The Gramercy Antiques Show provided my first experience at a New York show. The show provided a lot more eclecticism than I am used to. I'm not sure if this is a recent trend in New York, or if it's always been more diverse in its merchandise. While shows in the Mid-Atlantic Region have been trending to a wider mix of styles, booths with no distinct period or style seemed to outnumber those with a narrower focus. I do suspect that those who decorate a period home with period furnishings, or even decorate exclusively in a specific period are lessening. Ten years ago, I know the shows in the Mid-Atlantic would have far more early-American and classical booths than they do today, and I suspect they started dissapearing from New York shows before then.

The other phenomena is the diverse population at a New York show. While still largely and older white crowd, there was more diversity than would be in an Ohio show. More, because of the diverse nature of the city, New Yorkers are exposed to a variety of cultures and their decorative arts and are more likely to collect a diverse range of objects. I should mention there are more European dealers in New York than would be at a Mid-Atlantic show, although they focus on decorative arts more than furniture.

The economy of course is a bit of a bear right now, and Helaine Fendelman, Hearst Publishing Columnist, Estate Advisor, Author & Collector spoke to that effect during her tour/talk. Fendelman quoted the recent New York Times Editorial by Warren Buffet saying "Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful." She also referenced the newfound green nature of an antique, and encouraged consumption during the downturn in the hopes that a parian here, a budda there would jumpstart the economy.

I didn't leave with anything, but I did enjoy pondering a number of items at the show and just might be there again tomorrow.

This weekend, don't miss "Antiques - A Silver Lining in The Storm" Sat., Oct. 25 @ 2p.m. at the Gramercy Antiques Show. A show walk-through and talk on the financial benefits of buying antiques in uncertain times with Helaine Fendelman, Hearst Publishing Columnist, Estate Advisor, Author & Collector. Helaine will point out collecting trends and good values that can be found right at the show. http://preview.tinyurl.com/5pfjev

Also, maybe times aren't so tough yet in Chicago, the second annual Merchandise Mart International Antiques Fall Fair reported it brought more than 100 dealers and thousands of visitors to The Merchandise Mart, Chicago from Oct. 3 – 6, 2008. Its success once again designated the show as one of the premier antiques fairs in the country.

“Both participation and attendance of the Antiques Fair was very strong,” said Joan Ulrich, senior vice president of Merchandise Mart Properties, Inc. “Even in this turbulent economy, many of the dealers had a great show, which shows the value and allure of high-quality antiques.” The Fall Antiques Fair began with a Preview Party on Oct. 2, benefiting the Lincoln Park Zoo. “People from throughout the community attended and everyone showed their over whelming support for the zoo and the Antiques Fair.” said Marty Peterson, 2008 Merchandise Mart Preview Party event chair.

A list of things to do in New York City doesn't commonly include house tours. Of the five major early east coast cities (also including Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Charleston), it's probably harder to get a sense of the distant past in New York than the others. From about the time of the Erie Canal, New York has been immersed in a continual process of renewing and rebuilding, a process that has made the city what it is, but has largely confined the past to museums.

Perhaps the best place to get a sense of New York around the time of the Erie Canal is the Merchant's House at 29 East Fourth Street near Washington Square, in what was known as the "Bond Street Area." read more

Book review by Eric Miller

At the time he turned forty the painter Martin Johnson Heade had yet to produce a distinguished painting. In 1859 he rented a studio in New York 's Tenth Street Studio building and changed his fate. His contact with other members of the Hudson River School radically improved his work. Unfortunately Heade later moved to Florida and was all but forgotten.

New York wasn't the center of the art world in the 1850s it is today, but Heade's story shows that New York was well on its way to being a place where people make things happen. In turn, the city makes people happen.

Leaving Pittsburgh, Andy Warhol also went to New York. Unlike Heade, Warhol never left New York and is never to be forgotten. Like Warhol's Factory, the Tenth Street Studio of the Hudson River painters allowed Heade to meet other painters, as New York allowed artists to meet people of other professions, with divergent expertise, at random, that helped their career. Except if going to New York is a purposeful act, it might not be as random as we might assume.

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