Czech Glass Exhibition

It came around far quicker than expected, but the 12th July saw the launch of the long awaited 'Hi Sklo Lo Sklo exhibition at the King's Lynn Arts Centre, in King's Lynn Norfolk. And what a weekend it was! Arriving late Friday afternoon, I my breath was taken away by the incredibly colourful display of Czech glass from the 1950s -80s. Even though I had seen it all before when the owner, Dr Graham Cooley, and I were researching the subject, it still made me gasp. A final late night dealing with the finer finishing touches turned rapidly into the morning of the opening. An exciting day of lectures and other events, organised by the Glass Association lay ahead... Within 15 minutes, everyone had assembled and judging by the smiles and animated conversation, they were mightily impressed - and quite right too! The empty room (seen here) quickly filled up as dealers, collectors and glass lovers came together to pack in as much as possible before the first talk. Graham took the stage and, as ever, gave a thoroughly educational and entertaining talk about the exhibition and many of the leading designs and designers. Setting out the background - and more - with perfect pitch everyone felt ready for the next lecture, given by the eminent authority Dan Klein. Punctuated with fascinating personal anecdotes that brought the designers to life, Dan walked us through the higher end of the market, examining works by Stanislav Libensky, Jaroslava Brychtova and their notable peers.
Both lunch and dinner in the evening were relaxed and sociable, with conversation (and wine!) flowing easily. The hubbub of excited talk about the day's learning was frequently punctuated with laughter. In these days of the internet ruling so much of the trade, it's easy to forget how good events like these are. Not only can you see the glass firsthand, which is most important, but you can trade stories (and sometimes glass) and learn from each other's experience. Never forget the social side of our hobby as, apart from the glass itself, that's what makes it so magical. If you weren't there, all I can ask is 'Why?' All I can then recommend is that you go - now!
For more pictures of the event click here. The Hi Sklo Lo Sklo exhibition is on show at the King's Lynn Arts Centre, King's Lynn, Norfolk from 13th July - 9th August 2008. Check out www.sklo.co.uk for more information. The accompanying catalogue is available here.

Metallic Fantastic!

You know when you keep reading things about an area, and it looks like a 'head of steam' is rapidly building up? I think exactly this is happening with British metalware of the 1950s-70s. Interest in, and prices being paid for, exotic silver and gold pieces by the likes of Stuart Devlin and Gerald Benney have risen steeply over the past year. If you read magazines or newspapers like the Antiques Trade Gazette every week, as I do, then you can hardly fail to notice. And it's not just die-hard collectors either, interior decorators and investors looking for appealing and intrinsically valuable pieces that are typical of the period have also become hooked.
If, like mine, your pockets aren't deep enough to run to a precious metal piece, I'd keep a close eye on stainless steel designs of the same period. Many were designed by the very same designers as the higher end pieces. For example, take this 'Campden' coffee set designed in 1957 by Robert Welch for market leader Old Hall. Arguably a design classic, its clean-lined form shows one of the most important influences of the period - Scandinavian Modernism. It's also incredibly practical, as the wooden handles allow you to pour without getting burnt. And the spouts don't drip or dribble either! Usually selling for around £60-70, I've seen examples go for much less.

Crafty Stuff

For those of your who are familiar with the excellent Crafts magazine, published by the UK's national Crafts Council, check out this month's issue. The eminent curator and 20thC design author and expert Lesley Jackson has written an eight page, fully illustrated preview of the forthcoming 'Hi Sklo Lo Sklo' Czech glass exhibition. Offering a wealth of historical and background information, as one would expect from the excellent Jackson, it's not to be missed as a detailed introduction to the area. If anyone has any doubt that postwar Czech glass design may be 'the next big thing', listen to the expert herself - the last lines of the article reads "They were often beautiful objects which, until now, have been largely misunderstood or completely ignored. Cooley and Hill could just trigger off another Velvet Revolution - this time in the collecting sphere."

The hammer falls...

Just in case you were wondering, the copy of Hi Sklo Lo Sklo that I was selling for charity on eBay this week sold for twice its retail price - £40. What's more, it sold to the Rakow Library, part of the world-famous Corning Museum of Glass in New York. Illustrious indeed! Do we think this area is about to explode - with attention from such establishments, yes, we do!

Budapest III - The Flea Market!

The more perceptive of you will note that I haven't bought much yet, having only spent the parsimonious sum of £14.75. Well, to be honest, I have been clutching my wallet close and saving myself for the highlight of my trip - a visit to the famed Esceri flea market.
Billed as 'the biggest and best flea market in Central Europe', even if it isn't, it's most certainly worth a visit. If you can get there, that is. It's not as hard to find as some guide books say, but you do need to be a little intrepid as it's quite far out of town. When I was there last in December 2005, I was somewhat suffering from the after-effects of the night before. Alas that meant I couldn't really remember how to get there this time.
The first bit is easy. Take the M3 metro to Hatar Utca, the stop before the end of the line - don't feel the temptation to get off at Esceri Utca, despite the name. It's when you leave Hatar Utca station that it becomes a little difficult. You now need to catch a bus to get to the market, but which one, and from where? Buses seems to have changed since guidebooks were published. Thankfully I found some similarly confused Norwegians who spoke German and, between us, we managed to persuade a bus driver to help us. The answer is the 54, caught from the stop on the side of the road furthest away from the metro station exit, and next to a hotel. Persevere despite the rickety nature of the bus, and the fact that you seem to be going along a motorway, and get off at Fiume Utca - the driver will usually announce something unintelligible in Hungarian. As it's the first time he'll say anything, you'll know where it is. Cross over the motorway using the bridge and you're there. See - not so hard!
And what a treasure trove - you'll find everything from fine ceramics and glass to literally the kitchen sink. I saw everything from a 55,000 florin (about £180) Harrachov 'Harrtil' glass vase to the pile of suitcases and the ancient TV in the picture. It's a pretty large place with around 150-200 dealers who vary from those selling on pasting tables arranged in rows outside, to those in stands under cover, to those running more professional lockable shops arranged along three long under-cover avenues. You could spend hours browsing - I did! Unlike the BAV stores of the antique shops I was in yesterday, haggling is very much the order of the day. And haggle hard - really hard. They know that you're a tourist, no matter how hard you try. I found that asking a price then politely declining, indicating that you'll walk around and then walking away, worked. Returning some 30 minutes later often yielded a discount of nearly 50%. Organise your money before you go back, as it really isn't right to flash your cash.
A final tip before I let you know what I bought. Saturday is the best day, and get there early - dealers start to pack up at around midday. I'm told that the earlier you get there, the better the stock. I arrived at around 11am and, although there was plenty to see, I did wonder what may have been there at 8am.
After a good few hours combing through and negotiating with a number of dealers, I decided to plump for only one piece - another 1960s Czech Zelezny Brod vase. The first price was 7,000 florins (about £23). Upon my return, I was lynched by the lively (and lovely) dealer, who wrote down a price of 5,000 florins (about £16.50). I shook my head gravely and cheekily suggested 2,000. After a few raised eyebrows and smiles, I handed over 2,500 florins (£8.25) - a pretty good discount. Both happy (I did wonder what she paid!), we shook hands and I wandered off to catch my bus back to town. Who should I find at the bus stop but the Norwegian couple I met earlier. Although they hadn't bought anything, they did have one question. Pointing at a sentence in their guidebook, they wanted to know what a 'Fred Astaire style top hat' was. Despite the temptation after such a pleasant morning, I did manage to restrain myself from dancing, or singing for that matter!

Budapest II

After enjoying the blazing sun, wonderful warmth and success of the previous day, I was up and out early, being for more. The second stop for anyone visiting the city must be the street called Falk Miksa in the north of the city, and near the Elizabeth bridge.
This really is 'antiques central' with at least a dozen shops along this pretty tree-lined avenue. It seems to be where real money can be spent, with many shops stocking the national speciality of lustrous ceramics by Zsolnay, based in the town of Pecs. Also worth checking out is the Hungarian version of Art Deco and post war ceramics by the potter Gesu Gorka and his daughter Livia.
Most of the Art Deco furniture I saw seemed to be heavy in weight and style, and large in size, meaning it had great visual impact. Furthermore, much like antiques shops in the UK and the US, it's also worth taking a closer look as some pieces are recent rather than period. However, they're identified as such and priced accordingly. As for the work of the mercurial Gorka pair, if you're a fan of avant garde ceramics or West German 'Fat Lava' ceramics, you're sure to be in heaven. Virtually unknown outside of Hungary, I think their work could be a good bet for the future. However, dealers seem to think the same as me and you can pay anything from £50 upwards for the smallest piece - more standard prices for a meaty example are anything from £150-500.
Hungry for lunch after so much browsing, I stopped at the rather fine Café Picard, one of the many restaurants that can be found dotted between the antiques emporia. While the standard Hungarian fare of a stew and potato gnocchi was not welcome in the heat, a large and cold beer and salad certainly was!
Also based on this street is one of Hungary's 'grand dame' auction houses, Nagyházi (www.nagyhazi.hu). They hold regular, well-catalogued auctions that cross ceramics, furniture, rugs and glass. I enjoyed a long browse through the many palatial rooms filled with treasures, imagining places in my tiny apartment for far too many of the beautiful objects I saw.
It's worth pointing out that many auction houses also hold gallery sales, as well as auctions. Perfect for the tourist, this means you can buy items marked with retail prices, much as you would in a shop, and take them away with you. On that note it's also worth visiting the Polgar and Dunaparti auction houses and galleries, both on Váci Utca that runs through the centre of town.