Beatrice Wood Pottery, ca. 1985
APPRAISER:
You and I have more in common than just our love of Beatrice Wood's pottery. I understand you met her at one point?
GUEST:
Yeah, I did. I met her at a gallery, Garth Clark Gallery in Los Angeles.
APPRAISER:
Mm-hmm.
GUEST:
They were the exclusive showers of her work in both New York and Los Angeles. And there was an opening there one night, and my partner was the manager of the gallery.
APPRAISER:
Hm.
GUEST:
So he said, "You really need to come tonight because she's really something else." And she really is something else.
APPRAISER:
Well, what was that like, meeting Beatrice Wood, for you?
GUEST:
Well, it was just a brief encounter for me, but just to kind of know who she was and to see the way she moved around the room. She had these really flowy kind of garments on, and just an eccentric but wonderful, warm person.
APPRAISER:
Fascinating woman. I used to go actually buy pottery from her in Ojai, California.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
She died at 104 or something.
GUEST:
105, mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
She lived for a long time-- 105. And she was asked what the secret was to her longevity. And she said, "Chocolates and young men."
GUEST:
(laughs)
APPRAISER:
She was interviewed on her 100th birthday in the "L.A. Times." I don't know if you saw that or not.
GUEST:
I did see the article.
APPRAISER:
And she was asked why-- again, she was really sassy-- she was asked why she didn't drink alcohol. And she said, "I don't have a problem with alcohol, but I always want to be sober when I'm seduced." (both laughing) So we're gonna talk about her pots, but it's important, because you can't really separate the artist from the art, especially in her case. She was called "The Mama of Dada."
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
The Dadaists back in the teens in New York City and ran with Marcel Duchamp and a very edgy art crowd.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
She discovered ceramics, and she studied under Gertrud and Otto Natzler. But what she really became known for were these colorful nacreous iridescent glazes. So this vase, actually, really neoclassical-- takes... Straight take-off on a Roman vase, has a great nacreous finish to it, a good multicolored flambé. It's also marked. This is, uh, Beatrice Wood's mark. It says "Beato." That's how she signed her pieces. Then this bowl... This is the finger ridges shown on the outside of this. On the bowl, they're more prominent. On the back, you can see where she actually threw the piece. Again, there's the Beatrice Wood signature, and a great glaze on the backside of this. She potted in Ojai up until about the time of her death.
GUEST:
Mm-hmm.
APPRAISER:
Stylistically, I date them by what she was doing at certain periods of her, of her career. Later on, she tended to do more sculptural work. So this looks to me like classic '70s and '80s work of Beatrice Wood. You probably bought them when they were relatively recent.
GUEST:
Yeah, because it was probably about... I would say '86, '87, '88, somewhere in that time frame when I bought them.
APPRAISER:
Well, you got two classic examples, worth decent value. What did, what did you pay for these?
GUEST:
Well, because my partner was the manager of the gallery, they were listed, I believe, for about $2,200, but he got a 20% discount, so we ended up getting them, I think, for about $1,700.
APPRAISER:
For both of these.
GUEST:
Yeah, for both the pieces.
APPRAISER:
Well, on today's market at auction, I would estimate this for $2,000 to $3,000, and it would bring all that, and perhaps a little more.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
I tend to be a little conservative. And this bowl, bowls tend not to bring as much as vases, but this is such a good example. I think it's in the $1,500 to $2,000 range at auction. So I think easily you're looking at about $3,500 to $5,000 for the Beatrice Wood's work.
GUEST:
Wow, that's great-- that's really good to hear.
APPRAISER:
I've really wanted to talk about Beatrice Wood for many years here, and I've finally had my opportunity.
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.