Are books dead...?

I work for a publishing company, and also publish my own books. I'm also a big believer in the internet as a way forward for publishing. Will it replace books, magazines and newspapers, as many say it will? I don't think so, but it'll be an important part of how we work in the future. Publishing doesn't just mean books, but audio, video and web-based content too - publishing will integrate the many forms of media available to us in the future. This short video was produced by DK, a company I used to consult for. I think it's brilliant. If you have two minutes to spare, I'd urge you to check it out. Click here to view it.

An Evening With The Chorleywood Bookshop

Last Friday Judith Miller and I were invited out to the heart of 'Metroland' to visit the charming town of Chorleywood. The owners of the independent Chorleywood Bookshop, Sheryl and Morag, asked us to speak at an evening event in the local hall, followed by a book-signing and an 'Antiques Roadshow' style valuation.
After perusing their marvellous bookshop on the smart parade over a cup of tea, we were ready. And we needed that cup of tea! When we pulled up outside the hall, well over 100 people had arrived and were patiently queuing, clutching bags full of treasures acquired or inherited, but most certainly cherished.
Judith kicked off the event with a talk that crossed Continents and history from 16thC Chinese porcelain to Lalique (and Lalique-alike) glass to treen snuffboxes. I then followed up with a talk that examined the effect of fashion on the market - both in terms of historic changes and changes today that affect desirability, and so values. Both of us brought pieces from our own collections with us, with me bringing some Fat Lava, transfer-printed blue & white ceramics, 'Flow Blue' ceramics, and postwar Czech pressed glass. I ended by introducing my new TV series, Cracking Antiques, and commenting on how the wheel is turning once again and traditional, 'brown' furniture is becoming sought after once again after a few decades in the doldrums.
Then it was into the audience to see what they had brought in - and they didn't disappoint! A truly wonderful, varied selection awaited us from mid-19thC was dolls to Chinese ceramics, a pocket watch or two and a superb micromosaic of St Peters that had to be worth over £1,500-2,000! A marvellous evening was had by all, and Judith and I finally left at gone 10pm to wend our way back to London. Thank you, Sheryl and Morag!

It's Out!

The all-new 2010-11 edition of Miller's Collectables Price Guide by Judith Miller and I is OUT NOW in all good bookshops. Priced at £19.99, there are even more full colour images and information than ever before. With thousands of collectables shown from advertising to ceramics, to glass and toys, there's truly something for everyone. Here're the first copies, spotted in Foyle's in London.
If you can't make it to a bookshop, order your copy direct, and save £8 on the cover price, by clicking here.

Miller's Collectables Price Guide 2010-11

I've had a lot of questions and emails lately about when the next edition of the Miller's Collectables Price Guide will be available. We usually publish it in Autumn each year but, partly taking into account the hard year we all had, we took the difficult decision to delay it until the official start of the new 'season' in Spring. As fairs, auctions and flea markets crank up a few gears at this time, it seemed more sensible and right.
So, the answer is that the all-new 2010-2011 edition will be published on March 1st - the rather handsome cover is shown here. The price will be £19.99 and it will be available to pre-order from all good bookshops or from Miller's Online in late February.

Frank Thrower & Dartington Glass on Sky TV

Filmed during the first ever retrospective celebration of the life and works of Frank Thrower in Summer 2006, the documentary film of Frank's life, "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles", will be shown on the the Sky 2 Arts channel on Sunday 9th August at 7pm.
This fascinating documentary was filmed and produced by Nigel Edwards of InHouse Productions, and was co-directed by Graham Cooley, the foremost collector of 20th century decorative arts in the UK. Graham also acts as the focal point during the film, which also includes interviews with members of Frank's family, many of his colleagues at Dartington Glass, glass experts including Charles Hajdamach, and I.
You can also see exclusive footage of the legendary FT15 'Ship's Decanter' being made, which are nothing less than spectacular. If you love glass and 20thC design, you'll love this film, which draws to a truly tear-jerking end.
Tune in to see what I mean.
Copies of the film on DVD can be bought at £12 + P&P by emailing the Glass Association, who funded it, at crystal-edge@hotmail.co.uk. If you're interested in reading about Frank and his globally successful designs, you can buy the book, written by his daughter Eve Thrower and I, for £12 + P&P by emailing evescanlon@hotmail.com. And don't forget to make a note in your diary for 8th August at 7pm - I can guarantee you won't be disappointed.

Fat Lava II Exhibition

If you're into Fat Lava, the crazy and unique ceramics produced in West Germany from the 1960s-70s, you simply must take a trip to Reading this month. I've just got back from the grand opening today, and my jaw is still on the floor.
Eminent private collector Graham Cooley and progressive dealer Al Baynham of the mid20c Retro Shop (left) have literally pulled out all the stops to present you with a truly eye-popping and mouth-watering display that leads on perfectly from the ground-breaking first Fat Lava exhibition held in King's Lynn in 2006.
Al has devoted his entire shop to the exhibition, which is divided into two rooms. Everything in the large, light and airy front room is for sale and, given the colourful and crazy shop window display, I'm amazed there's haven't been any minor accidents on the road outside! From floor vase to bud vase, Roth to Scheurich, Bay to Jasba, and prices that range from £15 to £300, there's something here for you whether you're looking to build your collection, or buy a single statement piece. Break free from the boring uniformity of Ikea and high street chains and say something about yourself and your avant garde tastes!
The back room contains an exhibition put together by, and featuring vases from, the vast Graham Cooley Collection of some 2,500 examples (left). Rather than just repeat the success of the first exhibition, Graham has pulled together a new array focusing on recent discoveries and learnings. So, Übelacker Keramik, Jopeko, ES Keramik and Roth are amongst the names that have benefitted from his skilled and experienced eye. You'll also see fantastic forms and great glazes from more widely known names such as Scheurich (the 'Wien' series in particular) Dümler & Breiden, Ruscha and Carstens. Although none of these pieces are for sale, you'll learn plenty to help you as you build your collection.
I attended today to launch the second, revised and expanded edition of my Fat Lava catalogue, and copies flew out of the door like the proverbial 'hot-cakes', usually accompanied by carefully chosen and wrapped vases! Over 60 people attended the opening throughout the day, and Al made everyone feel welcome, offering drinks and snacks. Light-hearted banter was punctuated with laughter, with the sunny terrace outside becoming a hotbed of discussions and exchanges of information.
I was delighted to see Kevin Graham, author of a new encyclopedia on the subject to be published soon, major collector and dealer Martin Rosam, Paul Bishop of the Cambridge Glass Fair, and many other friends and colleagues. Of course, we weren't the only ones having fun. At 11am UK time, three other exhibitions in Australia, Germany and the US opened simultaneously online via www.fat-lava.org. Fat Lava had truly gone global. I've never heard of an online/offline event quite like this before, so a round of applause must go to dealers and collectors Patrick & Petra Folkersma of Outernational for masterminding this innovative event. All four locations remained online throughout the day, and attracted a great many online viewers keen to see the exhibitions and chat to the collectors who built them.
Did I have a favourite? Although it's very hard to choose from the eye-popping array, it would have to be the range of Roth vases shown here. Although little is known about this factory, the designs speak for themselves. Out of all the different designs produced in these incredible two decades, these have caught collectors' attention the most. Prices have risen from under £100 to nearly £300 in a matter of months, with collectors old and new falling over themselves to add a piece to their collections. These rises are partly due to their scarcity - despite their period look and feel, these pieces can't have sold in large numbers at the time, and are not common at all. If I have one regret, it was not buying these in 2006, when I could have had an ovoid vase for £30-50. Now I'd have to part with £150 for the same piece. As my friend Judith Miller says, 'It's the ones you don't buy that you regret'. Don't let that happen to you - hot-foot it to Reading now!

Fat Lava II is here

It's finally here! The second, revised and expanded edition of Fat Lava has finally arrived! After a couple of glitches, a long lorry drew up outside today to deliver a palette of boxes. The moment it did this, the clouds opened and the rain poured down. With no trolley, each and every box had to unloaded by hand - thankfully the delivery driver was patient! On the other hand, he had his warm and dry cab, while I soaked myself to the bone.
Come an' get 'em! If you'd like copy, click here to place your order and pay now. The first edition sold out in just over 18 months, so don't miss out!
I'm now all set for the opening of the second Fat Lava exhibition at Mid20C in Reading, Berkshire, on Saturday, and the month of online events that follow it. For more information, check out www.fat-lava.org.
I hope to see you there!

Books, books and more books...

...and a whole lot of business being done pretty much sums up the London Book Fair, where I have spent much of this afternoon. Hundreds of publishers and related businesses from across the world attend, from the big boys of Hachette and Random House, to smaller one-man bands, and the remainder businesses that feed off this multi-billion pound industry. I had an appointment with Octopus Publishing, owners of Miller's Publications, but also had a chance to wander (and wonder) around afterwards. Here's a picture of the stand, with it's vast revolving cone emblazoned with the company's minimalist logo.

Count the Miller's books...!

Spotted in Vancouver's main branch of Chapters today!

Fat Lava - SOLD OUT!

You can't have any more. They're all gone! My very first publication, produced in association with the Graham Cooley Collection, has completely sold out. I've even sold the 'seconds' due to a rash of desperate requests over the past few weeks. The reason for this? Fat Lava has gone volcanic! It has appeared in all manner of magazines recently, including the latest edition of Elle Decoration that plopped onto my doormat this morning. Not only that, but an exhibition of Scheurich ceramics is opening in Germany (yes, the country that until recently hated them!), and a major exhibition in Canada is slated for sometime in 2009.
If you didn't manage to lay your hands on a copy, the good news is that I will be reprinting due to continued demand. Not only that, but my consultants and I will be revising and updating all the information contained in the original, and also introducing new photographs. The launch of the second edition will be held in association with an exciting new event that Dr Cooley, Petra and Patrick Folkersma of Outernational, Al Baynham of mid20c and I are planning right now. Scheduled to be held in late Summer next year, watch this space to find out more. In the meantime, here's a picture of Martin Rosam and I filming for the BBC's Antiques Roadshow with selected objects from his fantastic collection.

Mark gets his life back

Finally, it is done! My next bookalogue has gone off to the printers - at last. As I type, somewhere in Guangdong printing presses are furiously churning out 1,500 copies of what I hope will be an enjoyable read. It'll certainly be informative - much of what is in here has not been seen since it was published in a specialist trade magazine (Czechoslovak Glass Review) from the 1950s-70s. So one thing I can guarantee is that you'll find some surprises inside - so much is either simply not known, or is incorrectly attributed to Murano or other factories. Get your hands on a copy on the 13th July, when Graham Cooley's excellent exhibition opens at the King's Lynn Arts Centre in King's Lynn, Norfolk. For more information, please see www.sklo.co.uk, but for the meantime, here's a sneak peak of the cover. Talking of sneak peaks, if you want to get in there early, and be totally informed, then join the Glass Association so you can come along to the special events on 12th July. These include a tour of the exhibition by Graham Cooley and I, and entry to a special discussion forum chaired by Graham Cooley and notable glass expert Dan Klein, who pioneered studies in post-war Czech Glass design as far back as the 1980s. See you there!

Build Your West German Ceramics Library...

Firstly, happy new year to one and all. The first new news of the year is that, at last, Dr Horst Makus' landmark publication 'Keramik der 50er Jahre' (Ceramics of the 1950s) has been re-released. It was last published in 1998 and has become increasingly impossible to find over the last 9 years. My gap-filling copy has just come through from my local book shop, and I would certainly recommend getting hold of one yourselves. It is nothing less than excellent, thoroughly comprehensive and unbelievably good value at $75 or £45. You can find it at the publisher's website - www.arnoldsche.de. Do bear in mind that the text is in German, however - but it is still without doubt a 'must-have'.
On that note, if you don't know about it already, also check out the wonderful book on 1960s-70s West German Ceramics published in the middle of last year by prolific collector and expert M.P. Thomas, in Germany. It is in German again, but still well worth having. After all, a picture speak a thousand words! It also includes a large section on the influential German studio potter Schaffenacker, which is unique in its scope to my knowledge. You can find a link to the author's website by clicking here.

On the road with Judith Miller

One of the most enjoyable, and often surprising, tasks my job entails is meeting people and discussing their collections. This can be for publication in one of our books, for valuation or - in this case - on a book signing tour. With Autumn's cold mornings and evenings showing us Summer really was over, Judith and I set off up the M1 to criss-cross the country. Our destinations over the next few days included Ashbourne in Derbyshire, Heswall in the Wirral, and ended up on the Isle of Man. Virtually every time a Judith Miller book-signing occurs, so does a mini-'antiques roadshow' type of valuation event. See below for a couple of the very exciting things we came across.


















The welcoming and friendly team at The Dovedale Gallery bookshop, in Ashbourne, Derbyshire, proudly holding copies of Judith's latest books.







At the valuation event, one lucky collector brought in this truly incredible mid-19th century oil on canvas painting of the first Maori to be (wrongly) imprisoned by the British. Politically sensitive? Yes. Historically important? Most certainly. Valuable? Without a doubt. That's why a say 'lucky' collector. It's impossible to value this sort of item precisely as it is both unique and of great importance. Like everything, it's worth what someone would pay. So how much would someone pay? I'd think a six figure sum - easily.

Judith and I were also lucky enough to come across a beautiful 1930s French Boch Freres vase in Heswall. With a book on Art Deco recently published, Judith was her usual self - a mine of information. We both explained that even as recently as three or four years ago, this vase may have fetched around £100-200, however, collectors have re-appraised the company's work and Art Deco is very fashionable right now, meaning a vase like this may now fetch around £800-1,200, or more. Coincidentally, Judith had recently seen a very similar example for sale at David Rago in New Jersey, USA, which was estimated at around $2,000. Nice find!
All the bookshops we visited had long queues of people eager to know more about their treasured heirlooms or recent finds. The one thing we always like to point out is that something does not need to be valuable to be interesting. So, never fear if you would like to bring something along to one of our events - whatever it is that you have. There's a story in everything, and we'd love to meet you! For more information on future events, keep an eye on the Events page of my website.