1922 John Frost Landscape Oil Painting
Watch
GUEST:
My grandfather-- who was involved with the studios back in the '20s and '30s, the Hollywood studios-- acquired it some point in time, I don't know exactly when. What I know about the artist in finding out a little research online is that he was a famous artist from Pennsylvania, moved out here to California because he had tuberculosis, so the climate was for his health. And doing his painting out in the desert, they used to do a lot of film shooting for the studios out in Palm Springs.
APPRAISER:
Uh-huh.
GUEST:
So from Palm Springs, obviously he's done a lot of desertscapes. Became quite popular with the Hollywood crowd and so I just assumed my grandfather knew this artist and purchased it probably from the artist directly.
APPRAISER:
It's by John Frost, it's oil on canvas. He was born in 1890, and it is dated here lower right, "John Frost, 1922," as you said.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
He led a very interesting life, and unfortunately a short one-- he died in 1937.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
He-- importantly for his formation artistically-- is the son of a very famous artist himself, a well-known illustrator named Arthur B. Frost.
GUEST:
Yeah, I did read that.
APPRAISER:
Who was quite successful.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And Frost put him in touch with a number of artists over the course of his career, helped him get started, including the most important of the California Impressionists, a guy named Guy Rose.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
Who was painting in France, in Giverny, right around the same time as Monet, initially.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And Frost actually visited him there.
GUEST:
Oh, wow.
APPRAISER:
Initiated their relationship, and both of them ended up back in southern California.
GUEST:
Oh, wow.
APPRAISER:
So Frost is sort of-- he's one step removed from the most important of the California Impressionist painters.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And he's sort of two steps away from the French Impressionists. But the interesting thing with Frost is that because his father was successful...
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
He was successful, as well. This is not the starving artist.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
You have to throw all those ideas out for him.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
He was successful, he was wealthy. There's a great review in 1926 that talks about, most of the time, he is seeing the landscape from behind a golf club or a riding crop.
GUEST:
Oh, wow.
APPRAISER:
(laughing) He is not out there painting.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
One of the other California painters that he worked with, a guy named Alson Clark, also complained about him never really working that hard.
GUEST:
Interesting.
APPRAISER:
He's kind of a playboy, the country club lifestyle, and so there's just not a lot of work out there.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
Of the work that's out there, there's a fair amount of them that are these desert scenes.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
As you said, he's out there for his health.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
He's out there for the dry air to help with his condition. And in the market right now, in 2018, at auction, I think you could reasonably expect an estimate of $25,000 to $35,000.
GUEST:
Well, that's good. Very nice.
APPRAISER:
The scarcity function is really fascinating with him, because people think if there are less objects, it will be worth more. Mm-hmm. But there's a certain amount of them that have to circulate in order to have a functioning market. Okay. All of his paintings would be worth more if there were more of them.
GUEST:
More paintings.
APPRAISER:
He didn't sell them on the cheap, either. Why? He didn't have to.
GUEST:
Oh, yeah, yeah. Right?
APPRAISER:
So... Not only were they rare, they were expensive.
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.
