AFA Summer 2018 Preview

Summer 12 www.afamag.com | www.incollect.com T he pendulum swings and so does interest in various style periods. While modern design continues in popularity, there is a decidedly increased interest in traditional material, most noticeably interior designers. We see this as antiques shows invite designers to be show chairs, and programs on decorating with antiques are becoming more prominent at events geared to the design industry. Not necessarily opting to decorate in one style, designers are mixing it up and combining traditional and modern furnishings. This trend has been ongoing for a number of years, but recently there is a noticeable uptick in such interest. In our lead article in this issue, interior designer Ellie Cullman and her team at Cullman & Kravis Associates present a series of interiors they have decorated by integrating antiques (pages 76–81). As they write, “The juxtaposition of traditional and modern creates an alchemy of old and new that makes a home more personal and interesting . . . [adding] dynamism to any space.” The successful combination of “old” and “new” revolves around the concept that great design is timeless and that the past is always present. When we look at a work of art, we always see the influence of the past. As author Melissa Buron notes in her article on artists of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (pages 104–109), the “attraction to the art of the past . . . [that] informed the Pre-Raphaelites’ aesthetic vocabulary . . . highlights the nuanced paradoxes of [their] mission—namely, their efforts to be fundamentally modern by emulating the past.” Buron gives the examples of the foliage-laden background of Kehinde Wiley’s portrait of President Obama as being reminiscent of textile and wallpaper designs by William Morris, a contemporary of the Pre-Raphaelites, as well as the work of photographer Cindy Sherman in her “History Portraits” series, noting, “This type of critical engagement with the past . . . is alive and well . . . in the twenty-first century.” I, for one, look forward to seeing what lies ahead in the world of art, antiques, and design; I’m certain that creative minds will continue to find inspiration in classic design and its many forms. Onward, Johanna johanna@antiquesandfineart.com Photography by Ellen McDermott LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Clive Devenish Antiques, Incline Village, Nevada Member Antiques Dealers' Association of America clivedevenishantiques@comcast.net www.clivedevenishantiques.com phone (510) 414-4545 Harris Toy Company, Dual Goat Drawn Buckboard, 14" Circa 1903 Provenance: 1940s Renowned Toy Collector Ferdinand Weider Established 1976