Brings Greene & Greene lights into Memory Lanes

Legendary dealer Randy Schoonover will be moving some of his showstopping antiques into Memory Lanes Antique Mall in Carson in January.”I will be moving some of my personal collection,” said Schoonover.Although his 1890s wooden barber pole sold at the December Long Beach Show, he will be bringing his rare Greene & Greene hanging lights to Memory Lanes.Memory Lanes, which opened its doors in 1978, was the second antique mall established in Southern California, coming just one year after the Treasure Mart on Waterman in San Bernardino, which was founded in 1977 by Rod Smith.Although Memory Lanes founder John Townsend was admittedly inspired by Smith’s Treasure Mart, he took Memory Lanes to another level. Townsend was no another empassioned dealer, but an engineer who turned Memory Lanes into a well-run machine. It was the first industrial strength antique mall.Townsend established Memory Lanes Antique Mall, which in turn kicked off an antique mall craze. Skip Petersen, inventor of the showcase concept, opened Westchester Faire the following year.Memory Lanes is now the oldest existing antique mall in Southern California.Schoonover, too, is a Southern California fixture. He has been in the business for decades and occupies a huge corner space filled with phenomenal items at every Long Beach Show. If its big, showy and interesting than he’ll carry it whether its late Victorian or mid-century Modern.Schoonover is also famous for his guitar fumble. He paid $100 for a Les Paul guitar at the Rodium and a few weeks later sold the late 1950s Gibson Sunburst instrument for $12,000

Trailer Park Stickley

Apparently Robert Sommers got the memo that Arts & Crafts was very much alive just in time for the Hillsborough Show.He was admittedly doing a brisk Arts & Crafts business, a great birthday gift for the dealer who turned 52 on the first day of the show. His early success included selling four Stickley chairs within the first 15 minutes of the show’s opening.”There was two people who wanted them and they had a little fight right out in the aisle,” he said. “It got really nasty and I hated to see it.”The quarter sawn oak chairs with original finish were priced at $2,500. They came out of a trailer park in Escondido.”It certainly wasn’t your mother’s mobile home,” he said.Once they were sold, a clearly branded Roycroft chair was the object of attention of dozens of Arts & Crafts aficionados. This Arts & Crafts success and attention cut both ways for the Fallbrook dealer who dramatically bashed Arts & Crafts on the eve of Penelope’s Show in San Francisco, the biggest of its kind in the nation.On the blogging front, Robert Sommers, with a worldwide readership, is one of the biggest names.The blogging pioneer has 1,400 posts on his site, www.blueheronblast.com. He has thousands of loyal readers all around the world. He refers to his blog as a cerebral high colonic. His latest story is “A Handshake and a Pastrami Sandwich,” about his recent trip to the proctologist.

Nobles sells $20,000 worth in first hour

Regular Del Mar dealer Robert Sommers posted the message “Didn’t you get the memo? Arts & Crafts is so dead” over the Collector’s Network. Bob Noble certainly didn’t get the memo. His success could be measured by the red Sold tags scattered throughout his space at Penelope’s Arts & Crafts Show in San Francisco. He sold close to $20,000 worth of high end Arts & Crafts furniture within the first hour of the show opening.Noble sold an L. & J.G. Stickley bookcase for $7,000 and an L. & J.G. Stickley dining table for $5,500.Noble, former Los Angeles dealer, has specialized in Arts & Crafts furniture for 30 years. He has recently relocated to New York but continues to hit the show circuit.It was Arts & Crafts architecture and design that first lured him in. ”It goes back to a different, gentler time when people took more are in building things,” he said, naming the Stickleys and Charles Limbert as some of the most important movers and shakers during the Arts & Crafts period.Although Sommers is down on Arts & Crafts, there are several areas he has embraced as cutting edge collector’s items. When asked what he thought the new hot items are, he said, “melmac, banlon, and poodle-shaped styrene lawn ornaments.”There was no elaboration, research indicates that the melmac to which he is referring is either 1940s plastic dinnerware or the planet where the television show alien Alf came from. Banlon revolutionized the men’s casual shirt in the 1960s and ’70s. The synthetic crimped yarn enabled shirts to be made with cuffs on the arms and waistbands to give a more tailored and refined look. So these shirts must be making a comeback.Although Collector was not successful in finding any stellar examples of poodle-shaped styrene lawn ornaments, we will have to visit Sommers’ booth at the Del Mar Show in November to see some primo examples.Sommers is a respected Fallbrook dealer who sells at authored a detailed article on silver, and an accomplished photographer.

matching wallpaper, paint and carpet

When it comes to pairing Arts & Crafts wallpaper with the perfect carpet and determining a bungalow’s secret style, there is none more schooled than Karen Hovde. Hovde gave several lectures on creating a harmonious bungalow interior at the Arts & Crafts San Francisco Show, but those who can’t take it all in an hour or so, can hire Hovde to renovate their bungalow’s interior.Her clients are usually people who own a vintage Arts & Crafts bungalow, want to own a bungalow, or are building a bungalow.”I come into the house and teach the about their structureWhat the vernacular is in this particular house. There will be a design that is repeated (particularly in the moldings) throughout the house and there is a way to determine what that is,” she explained. I make them aware of the wonderful qualities of their house.” At the San Francisco Arts & Crafts Show, she had in her space of a color board showcasing a step-by-step makeover she conducted in a bungalow dining room.She selected and hung a Bradberry & Bradberry white orchid and cattail wallpaper, stripped the wood, did the flower arrangement on the sideboard, and picked out the revival light fixture.”The people who bought it didn’t really know what they had,” she said. “They knew that Arts & Crafts bungalows often had tapered columns in the front of the house and they didn’t really like it very much. They couldn’t figure out why theirs were all hunky and hard and squared.”Hovde was able to explain that the square columns were repeated in the furniture inside the dining room. Once they saw that everything matched and was intentional,. the homeowners were much happier with their bungalow.Hovde also makes sure the carpet, wallpaper and upholstery all harmonize.One of the ways Hovde is able to create such perfect room settings is by understanding color. She also teaches three hour seminars so that bungalow owners can become proficient in knowing which color hues, shades (with black added) and tints (with white added) compliment one another. Hovde can be contacted at her website: interiorvision.com, or (425) 830-4131.

woodblock legend lecture kicks off sunday series

Frances Gearhart’s woodblocks of California subject matter such as the breathtaking bridge at Big Sur and the towering California Redwoods will be the subject of Susan Futterman’s Sunday afternoon lecture at the 15th Annual Arts & Crafts San Francisco Show, which is slated for August 8th and 9th at the Concourse Exhibition Hall. In her usual style, promoter Penelope will not only be hosting an Arts & Crafts marketplace, she will be educating in the form of her Sunday lecture series. Futterman will kick of the trio of lectures at 1:00 p.m.The co-curator of the upcoming retrospective exhibition of Frances Gearhart at the Pasadena Museum of California Art (October 4th through January 31st) is also the editor of the recently published “Let’s Play,” compiled from an unfinished manuscript for a children’s book by Frances Gearhart and her sisters.Gearhart (1869-1958) was a leader in the American Printmaking movement and, in particular, color block printing that depicted California subject matter.Although she was largely self taught, she did spend several summers studying with Charles Woodbury and Henry R. Poore. Initially she painted watercolors, and in 1911, the same year that the Coney Island amusement park Dreamland burned down, she had her first exhibition in Los Angeles. Between 1916 and 1919, however, she began to perfect her skills in the medium of color block prints, using both wood block and linoleum blocks. Unlike etchings, which are made from metal plates on which lines have been cut into the surface, block prints are cut in relief, that is the parts that are not to print are cut away using chisel and knife. Gearhart employed the exacting and difficult Japanese technique of color block printing that required the use of a separate carved block for different colors. She used watercolors as ink to the blocks with a mostly dry brush. After a print was rubbed off, the block was re-inked and another print made.Due to failing eyesight, she had to quit printmaking in 1940.OTHER LECTURES & WORKSHOPSAt 2:00 p.m., David Gordon will be speaking on the artisans of Mata Ortiz. The potters of the village of Mata Ortiz are in the high desert area of Chihuahua, Mexico. They are thought by many museum curators to be among the best living potters anywhere in the world today. It started with the work of Juan Quezada who breathed new life into the Casas Grandes tradition of pottery, examples of which were excavated in the 1970s by Charles De Peso. As a young boy, Juan was inspired by the ancient shards and the burial sites that he incorporated the pictographs, ancient symbols and artifacts he found in the village, into his pottery.David and Tara Gordon have taken the 1,600 mile round trip to the village more than 60 times in the past 8 years and are spreading the word and buying up some of the best examples of Mata Ortiz pottery.Karen Hovde, the authority on Craftsman Feng Shui, will be giving a free lecture at 3:00 p.m. on “Light and Color: The Essentials of the Craftsman Home,” but she will also be offering a more extensive, hands-on workshop from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.The $95 workshop will help craftsman enthusiasts select a color palette for their homes. Attendees should bring a photo of their home of a room in need of a transformation, and they will create a color palette to take home, using paint chips, fabrics and carpet designs. All materials will be provided. Reservations are required for this workshop. Call (425) 830-4131.BOOK SIGNINGSGlenn Mason: “The Arts & Crafts Movement in the Pacfic Northwest”Paul Duchscherer: “The Bungalow Series”Jane Powell: “Bungalow Kitchens,” “Bungalow Bathrooms,” “Linoleum”Dianne Ayres: “Arts and Crafts Period Textiles”Ann Wallace: “Arts & Crafts Textiles”Loyal year’s dealers include:American Bungalow, John BrinkmannAnnex Galleries, Daniel LienauAntiquarian Art, Lance JekelArchive Designs, Joseph MrossArchive Edition Textiles , Paul FreemanArgus Books & Graphics, Bill EwaldArroyo Craftsman, David RoseArts & Crafts Home Magazine, Becky Bernie Arts & Crafts Period Textiles, Dianne AyresArts & Crafts Press, Yoshiko YamamotoB.A.H.A., Roger MossBeggars Banquet, Fred SalazarBill Noonan Antiques, William NoonanBrian McNally Stained Glass, Brian McNally Bradbury & Bradbury, Beverly Phillips Bungalow Spirit, Kenneth & Christine LoweBushere & Son Iron Studio, Charles BushereCaledonia Studios, Tedd ColtCalifornia Historical Design, Gus BostromCathy Githens Antiques, Cathy GithenCharles Bove Antiques, Charles BoveCharles Gray Fine Arts, Charles GrayCirca 1910 Antiques, Jim & Jill WestCone & Ball Antiques, Joseph SylversCountry Thyme, Diane BonnerCraftsman Antiques, Phil ChunCraftsman Farms, Allen BreedCraftsman Hardware, Chris EfkerCraftsman Studios, Dean HudginsCraftsman Wooden Lite Co., Don & Paula NordCrown City Hardware, Kip BeattyCultural Images, Glenn & Judith MasonDard Hunter Studios, Dard Hunter IIIDavid Rago Auctions, Eliane TalecDavid Surgan Antiques, David SurganDebey Zito Fine Furniture, Debey ZitoDiscover Gallery, John HunterEphraim Pottery, Kevin HicksEvan Chambers Glass, Evan ChambersFelperin Designs, Karl FelperinFloor Arts Rugs, Hassan SamimiHazard Decorative Arts, Janet O’DeaHead, Heart and Hand Pottery, Robert Morrissey Holton Studio Frame, Tim HoltonHousedressing, Jane PowellInterior Vision, Karen HovdeJack Pap Antiques, Jack PapadinisJeannine Calcagno Niehaus, Jeannine NiehausJerry Cook Antiques, Jerry CookJMW Gallery, Mike Witt & Jim MessineoJudith Rafferty Fine Art, Judith RaffertyLaurie Gordon Antiques, Laurie Gordon Lifetime Antiques, Robert NobleMarcs Antiques, Marc TisdaleMata Ortiz Pots, David GordonMichael Caden Antiques, Michael CadenMichaeljon Woodworker, Michaeljon FloresMilestones Antiques, Cam WildeMiss Twist Antiques, Weston PressMonika Blodel Fine Art, Fawad MalikMontags Mission Oak, George & Donna Montag North Park Craftsman, Dave NunleyNow & Then Antiques , Fred JohnOld California Lantern, Tom RichardOld House Interiors, Becky BerniePaul Duchscherer, Paul Duchscherer Paint By Threads, Natalie Richards Pavonine Glass, Evan ChambersPhilip Chasen Antiques, Philip ChasenRamons Workshop, Ramon RamirezRevival Antiques, Maria GauthierRick Petteford Antiques, Rick PettefordRobert Flanary Fine Arts, Robert FlanaryRoblyn Antiques, Lynda CunninghamRoy Shabala Antiques, Roy Shabala Sekula & Kersey Antiques, Rick Kersey Style 1900 Magazine, Jennifer Straus The Duffield Collection, Hugh DuffieldThe Prints & the Pauper, Roger GenserTheodore Ellison Design, Theodore Ellison Tiger Mountain Homes, Kenneth LoweTile Antiques, Ron EndlichTile Restoration Center, Steve MoonTribal Treasures Antiques, Michael BruingtonVintage European Posters, Elizabeth NorrisVoorhees Craftsman, Steve & Mary Ann VoorheesWheelers Antiques, Kevin WheelerWm. Warmboe Antiques, Bill WarmboeWm. Bilsland III Antiques, Bill BilslandThe show will be held on Saturday, August 8th, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, August 9th, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10. Call producer Penelope at (503) 491-8980 for more information.

Leaders of the movement

Arts & Crafts was inspired by the writings of the leading Victorian critic, John Ruskin, the Arts & Crafts movement desired to bring art into the daily life of all social classes by rejecting industrialism and standardization. The style, which prevailed between approximately 1880 and 1910, was embraced by furniture makers who felt mass-produced furniture was shoddy. Leading the brigade was Gustav Stickley, and following in his footsteps was Charles Limbert, Charles Rohlfs, Harvey Ellis, and George Washington Maher. Architects that worked in the Arts & Crafts aesthetic included Greene & Greene, who popularized the bungalow style of house, Frank Lloyd Wright, the leading exponent of the Prairie School, and Charles Rennie Mackintosh, known for the austere rectangular framework on his Glasgow School of Art. Pottery and tile makers who worked in the Arts & Crafts style included Pewabic Pottery in Detroit, Ernest Batchelder in Pasadena, and Boston-based Grueby, known for their flat matte green glaze.William Morris: one of the first prominent Englishmen to recognize the dangers posed to the working class by the Industrial Revolution. He attacked the factory system by attempting to establish guilds and cooperatives in which craftsmen and women could work under ideal conditions, selling their crafts to the English public. Morris did, however, discover the downside to everything being handmade. Morris and Company was firmly established by 1875 in the production of hand-crafted furniture, wallpapers, rugs, draperies, fabrics, pottery, and books. It soon became evident that the time and material required for this pursuit left the prices so exorbitant, that only the wealthy could afford their goods.John Ruskin: The art and architectural critic turned social reformer expressed in

Strauss to dazzle in Mekko dress at Seattle Arts & Crafts Show

Jennifer Strauss, co-publisher and adverting director of David Rago’s Modernism and Style 1900 magazines, will be representing her publications at the upcoming Historic Seattle Bungalow Fair slated for September 27th and 28th in Seattle. She will be dazzling Arts & Crafts aficionados in a stylish Marri Mekko dress that she bought at a clothing store, Tuuli, that carries Mekko designs.. Mekko is a Finnish clothing and textile designer that was especially popular in the 1960s, but is still producing stunning fabrics, bedding, and garments.The Seattle event will feature more than 50 craftspeople, designers and antique dealers, along with lectures. There will be two presentations on Greene & Greene, the famous architects of Pasadena’s Gamble House, as well as a presentation on the Arts & Crafts Movement in the Pacific Northwest.For more information in the Bungalow Fair, call (206) 622-6952.