Here Be Old Things

Diane Arbus suit settled: dealers across the nation shudder

Bayo Ogunsanya's lawsuit against Robert Langmuir has been settled out of court. The story broke yesterday in the Maine Antique Digest. While he is not allowed to give any particulars, Ogunsanya states that he will be allowed a percentage of Langmuir's gross sales when the Arbus photos are sold.

This affair drew a lot of controversy last spring. Langmuir bought an initial set of photos from Ogunsanya, followed his hunch, did some research, discovered that they were early Diane Arbus photos of Hubert's Dime Museum and Flea Market freak show in Times Square, then went back to Ogunsanya to buy the rest of the collection. In a sort of dealer's fantasy trifecta, he put the photos up for auction at Phillips, where estimates ranged up to 120k each, a book was published about the adventure, AND a producer was trying to get a movie made with Phillip Seymour Hoffman playing Langmuir.

Ogunsanya raised a ruckus, protesting that he had been robbed. The Phillips auction was pulled the night before the sale, (either because because of the lawsuit, or because Phillips hesitated over the price of the guarantee based on other Arubs results that week), and, sadly, Hoffman snubbed the movie proposal.

Ogunsanya said "It was a case that [Langmuir] couldn't win, and he probably hurt himself by delaying the settling of it, because of the market. Hopefully, he will be selling them for as much as he can get and soon too. But the economy is what it is."

Yes, the economy is what it is. Most readers who weighed in felt that Ogunsanya had had the same chances as Langmuir to do his research, and that it would send a big chill through the antiques and collectibles world if every lucky dealer who stumbled on a big find had to share gains. Well, feel the chill. Or, if you're on the other side of the deal, feel like a lottery winner. Opinions?

Arbus Suit is Settled [Maine Antique Digest]
Man who sold Arubs photos to another dealer says he was cheated of their true value [Here Be Old Things]

Top 10 flea markets in Europe?

Photograph of the market at Lille from The Guardian, by Philippe Huguen/AFP

Two years ago, The Guardian published their picks for the Top 10 European flea markets. Incredibly, they didn't list Le Marche aux Puces de Saint-Ouen or its smaller cousin at la Porte de Vanves. There's also a glaring admission of . . . ha, that's a teaser. I can think of two very large, little-known fleas in Europe that I'm going to write about in the coming days. Until I can get my act together, though, read The Guardian's descriptions carefully. Some of these look legit, but a few are junk markets:

• Flea market in Waterloo, Belgium
• Carmagnola market in Turin, Italy
• brocante south of Cardedeu in Cadaques, Spain
• market at Cormano near Milan, Italy
• Jeu de Balle in Brussels, Belgium
• Mercatino di Torino near Alba, Italy
• Mercantic in Barcelona, Spain
• Borgo D’Ale at Lake Maggiore, Italy
• Ciney Antiquities, an annual brocante at the Ciney Expo in Namur, Belguim
• Annual May attic sale, or "vide-greniers," in the village of Auriac-sur-Vendinelle, Mirepoix in southern France
• La Grande Braderie de Lille, in Lille, Northern France, during September, which attracts over a million visitors

I've been to the Brussels flea and I thought it was small and disappointing. Any opinions?

The death of my career marked by Modern Posters auction at Posters Please

I remember when my grandmother used to point out some tchotchke in a store and snort, "that's an antique?" And I'd think, well, of course it is, Grandma.

Last Thursday, a young crowd went crazy over relics of my own recent past. While I and my advertising art-director and copywriter friends scramble for jobs in a dying-industry-meets-dead-economy-end-of-the-world-as-we-know it-Mad-Max (I could go on) scenario, the ads and posters we used to admire in awards annuals brought in prices that pleasantly surprised Posters Please.

The auction was described as offering low-cost but still valuable items. One lot was this Milton Glaser poster . . . that's an antique? Well of course it is, Grandma.

Here Be Old Things inaugurates a page on New York City area auction houses

Check it out: a new button the left that links to a list of auction houses in the New York City metro area. I compiled it from a list the New York Times published in 2007 (wow, time flies). I tried to make sure the businesses were still viable, but if I'm wrong, or if you see any that I've left out, please let me know in the comments section below. Happy auctioning!

New York City Auctions: March 23–29, 2009

Lot 10: Hand-colored folding plate from "An Affecting Narrative of the Captivity & Sufferings of Mrs. Mary Smith" at Swann Galleries

Events and Exhibits in New York City during Asia Week 2009

Matsuo Basho: Hibiscus with Haiku. At the Japanese Art Dealers

Bad news: Haughtons' International Asian Art Fair was canceled this year. Good news: now you won't have as much ground to cover. There's still a lot to see, and The Magazine Antiques has compiled an Asia Week "to-do list" of alternative events.

• March 14: Asian Art Dealers of Upper Eastside NY: Inaugural Open House, noon–8:00 pm
• March 14–18: Arts of Pacific Asia Show
• March 15–17: Arts of Japan: An Exhibition by the Japanese Art Dealers Association
• March 16: public symposium at the Japan Society: Japanese Art in America: Building the Next Generation
• March 17: opening at the Met: Art of the Korean Renaissance, 1400-1600
• Now at the Asia Society: Asian Journeys: Collecting Art in Post-war America
• Now at the Guggenheim: Noguchi: The Bollingen Journey 1949-1956

Local blogger now offering estate and tag sale services in the New York City area

One of my favorite blogs is Reclaimed Home, which is about "low impact housing and renovation options for thrifty New Yorkers." The author, who includes witty pieces about her personal life, always seems to be up to a LOT: renovating her own homes (yes, plural) in Bed Stuy and Beacon, selling at the Brooklyn Flea, scouting out cheapo property in the region (I like this post on aesthetically pleasing mobile homes) . . . and now moving into the tag and estate sale business. This weekend she's putting on her second effort this Saturday, March 14, up in Beacon. The sale is a mix of antiques and vintage items left over from other sales, clean-outs, and shop inventory reductions, plus some consignments from local dealers. Get a preview of the weekend's goodies on Reclaimed Homes' Flickr page, and then check it out. The address is 69 Verplanck Avenue, Beacon, New York, and the sale runs 8:30am-4:30pm.I know no one wants to say the "S" word anymore, but this isn't shopping, it's recycling!

New York City Auctions: March 16–22, 2009

Lot 122 Green River Sofa Table with Priscacara liops at I.M. Chait Natural History Auction

New York City Auctions: March 9–15, 2009

Lot 122 Untitled (Profile of a Woman) by Andy Warhol at Phillips 

NYSales.net: a new resource for tag sales in Connecticut, New Jersey, and on Long Island

Up until now, when I've searched for estate or tag sales in the region, I've turned to EstateSales.net, which is trying to be the national player in that niche. Well, now there's a new kid on the block: NYSales.net, which lists estate, tag, moving and yard sales exclusively in the tri-state metro area. It was started by a local who likes to rummage through books and other other items at estate and tag sales, and saw the value in consolidating as many ads as possible all in one spot. This weekend alone, he's listed almost twice the number of sales as his competitor. NYSales.net makes an effort to weed out virtual sales; the site is clean and easy to navigate. Hmmmm... wait. It lists antique shows and auctions. Looks like someone's moving on to my block, too.