I have long thought of myself as an advocate for the “average” collector of American antiques. Anyone can build a fine collection and publish a cocktail table book of their efforts if they work with the best dealers and have an unlimited budget. When spending on American antiques has a limit, the collector must be more discerning, work harder, and be luckier from time to time.
The inaugural Pennsylvania Show, replacing the Philadelphia Show, has gotten good reviews and from talking with collectors and a few dealers who did the show I concluded there were some wonderful pieces for sale, and some that perhaps with a reach, affordable to many collectors. But who gets first crack at them?
The Preview Party for the show’s first hour had a ticket fee of $450! That is almost twice that of the Delaware Show, another fine show of Americana. The only show I can find with a higher preview cost is The Winter Show in NYC in January, but there are almost no American dealers doing it anymore. The cost seems to favor the wealthy collector, or am I mistaken?
Would I pay such a fee and attend the show I would have significant (to me) sunk costs – flying from the Midwest into Philadelphia, renting a car, hotel and meals, and the like. To go all that way and see a red dot on a piece I love would be devastating. I think after the first hour the cost falls to $225. But the $450 sticks in my craw. If a dealer told me of a piece that I had seen photos of and loved, but said, “I want it in my booth, if you are the first to tell me it is sold, it is yours” I would pay the “hunting license” cost. Otherwise, I think not.
Why is this show so insensitive to us middle class collectors? I know the Preview is a fund raiser, but I would forego the nibblies and champaign for first crack at the antiques. What are your thoughts on the matter?
