Recollections by Melissa Gagen: The Collection of Carole Harris
Melissa Gagen, a New York City-based appraiser and furniture and works of art specialist, remembers her time working with Carole Harris and a particular bureau-cabinet that stopped her in her tracks.
The Yellow Drawing Room at the River Ranch featuring a George I Bottle Green and Gilt-Japanned Bureau-Cabinet, Attributed to John Belchier.
“Working with Carole Harris throughout my long tenure as a senior furniture specialist at Christie’s was a pleasure. I was fascinated by what held interest for her in any given sale. She would pick out a seemingly disparate array of objects– but truly, these choices were bonded together by personality and flair, whether they were decorative embellishments or important objects. One constant rule was to stay away from anything that even suggested the color orange. Carole was decisive; that color would never see the light of day at River Ranch.
After I left Christie’s, Carole asked me to create a comprehensive listing of her vast inventory, something that to my amazement had never been done before. As I progressed through each room, each chock-a-block with eye-popping objects, an admiration for her natural eye, brilliant juxtapositions, and attention to every detail kept my engines rolling for my week-long visit.”
George I Gilt-Bottle Green Japanned Bureau-Cabinet
“This bureau-cabinet is one of the objects that stopped me in my tracks. Its gilt decoration is particularly fanciful – with its sumptuous floral sprays, exotic birds and beasts, figures with fans, enjoying tea or flying atop dragons. And how about that smiling sun? It is a superb example of early Georgian ‘japanning’ (European imitation of lacquer) fueled by a wide-eyed enthusiasm for faraway lands. The vignettes pop against a rare green ground, a particularly desirable color for collectors. On one level, one might say the cabinet ticks the ‘decorative’ box.
But it is so much more. The cabinet’s exceptional quality, distinctive form and idiosyncratic decorative details, suggest an attribution to famed London cabinet-maker John Belchier (d. 1753). Belchier’s authorship is based on comparisons to similar examples, such as the two supplied to Erddig Castle in Wales. The Erddig cabinets were described in 1732 as being ‘in ye grandst manner and after ye newest fashion’. Such cabinets were significant furnishings to make their owners proud. It is easy to admire such a wonder in the present day: fabulously grand and yet warmly anchoring any interior.”
Melissa Gagen is a New York City-based appraiser and a furniture and works of art specialist. Learn more about Melissa on her website and follow her on Instagram.
CATALOGUE ONLINE: Monday, June 2
GALLERY PREVIEW:
Monday, June 2: 9am – 5pm
Tuesday, June 3: 9am – 5pm
Wednesday, June 4: 9am – 5pm
Thursday, June 5: 9am – 5pm
Friday, June 6: 9am – 5pm
Saturday, June 7: 11am – 5pm
Sunday, June 8: Closed
Monday, June 9: 9am – 5pm
Tuesday, June 10: 9am – 5pm
Wednesday, June 11: 9am – 5pm
Thursday, June 12: 9am – 5pm
Friday, June 13: 9am – 5pm
Saturday, June 14: 11am – 5pm
Sunday, June 15: Closed
Monday, June 16: 9am – 5pm
Tuesday, June 17: 9am – 5pm (Part II & Part III)
Wednesday, June 18: 9am – 5pm (Part III)