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- Editor’s
Note:
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- This
column is a regular feature in the Wayback Times in which my
husband takes interesting people out to lunch … and sends
me the bill.
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- (It's
a tough job, but someone has to do it!)
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- Send
us an e-mail if you have someone in mind for one of Peter Neilly's
interviews over lunch.
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- Out to Lunch!
with Peter Neilly
- Memo to the boss: Had lunch
with Lee Caswell, appraiser for the Canadian Antiques
Roadshow. Expense account with Lantern Inn receipt is attached.
Interview follows:
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- Lunch with Lee Caswell
I am having lunch today
with Lee Caswell, president of the Canadian
Antique Dealers Association.You might also recognize his
name as a regular appraiser on the Canadian
Antiques Roadshow. Lee is co-owner, along with Kendra
Simmons, of the multi-dealer shop Antiques On Queen in Port
Hope, Ontario. Lee has chosen the Lantern
Inn for our lunch. It is an historic inn, built in 1845 and
situated on the banks of the Ganaraska River.
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- Lee Caswell
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- Peter: Lee, please tell us about the Canadian Antique
Dealers Association; its history and function.
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- Lee: The CADA was established in our centennial year,
1967, and its members are experts in their chosen fields. The
association encompasses members from across the country and operates
as a forum for merchants with merchandise of high caliber.
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- Its dealers sell guaranteed
items, always listing country of origin, dates of manufacture,
and all restorations on their tickets. Members seek, as a goal,
to form trusting and long-term dealer/client relationships selling
goods of high quality.
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- Peter: I know you have just returned from filming the
new season of the Canadian Antiques Roadshow, set for release
this fall. How were you chosen as an appraiser for the show?
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- Lee: The Canadian Antiques Roadshow approached the CADA
and several members were picked to meet with the producers to
audition as an appraiser for the show. A mock appraisal was put
on with two members (at a time), with others talking about "props"
provided on a heavily laden table of assorted antiques.
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- The executive producer from
the BBC
Roadshow was present and did a critique on our appraisal.
It was extremely interesting as he spoke about three-camera filming
and more casual filming "on the run." Many of our CADA
members were used for filming over the last three years, as well
as other appraisers which were picked up city by city.
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- My audition involved a Staffordshire
dog, and I was slotted into ceramics and glass. I have other
strengths, like furniture and silver, but the ceramics stuck.
At certain times, I was called upon to appraise in different
departments, but alas the ceramics/glass lineups were the heaviest,
so that is where I have hung my hat.
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- Peter: How have you enjoyed being an appraiser on the
Canadian Antiques Roadshow and are there any special moments
that stand out for you?
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- Lee: Year one was a nerve wracking affair .... the complete
unknown .... but things seemed easier and better by years two
and three. The editing department can certainly perform miracles,
as some filming didn't go as well as expected. There isn't a
lot of time, so editing is important. Sometimes a great article
doesn't produce great TV, as the interaction with the client
doesn't work. I'm sure there is more film on the cutting room
floor than appears on TV, but that is, as they say, show business.
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- Some of the locations, like
this year’s filming at Dundurn
Castle in Hamilton, were just pure magic. The city welcomed
the Roadshow with open arms and erected a huge tent without sides.
It had a wooden floor and filming was done with glimpses of the
castle in the background. It was a perfect day and the record
crowd (tickets sold out in a very short time) was welcoming and
patient.
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- Some amazing things turned up,
including some items previously from the castle itself. I had
the good fortune of finding a very rare English porcelain dessert
set consisting of 14 pieces. The decoration was most unusual.
There were scenes of very expensive real estate properties in
Muskoka showing points of interest. The client arrived late in
the day with only three or four plates. We asked if he could
return in a couple of days to film in Kitchener with the full
set.
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- This was one of my favourite
items, considering the rarity, as the set was painted in England
from photos or sketches of Muskoka. It was made to order by Aynsley
China for someone in 1879 (registry mark present).
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- Peter: Could you tell the readers how you became interested
in antiques and do you have any special advice for collectors?
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- Lee: I became interested in antiques in my teens. I
had a cousin very interested as well, so we chummed around together
antiquing with parents or friends who could drive. My cousin
later went on to take the Christie's Auction House Course in
England in the early 1980's. I certainly learned a lot from him.
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- I attended many auctions in
those days, and didn't really go to shops or dealers. I thought
the auction was the only source. This is my one great regret,
wondering what I may have missed by not shopping with dealers
in those early days. An antique dealer who knows his stock is
the best resource. He wishes to form a lasting relationship with
clients, where at an auction you are more or less on your own.
A professional dealer takes time to educate and nurture interested
parties. They can teach you what and how to buy. Listen to advice
such as “don't buy 10 mediocre items, buy one excellent
piece” and “the cheapest price is not always the best
price.”
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- The book Fine Points of Furniture:
Early American - Good, Better, Best by Albert Sack, formerly
from the firm Israel Sack in New York, contains a great lesson
in distinguishing and grading American Antiques, which is information
that can be applied to almost anything else (Canadian antiques,
glass, cars, homes, etc). It's a great concept, which helps us
understand price structure and the finer subtleties of form,
for example.
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- Some advice - try to stretch
yourself and buy the best you can afford. Quality will never
let you down.
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- Peter: Thank you for meeting with me for lunch, Lee. But
before you go, I would like to compliment you and Kendra for
what you have accomplished at Antiques On Queen. I think the
customer comment written in the guestbook in your shop says it
all: "Best shop between Toronto and Montreal."
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- The Lantern Inn was an excellent
choice for lunch. I'll have to bring The Warden (Sandy) here
for dinner one night.
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