After waiting long enough I have finally started a new blog to focus on one of my other interests. Art and antiques.
For a few years now I have spent some of my free time buying and sometimes selling antiques and works of art that interest me. Most of these finds are from junk stores, flea markets, yard sales, estate sales, thrift shops and antique shops. I love digging for stuff.
Through the years I developed a fascination with folk art and naive works, either antique or modern. I think it stems from the fact that my skills as an artist are limited to pushing a button on a camera. When it came to art class I pretty much hung up my brushes once the concept of perspective was introduced. Sure I could draw a nice flat scene but asking for depth was just a bit much for me. Naive art and some folk art comes from artists that don't usually have formal training or traditional artistic skills. I can relate to that. There is beauty in the simplicity.
Most items posted will be from my own collection, which is admittedly pretty small. The focus will be on things I like and kept but I will occasionally showcase an item I sold or an item I am currently trying to sell. I don't often have much background on the artists but will do my best to tell you what I think. I will also try to go into a little detail about how I found it and why I picked it.
I will start with one of my favorite pieces, one that really got me interested in folk art.
Radiator Man
Radiator Man
Midwest United States
Dimensions: 28 inches high
Materials: Copper
Age: Mid-late 20th Century
The radiator man is a less common variation of the Muffler Man. You've probably seen a muffler man in your travels. The creations are made at muffler shops or in this case radiator shops. Pieces of scrap are welded together, sometimes painted and then used as a display for the business. Pure American industrial folk art. This one might have been hung above the garage as it's size wouldn't make it big enough for a road side piece. Really one of my favorite things, that helped me to appreciate folk art.
I found this guy on an auction website that I use occasionally. Their weren't many bidders as I think it was placed in the wrong category so I won it for very little money. It jumped out at me because of that face.
Thanks for viewing and feel free to leave me a comment about what you would like to see on here or send along some more info about what I have posted.
