1961 Chuck Close Painting
Watch
GUEST:
Well, in 1962 I lived with Chuck Close, and at the end of the summer when he was downsizing, came into possession of this piece, and with very few exceptions, it's been hanging on a wall of mine ever since.
APPRAISER:
Wonderful, so it came right from the artist to you, that's a wonderful provenance for a piece.
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
The piece is dated 1961, so very early in Chuck Close's career. He was born in 1940, so probably only 20 or 21 at the time.
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
And of course, this is not necessarily what you think of when you think of a Chuck Close. You think of these large-scale portrait heads, photorealism, very far from this abstract expressionist-inspired work. So it's a particularly interesting and rare example. This is an oil on canvas. He called it "The Turkey Painting"?
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
I see there's a little bit of... of damage here, puncture holes, but they're small and they're not in the main section of the canvas. At auction, I would put a value of $50,000 to $80,000 on this painting. It could conceivably go for even more.
GUEST:
That's... I don't have any plans to sell it. That is nice.
Appraisal Details
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
