Baltimore Show 2014

NEWATGAPP Get Antiqu es Trad e Gazette on th e go continuedonpage 3 continuedonpage 3 New NY rules could protect authenticators ■ Suggested changes aim to discourage lawsuits against views expressed in good faith AlexCapon reports Issue 2141 |17thMay2014 UK £2.25 –USA$6.50 – Europe€3.95 DESIGNED andmanufactured by the Siemens factory inWoolwich from1929, the 200 Series dial telephone (aka theNeophone) is today considered anArtDeco design classic and the first trulymodern telephone. Standard issue black versions, rented enmasse to customers by theGeneral Post Office,will now command two- and three-figure sums dependingupon type and condition. But those encased in ivory-coloured plastic (typically urea formaldehyde for earlymodels and acrylic for later ones) are harder to find in good orderwhile the small number in ‘jade green’ and ‘lacquer red’ are a different commercial proposition entirely. Handsets in these two special colours attracted a substantially increased subscription cost at the time, enough tomake them somethingof anovelty, even beforemostphonesof this typewerediscardedor replaced asobsolete in the1960s. The pair of red and green 1950s-eraNeophones seen at RichardWinterton of Lichfield onMay 2were both in verygood condition and soldwithmatchingbell sets (the separate pedestal unit tomake them ring), a combination collectors know as ‘kingpyramids’. Thesemodels also included the small exchange drawer in the Art Deco classics ring a bell LEGISLATIONdesigned to protect art authenticators from lengthyand expensive legal claimshasbeen proposed inNewYork. The bill,which seeks to amend the state’s art and cultural affairs law, is designed todiscourage lawsuits against thosewho authenticateworks of art in good faith and enable them to recover their expenses in the event of an unsuccessful claim. According to TheAssociation of the Bar of theCityofNewYork,who have recommended the proposed legislation, the changeswould “address certain deficiencies” in the current framework andwould protect “authenticators in rendering independent, good- faith opinions about the authenticity, attribution and authorship ofworks of fine art”. Earlier thismonth the billwas unanimously endorsed by TheNewYork Senate StandingCommittee onCultural Affairs and itwill nowmove forward for consideration by the full senate. The legislation comes at a time when the role of authenticators and authenticatingbodies has been brought into focus following the demise of several artists’ authenticating boardsover the last few years. These include,most prominently, theAndyWarhol Foundation in 2011, aswell as theKeithHaring Foundation and Jean-MichelBasquiat authentication committee, both in 2012. Koopman Rare Art Amonumental ewer t: 02080453745 e : info@ love antiques.com DEALERS - don’tmiss our limited FOUNDER MEMBER OFFER Antiques Trade Gazette can now be read on your favourite digital device including iPad, Android and Kindle Fire. App subscribers get: Ȉ Ȉ Ȉ Ȉ Save up to 60%with a digital subscription www.antiquestradegazette.com/app