner, lighting, ceramics and framed art.
James Coviello, right, speaking with visiting dealer Dana Jennings Rohn.
Across the aisle from Coviello, Jeff, Ann and Chris Cobb are Captain’s Quarters from Amherst, Mass. The back wall of the booth was hung with landscapes and nautical paintings that framed a view of Rockport Harbor, a frequent theme of Anthony Thieme (American, 1888-1954). It hung over a Nineteenth Century two-part campaign chest, a large early Twentieth Century double sailor’s valentine and a pair of Sandwich glass oil lamps.
“We’re thrilled with the transformation of the space and with Richard and what’s he’s doing. We’ve very happy with everything so far!” Jeffrey Cobb reported “very good sales, to a combination of dealers and retail customers” that included a “fantastic” admiral’s uniform from a Chatham, Mass., estate that came with a hat, epaulettes and belt, two Chinese export bowls, an étagère and a folding dining table.
Paintings, jewelry and natural history are the interests of David Anthony and Robin Stephens, who are based in Richmond, Mass.; their booth is next to Coviello’s and opposite the Cobb’s. A case along their north wall housed jewelry, small paintings and objects while small furnishings populated their booth. Eye-catching stand-out pieces included an oil on canvas painting of a priest in a mountain landscape with a tripod camera, accompanied by a dog and an assistant, that was signed “Able” lower right; the giltwood frame had a plaque that was inscribed “N. Able / 79 / A Negative of Nature”; a table in the center of the booth was topped by a Twentieth Century shell and silver epergne by Maitland Smith.
From left, Robin Stephens and David Anthony, Richmond, Mass., flanked by a pair of impressive torchiere lamps with plant-like tops.
Peter Murphy’s large booth dominated the northern end of the gallery and had one picture window that overlooks Lee’s historic district. A pair of white-upholstered lolling chairs that were sold looked great on either side of an inlaid settee framed by still life paintings and landscapes.
Robin Miller has a particular fondness for specimen marble, which were incorporated into several pieces in her booth. An expert in European decorative arts, she trained at Christie’s in London and worked at Sotheby’s in New York before she started her own firm. She stocked her booth with a broad variety, including an Italian pietra dura sample panel that dated to the Nineteenth Century, an Empire style mahogany table with an inset fossilized marble top, a Nineteenth Century Italian Neoclassical bronze bowl, an Eighteenth Century Louis XVI brass mounted kingwood bonheur du jour and an Arts and Crafts mahogany metamorphic library chair made in England in the late Nineteenth Century.
Cottage + Camp had an Australian aboriginal bark painting by Bolini Wanambi titled “Gundimolk” that measured 45 by 24¼ inches, in addition to a whirligig of a man with a top hat, a buttocks basket and a selection of small Staffordshire figures. Proprietors John Krynick and Francis Nestor had three spaces along the west side of the gallery and had a good variety of pieces that spanned a broad date range.
An Aboriginal painting paired well with a child’s chair, carved ram and painted blanket chest. Cottage & Camp, Millerton, N.Y.
Joy Ruskin Hanes, with Frank Newman, had good Americana, including silhouettes, stands, ceramics, a Nantucket lightship basket and fine art. Particularly impressive was a still life with fruit in a footed bowl after Severin Roesen. New acquisitions included two small tables — one with a circular top and stretcher vase, the other an oval example with splayed legs.
“I think Richard LaVigné is amazing and he’s really created a beautiful space out of what had been a dingy hardware store. He sold a really nice theorem I had to a couple from New Jersey who came in on Saturday, and I’m getting a really great response to photos I posted on Facebook. I’m very happy so far,” Hanes confided to us.
Next to Hanes were William Union and Mary Cormier of Art & Antique Gallery. Their gallery is based in Holden, Mass., and they regularly participate in shows covered by this publication, including Brimfield Antiques Flea Markets and the York Antiques Shows. Landscapes and portraits were in plentiful supply at the open house and included works by Winfield Scott Clime (American, 1881-1958), two small landscapes by Francis Dixon (American, 1879-1967) and an unattributed Nineteenth Century painting of a dog watching over a sleeping child. Still life pictures by Franklin Ross “Bud” Drake (American, 1929-2001) and Johan Georg Eyers (1832-1881) were also on hand as well as a striking painting of three girls in a field by Leopold Franz Kowalski (Russian/French, 1856-1931).
William Union, far right, with a prospective buyer. Art & Antique Gallery, Holden, Mass.
Irina MacPhee was delighted that her granddaughter — Anika Weatherley — was spending the summer visiting from San Diego, Calif. When we asked Weatherley what her favorite pieces were, she pointed out some bright yellow ginger jars because she liked their color. She also liked a lamp that had a base fashioned from a horse pull-toy.
Based in Deep River, Conn., and with an office in Dennis, MacPhee owns Pastiche of Cape Cod and appreciated the collegial nature of the new cooperative saying, “We want to support each other and we’re not in competition with each other.”
“I think it went really well,” she told us when we spoke with her afterwards. “I sold a bunch of things: a sofa, some chinoiserie, some lighting, some accessories. I’m going to be bringing in some French wheat sconces and Murano glass to help restock the booth.”
Errol Farr, a co-owner of Old Kinderhook Auction Company in Valatie, N.Y., acquires things in his travels and had a booth at the gallery under the name Old Kinderhook but stocked it with things different from those that are consigned for auctions. He confirmed selling a pair of LaBarge mirrors, an Egyptian revival marble top chest and “lots of great small things.”
Errol Farr, co-owner of Old Kinderhook Auction Gallery, stocked a booth with ready-to-buy furniture, fine art and decorative smalls. Valatie, N.Y.
A few months ago, LaVigné was approached by Zach Strouse and Pasha Pchelnikov, two young men in their twenties who have recently established themselves as Berkshire Hollow. Their booth presentation at Knollwood Antiques was their first-ever antiques booth and we were impressed at its polished appearance.
Pchelnikov talked to us after the busy weekend and explained their story. He became enchanted with antiques at a very young age when his brothers would take him with them when they went to estate sales and metal detecting. He started making his own crafts when he was in his teens and he would attend craft shows with his mother. A full-time plumber in the Lee area whose own taste he described as “maximalist,” Pchelnikov has had the opportunity to see what local residents collect and how they furnish their homes. He met Strouse, a teacher at Lee Elementary School, a few years ago and they started to spend off-time going to auctions and estate sales, buying whatever appealed to them. When he learned the space at 57 Park Street was going to be an antiques collective, he introduced himself to LaVigné and asked if he could have a small space there. LaVigné went to his house, saw his collection and immediately agreed to include them.
From left, Zach Strouse and Pasha Pchelnikov are Berkshire Hollow.
“At the moment, I’m going with a sort of ‘Hollywood Regency’ look. I want people to feel comfortable in their homes and I like to show them that they can mix and match things.”
Pchelnikov confirmed that all of their sales were to new clients and included picture frames, candlesticks and pottery.
From Union, Maine, Leslee and Owen Shugard occupied the corner of the gallery next to Berkshire Hollow, which they housed with a broad selection of furniture, decorative arts and paintings. A handsome pair of Chippendale triple-back settees were in prominent display as was an Orientalist painting of a classically draped figure fishing. Framed artwork included architectural drawings, landscape engravings and a copy of Edward Savage’s “The Washington Family.”
When she’s not crooning, Sherri James Buxton is a voice teacher at the Berkshire Music School. She is also Sherri James Antiques with her husband David, and they specialize in country, primitives, folk art and collectibles. Their booth had a great selection of painted furniture, including a red-painted blanket chest and a blue-painted cupboard that provided a great place to display mocha ware, baskets, a brass iron and brass mortar and pestle.
David Buxton enjoyed some of the refreshments available during the open house. Sherri James Antiques, Lee, Mass.
“I’m over the moon! I’ve been selling antiques in the Berkshires for 45 years, and the response from people I saw coming in over the course of the weekend was something I haven’t seen in a long time. I don’t think there’s a more beautiful store in Berkshire County; I feel it will become a destination for antiques!” enthused David Buxton. He reported doing very well with smalls and sold a table and an Adirondack sign with a moose, all to new clients.
Judith Lesser is Antiques from Home, from Bethesda, Md. She was visiting the Berkshires for the first time and the night before the open house had attended Tanglewood where she saw James Taylor perform. For her newest venture, she brought Quimper and Longwy ceramics and a large Quimper equestrian group.
Lesser was back in Bethesda when she reported back. “I’m optimistic about success at Knollwood Antiques but, as of now, have not heard of any sales of my goods. Before lockdown, I participated in the Sheffield Antiques show — that’s my only track record in the region and it was good. I’ve known Richard for several years from the antiques show circuit and always have been impressed by his showmanship and business acumen. So, I thought the grand opening on July 4 was a great idea and the gallery was buzzing when I arrived.” She noted her space would soon have a few more vintage French items that she purchased as she drove home.
One entire corner of the gallery is devoted to glass cases with all manner of smalls being sold by a variety of dealers, including Asian porcelains, pressed and pattern glass in a variety of colors, antiquarian book sets and, somewhat surprisingly, a selection of natural history specimen that included skulls and framed insects.
Knollwood Antiques is at 57 Park Street. For information, 413-394-4357 or follow them on Instagram, @knollwoodantiques.
