31 Oct COLLECTOR’S EYE: FINDING HIDDEN GEMS

Reyne Hirsch could be called an accidental collector, and she wouldn’t be alone. After all, how many people have unknowingly built a collection only to discover its value and face the fact that they are, indeed, a collector?

Hirsch, co-owner of the Dallas Auction Gallery with David Lewis and Patrick Jones, has also written articles for leading antiquities publications and appeared as an expert appraiser on national television. She was an appraiser for the PBS Emmy-nominated series “Antiques Roadshow” for 13 years.

Her collecting journey began in New York City after moving from her hometown of Houston, Texas, in her 20s. “I’d moved to New York to do an internship with Bear Stearns as a stockbroker,” she says. “I only had my clothes, my pots and pans, and my music. All the rest of the things I needed, I wanted to buy there.” She began to frequent small antique shops in her neighborhood, buying only exquisite pieces. “I wasn’t really collecting to be a collector but to decorate my apartment, and I wanted unique things,” she says. Little by little, Hirsch had more than she needed, so she began boxing up items and putting them in a closet. Inside those boxes were Art Nouveau glass, Steuben vases, and other collectibles.

Eventually, the overload of items in her apartment — and her good sense of how antique shops and fairs priced and sold their goods — led Hirsch to rent a booth at an antiquities show around the corner. “I sold everything in my booth that weekend,” she says. After that, she began buying and selling antiques at shows and fairs in New York City and New Jersey.

Today, she is considered an expert in many categories of collectibles, including 20th-century decorative arts, especially from Tiffany Studios. She is asked to appraise collections ranging from antique watches to $25-million paintings.

As an expert in Tiffany glass, Hirsch recalls receiving a call from an art dealer who had a lamp on consignment but didn’t specialize in glass. Tiffany created the lamp expressly for founder Louis Comfort Tiffany; it was one of a kind and appeared in two important books. The dealer was looking to sell the lamp for $300,000, a tidy sum in 1998 and a pretty stiff buy for a young dealer. There were no comparable items to determine its value; still, Hirsch managed to borrow money to purchase the lamp.

She then chose Phillips Auction, a newcomer to the New York auction scene at the time, to sell the piece for her. Well-known in the U.K., the auction house hoped to make a splash in the New York market. “The lamp was the last piece of the day,” she recalls, “and I made the mistake of sitting through the entire auction! The catalog listed no reserve and stated simply, ‘price upon request.’ I was hoping it would at least bring the price I had borrowed to pay for it.”

Slowly, it reached the $300,000 mark, much to her relief. And then, suddenly, every phone started ringing. The lamp ultimately hammered for $1.7 million, and with fees, the total came to more than $1.8 million.

Not only was Hirsch ecstatic, but so, too, was Phillips.

WA&A: What inspires you to collect?

Reyne Hirsch: Things that are unique bring me joy and inspiration. I never wanted red roses from a boyfriend, because everyone got them; I wanted orchids or birds of paradise. By the same measure, I collect what’s unique and am thrilled when I find that ‘something,’ be it a handbag, watch, or any collectible.

WA&A: Is your collection diverse?

R.H.: It’s pretty assorted. I collect fine timepieces and have quite a variety of watches that were designed as jewelry. I have art glass and Mid-century Modern furniture and décor. I’ve always been a European and American drippy-glaze pottery collector and still have turn-of-the-century glass that goes with contemporary art.

WA&A: What is your most beloved piece and why?

R.H.: Somewhere in my home is the first watch I bought while living in New York. My neighbor was having a garage sale, and I found a lady’s Heuer watch. He said I could buy it for $5 because it didn’t work. A watchmaker sold me a new battery, which cost me another $5, and when he told me the watch was worth $300, I began collecting women’s wristwatches. At the time, men’s wristwatches were collected 10 times more than women’s, making the women’s watches very affordable.

WA&A: Was there ever a piece that got away?

R.H.: Always! In this business, the saying is, ‘The time to buy is when you see it because it can haunt you.’ Early on, when I began collecting, I had a red vase but was unaware that it was uncommon. I sold it for pennies on the dollar; I learned it was worth $6,500 after I’d sold it for $800.

WA&A: What advice would you offer someone who wants to start collecting?

R.H.: If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. There are a lot of fakes and reproductions for just about everything, from diamonds and wristwatches to Tiffany lamps and Andy Warhol paintings. If they faked Beanie Babies (and they did), they will fake anything. As a beginner collector, people often have just enough knowledge to convince themselves that they have found a bargain. They’ll think, ‘This dealer must not know what they have.’ I can guarantee 10 out of 10 times the dealer does know what they have. It’s not to say there aren’t hidden treasures out there; after 13 seasons on ‘Antiques Roadshow,’ I’ve seen some. However, if it’s in a store or shop, you’re not smarter than the shop owner.

WA&A: Where do you see your collection in 100 years?

R.H.: Museums want great examples of things for their collections, and I could have some items they’d like. My hope is that my kids will contact an auction house to sell my collections. Maybe they’d want a few things for their own collections, but tastes change; that’s how things evolve.

WA&A senior contributing editor Shari Morrison has been in the business of art for more than 40 years. She helped found the Scottsdale Artists’ School and the American Women Artists and directed the Santa Fe Artists’ Medical Fund for some years.

Photographer Jeffrey D. Myers is a connoisseur of light. His work has been published internationally in numerous magazines and books. He’s photographed assignments in more than 20 countries and won countless awards for his commercial photos.