6 September 2001 // My own "new acquisition" **^_^** [p]
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*sparkle sparkle* I bought a bowl! I bought a bowl! *sparkle*
One of the occupational hazards of working in an art gallery is that you tend to fall in love with the material and catch the collecting bug yourself. I've had my eye on this beautiful 1940's Santo Domingo Pueblo bowl for the past few months, and finally got a chance to talk to Ken about what kind of "employee discount" I could get on it. The last piece I bought was a small black-and-sienna jar by Dora Tse-Pe of San Ildefonso Pueblo, and it took me about a year to pay it off on layaway (er... when I remembered to make payments ^_^;;). Since I was able to just pay for this one at once, I got a really nice price on it. *grin*
I just love this piece - kirei, ne? I love the way the floral motifs are painted, I love the patina it's acquired over its life, I love the way it feels in my hands, I even love the way it smells (earthy and sweet, with a hint of spice). It does have a couple of problems - a large rim chip, and a hairline crack... I'm going to talk to one of the guys who does restoration for us and definitely get the crack stabilized so it doesn't get any worse. I may get the chip restored sometime in the future if I can, but I'm not as concerned about that. It adds to the character of the pot - there's history visible in this piece.
The lady whom we recommend as a certified appraiser was visiting the gallery as I was purchasing the bowl. She thinks it might be by Santana Melchor, one of the finest potters - if not the finest - from Santo Domingo. "I'd bet a cookie it's by Santana," she said. *grin* The color of the paint is the color Santana used, and the lovely execution of the design, the shape of the petals and leaves and the way everything is nicely outlined, indicates her hand. It's a good thing she didn't tell Ken this, or the price would have doubled... ^_^;; We've had other pieces by Santana in the gallery before, and now that I think about it (and go back and look at pictures of those pieces), I do see similarities - it just hadn't occurred to me before.
The staff meeting this morning wasn't as annoying as I thought it would be - basically, it was Ken giving a pep talk about how we really have to work our butts off to pull through this tough time with the slow economy. I made the decision as I was driving to work and walking in that I wasn't going to let him annoy me. I tried to keep firmly in mind what I wrote in my entry about religion, that all things and all people are divine... including Ken... and that it was my challenge to act out of respect for that. And guess what - it worked! I feel much happier at the end of the day today (probably partly due to my new wonderful piece of art), and I'm not muttering about how I want to kill him. ^_^
Time to go home and finally return all the boxes I borrowed from Jim and Kathy... Ja ne!
recent alterations //
21 November 2002 // I'm not dead yet!
03 October 2002 // Snarling bitch to genki fangirl in 0.8 seconds flat! [i]
27 September 2002 // He's got butterfly wings, not feathery angel wings. Geez, people!
25 September 2002 // The Great Oekaki Contest Begins! [ai]
14 September 2002 // The obsessiveness continues...
