I have become temporarily immersed in the year 1757. However, cursory research suggests that 1757 wasn’t particularly distinguished for world-changing historical events. So why should I pick that year as my focus of attention? Because of a new addition to my ceramics collection: a large pottery bowl purchased recently in a local auction. … More Seventeen Fifty-Seven
There are thirteen of us, from across the world, assembled closely together for three days of deep emotional and intellectual immersion. Ooohh, what’s this about? Is it a murder mystery? Is it about a cult? Is it a reality TV show? No, no, it’s much more serious. It’s an Art History study tour. … More Flemish Primitives?
Here’s a nineteenth century Staffordshire Willow Pattern plate. You don’t need to be an expert to know this. It isn’t rare or valuable, so why did I buy it? Because it’s rather special: a plate with a story to tell. A plate which shouldn’t be here in Britain. It should be in Brazil. … More China to Brazil
Two objects made of wood: a tiny sycamore container and a Chippendale-style oak chair. You might think that other than the material, there wouldn’t be much similarity between them. But there you would be wrong. These pieces tell striking parallel stories about woodworking at the highest level of craftsmanship in Scottish small-town settings. … More Sycamore and Oak
I don’t usually do much introspection. Frankly, my innermost thoughts and feelings aren’t all that interesting. But suddenly I feel the need to unburden myself. I’m worried. My problem: a developing habit of buying up auction job lots. It’s getting worse. Am I morphing from collector into hoarder? Help! Hoarding alert! … More Hoarding Alert!
I have recently added three pieces of slipware to my collection. You might ask: what’s slipware? What awful old broken chipped cracked pots is he gonna show us now? Why should we be interested? Well, I think some slipware pots are fascinating and beautiful objects, and I’m hoping you will think so too. … More Slipware
On safari in South Africa, our tracker maintains an intense focus, scanning sky, trees, bushes, grass, earth. He notes footprints, faeces, gnawed bones, and listens for noises from nearby beasts and birds. To a city person, it is all very strange, exciting, unsettling. And yet it is familiar. After all, I’m a tracker too. … More Natural Habitat: Part 2
I’ve been out of my natural habitat, on safari in South Africa. Picture me, elderly, urban, bookish, hurtling through the bush in an open-topped truck, in pursuit of miscellaneous wildlife. Could anything be more incongruous? And yet, I enjoyed – no, adored – every moment. And oddly, curiously, I felt quite at home. I wonder why? … More Natural Habitat: Part 1
Is my drawing of the Martyrdom of Saint Catherine of Alexandria copied from the 1530 painting or the 1791 engraving? And might it possibly be an actual preparatory study made for the engraving? Time to get the three images side by side to spot the differences. I give you my evidence and my conclusions. … More Martyrdom: Part 3 – The Drawing
My drawing of the Martyrdom of Saint Catherine of Alexandria is a copy of a painting from around 1530. Now I have discovered that the same composition appears in engraving published in Florence in 1791. The painting came first, but how can I find out which came next, the drawing or the engraving? … More Martyrdom: Part 2 – The Engraving
Random Treasure 