First Auction Over, Another on the Way - Judy Datesman

July 4 – Yesterday's auction – Thierry-Lannon at Douarnenez – was fairly low-key. The pieces on the catalogue cover (see the July 1 blog entry) brought these prices (prices given are the gavel prices – the buyer pays an additional fee that varies from 16-20%, in this case 17%):
N° 99, the mythological scene by Giovanni Leonardi, went to a phone bidder for 1500 euros, almost double the estimation.
N° 119, the scolding grandmother, a very rare piece, was sold to a bidder in the room for 1350 euros.
N° 52, the Fouillen vase, was the high-priced piece for the day, at 4000 euros (less than the 5000 euros estimated).
And N°125, the Nicot peasant with his calf, was the surprise big-seller; heated bidding in the room between two bidders resulted in a gavel price of 4250 euros – the estimation was 800!

HOWEVER, there is still lots of great faïence coming up for sale! I visited Adjug'Art's exhibit yesterday, and it's a treat. If you haven't looked at the catalogue on line, take a peek ... Of particularly spectacular interest are two services that are from two bourgeois villas on the northern coast of Brittany. The Villa du Moulin Rouge service is a knockout – it's the only word. It was a special order done by HB at the end of the 19th century, and the every piece features some aspect of the Moulin Rouge (the Red Mill) in its decor. Here are a couple of photos of groups:

and take a good look at this plate – just the tips of two of the windmill blades can be seen on the upper right.




The quality of design and execution of these services is superb! For a detailed look at all the pieces, click here.

The title of this auction is L'Ame Bretonne – The Breton Soul – and there are many other kinds of items for sale ... it's hard to miss these costumes, which were being shown on a table in the center of the room. The workmanship is amazing, and I was lucky to have Alain Le Berre show me the details of the needlework; in times gone by, the best embroiderers were often men, as the felted wool was so stiff that it took a strong person to drive a needle through it.

Tomorrow, I will be in the front row for this sale – I don't want to miss a thing!

On another note ... it has been pointed out to me that I should include a short blogger's bio. I came to Brittany as a tourist 25 years ago, and it was such love at first sight that ten years later, after many visits and a six-month sabbatical, I left the world of private education and moved to Quimper. I have run a boutique in the center of town, and I opened the second commercial website in Quimper in 1998. I sell old and new pottery on line, and I buy and sell it for clients also; in the last year, I have started building and managing websites in France and in the US. In my spare time, I bead, and I'm just starting a beading blog. I have done my time with the Quimper Club as editor of the Journal and president for two terms; currently, I'm the French liaison and the webmaster. I will be submitting an offer to host the QCI meeting in Quimper in 2011 at the business meeting in Dallas in October; having groups here is a lot of fun, but I'm also lucky to have Club visitors on an individual basis pretty regularly (so if you're coming through, let me know ... ).