Delaney’s Antique Clocks, West Townsend, Mass.
C.L. Prickett Antiques, Yardley, Pa.
Sallea Antiques, Inc., New Canaan, Conn.
BOSTON, MASS. – The 41st annual Ellis Memorial Antiques Show returned to the show’s original venue at the Castle at Boston’s Park Plaza. Forty-five nationally prominent exhibitors created beautiful presentations that highlighted outstanding and rare objects. The show was conducted from November 2 to 5, a week later than the traditional Ellis weekend. Sales were generally strong, but attendance appeared to be less than in recent years.
The Ellis show has earned the reputation of having unique exhibitions. At the 2000 show William Vareika Fine Arts Limited devoted one entire wall to works by marine artist William Trost Richards (American, 1833-1805). The remarkable exhibit offered a museum-quality retrospective of this fine artist.
Washington, D.C. exhibitor Guy Bush offered a splendid blockfront chest with three carved shells that was made in Colchester, Conn. Fashioned from cherry wood around 1780, the chest was the epitome of the American interpretation of Chippendale elegance. In addition to strongly carved front bundy legs with ball and claw feet, the chest also had rear bundy legs. It was one of six or seven similar chests that exist in the world. Accordingly, it was priced at $900,000.
Bush also stopped passing traffic with a set of six slat back chairs by the Gaines family of Portsmouth, N.H. They featured an unusual crest with an arch over two oak leaves terminating in very heavily carved volutes. Gaines chairs are rare in the market, but this variant hardly ever surfaces. There is not a museum in the country with a full set of these chairs.
York, Me. dealer Will Schwind was among those dealers who had tremendous previews. At noon on Friday he commented, “It was the best Ellis preview ever. I am embarrassed that our booth looks so empty. This morning we had to rearrange everything to fill the voids created by sales last night. I think pricing is part of our success. We take a profit, but the rdf_Descriptions are still affordable. Over time, we have built up a following that appreciates the combination of quality and affordability.” Five hours later there were a couple new voids in the Schwind booth.
Preview attendance was deliberately reduced. Last year, the preview was very crowded in the larger Cyclorama Building. Management recognized a need to reduce preview attendance, and raised the price of tickets with the intention of trimming the crowd. That move produced the desired result as preview attendance declined from 1,200 last year to a little over 1,000 this year. Preview buying was very aggressive, and comparable or better than previous years. About three-quarters of the dealers reported having sales during the preview, and many had multiple sales.
There was mixed opinion regarding show attendance during the general admission days. Show management reported that attendance was up from last year. However, there was one less day of general admission in 2000. Also the crowds on each of the other three days appeared to be smaller than crowds on the corresponding day of the previous year.
Seeking to resolve the different impressions about attendance, Antiques and The Arts Weekly asked show management to provide attendance figures. A staff member of the show initially indicated that management would share those figures, but then a show chairperson called to state that the numbers would not be available.
Some exhibitors linked a perceived decline in attendance to changes in show advertising. Editors and critics of eastern Massachusetts daily newspapers reported receiving less promotional material than in other years. One long time editor of a daily concluded, “It is the most lightly promoted Ellis show that I can recall.”
While attendance might have been off, many dealers reported good or excellent sales. Exhibitor Michael Dunn reported, “Sales are way up for me this year. This has been one of my strongest shows ever.”
Likewise, Jonathan and Priscilla Boyd had their best Ellis show. Jonathan commented, “We have always done well at the Ellis, but this has been better than other years. I think part of it was having the right merchandise at affordable prices, but it also helped to move from a rear room to the main room, first aisle. People enter, turn right, and come right past our booth. It’s just been great.”
The team at C.L. Prickett Antiques probably negotiated the top sale of the show. On Sunday morning Todd Prickett conferred with a client, and by mid-afternoon he returned to report the sale had been closed. He had sold a Concord, Mass. chest-on-chest that was about as fine as that form of furniture gets. The upper case was crowned with a strongly molded open bonnet top centered on a plinth that terminated in an urn and flame finial. Side finials were of the same design but with longer flames to compensate for lower plinths. Flanking the sides of the upper case were fluted pilasters capped with the unusual capitals that roll outward before evolving into the side plinths. The chest was in fine condition with original brasses.
A near twin to this chest is at the Winterthur Museum. The Winterthur example was fashioned from maple while the Prickett example was made from cherry.
Another famous Pennsylvania exhibitor was honorary chairwoman Elinor Gordon. While the world respects Elinor Gordon as a global authority on China Trade porcelain, Ellis shoppers treasure her as a warm and gracious person. During a hectic show, it is always a pleasure to sit down and chat for a few moments with this charming, interesting lady. She and David Good of Good and Hutchinson are the only dealers who have exhibited at the Ellis show for its full run of 41 years.
Elinor always holds some special rdf_Descriptions in preparation for the Ellis. This year that included a monumental hexagonal vase from the Kanghsi period (1662-1722) decorated in the famille verte manner and also having rouge de feu. The naturalistic decoration of flowers and birds was an artistic conception and skillfully crafted.
Changes in the show schedule and venue were in response to other shows shifting their events a week later. Those shifts produced conflicts for some Ellis exhibitors who also exhibit at those other shows. To accommodate those dealers, the Ellis shifted its show one week later. The Cyclorama was not available for the later weekend, and the Castle at Park Plaza was selected as a new venue.
The shift to the smaller building was accomplished by reducing aisle open space and café space, and also by eliminating three exhibitor booths. Nimmo & Hart Antiques of Middletown Springs, Vt. retired, and their booth was dropped. For folk art exhibitors Walters-Benisek Art & Antiques of Northampton, Mass., the later Ellis date conflicted with the York show, and they chose to display at York. Shreve, Crump & Low of Boston vacated the third booth. There were no new exhibitors at the 2000 show.
When shows change venues, there are winners and losers in the new floor plan. At this show, there was concern that four prime half booths at the center of the show were assigned to a museum exhibit, a magazine promotion, and a piano. Dealers and show management discussed the subject, and there will be some fine-tuning before next year’s show.
Some dealers expressed delight with the new floor plan. In the Cyclorama, a half-dozen dealers had been tucked into each of two rear rooms. Those dozen dealers found the Castle a preferable show site. One of many exhibitors to address the issue was Charles Washburne who commented, “This is a wonderful venue for a show. Those of us who have escaped the Cyclorama back rooms feel more a part of the show with everyone in the same room. The traffic is flowing directly in front of my booth, and the booth is getting more attention. I am having a wonderful show.”
