Today’s savvy collectors need to be educated ones as they face the diminishing availability of quality antiques, increasing numbers of reproductions and the introduction of new kinds of collectibles.
And people contemplating remodeling projects may need help in wading through their many design choices and learn more about the latest trends.
This autumn in particular brings a rich harvest of opportunities for education on the decorative arts through classes and special lectures throughout the Chicago area.
Tops among what is available are the classes that are part of the Fall 1994 Live & Learn curriculum at The Latin School of Chicago. They are taught by seasoned experts, established names in the antiques and decorative arts worlds.
Following is only a sampling from a wide offering listed in the Live & Learn catalog. (To register or to obtain the catalog with the complete lineup of courses, call 312-573-4698):
– Impress your friends by knowing the difference between the Rococo and Neoclassical periods. “Antique Furniture: Know Your Styles,” is a six-week lecture series by Arthur Bailes, head of Arthur M. Bailes & Associates, Chicago appraisers of fine arts and antique furniture. Accompanied by slide presentations, Bailes will focus on English and American furniture and decorative arts design from the late 17th Century to the early 19th Century. He will begin Monday with “English Furniture: Baroque Period (1680-1740),” and end with a review on Oct. 24. Hours: 7 to 9 p.m. Mondays. Course fee: $50. Location: The Latin Upper School, 59 W. North Ave. Registration is accepted through Monday morning.
– Learn how to combine tiles to suit your kitchen or bath project, your taste and your budget in a class, “Beyond the Kitchen and Bath: Creative Tile Design Throughout the Home,” conducted by Mary Dugan of Ann Sacks Tile & Stone on Oct. 18. Dugan will discuss practical and aesthetic ideas for tiling floors, walls and other areas of your home. Hours: 6 to 7:30 p.m. Fee: $20. Location: Ann Sacks Tile & Stone Showroom, 501 N. Wells St.
– Mick De Giulio, owner of de Giulio Kitchen Design uses his newly expanded showroom Oct. 4 to illustrate current trends in kitchen planning and to show how to make your dream kitchen a reality. Hours: 6 to 7:30 p.m. Fee: $20. Location: 674 N. Wells St.
– Learn about elegant Biedermeier furnishings, handmade by Viennese cabinet-makers 150 years ago, from Austrian-born Rita Bucheit, importer and dealer, in her lecture, “Oh, Biedermeier!” Nov. 16. Hours: 6 to 8 p.m. Fee: $20. Location: Rita Bucheit Ltd., 449 N. Wells St.
Elsewhere . . .
More courses at other locations around town:
– The School of the Art Institute of Chicago offers two courses, “Residential Design and Renovation: Part I,” and “Part II: Kitchens and Baths,” both taught by architect Claudia Skylar, a partner in Mastra & Skylar Architects. The first course, which started last Tuesday, runs from 6 to 9:30 p.m. every Tuesday through Oct. 25, but registration is being accepted through Tuesday. It concentrates on the creative process and culminates with a tour of renovated and new homes.
The second course, which runs from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Tuesdays from Nov. 1 through Dec. 13, covers topics such as basic design and layout, style, budgets, cabinetry, floor, counters and walls. The final class is a field trip to several residences that have won a national award for kitchen design. Fee: $375, non-credit; $721.50, for credit. Location: Champlain Building, Room 1206, 37 S. Wabash Ave. To register: In person, go to the Champlain Building, Room 707, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday; by fax, call 312-899-1453. Call: 312-899-5130.
– The River North Antique Dealers Association Collectors Forum offers a two-day symposium Saturday and Sept. 25, covering the fine and decorative arts. A roundup of expert speakers is headed by Albert Sack, author and authority on early American furniture and antiques, who will speak from noon to 1 p.m. Saturday. Other lectures, slide presentations and discussions on display vignettes will be given by such experts as David Kelly of David Franklin Ltd. of Chicago, who will speak on “English Furniture and Decorative Objects: a Buyer’s Guide”; Sara Breiel, of Sara Breiel Antiques of Chicago, who will speak on “French Furniture and Decorative Objects”; Richard “Buzz” Norton, of Richard Norton Inc. of Chicago, who will talk on “Resourcing Antiques”; and Stuart T. Whitehurst, furniture and decorative arts appraiser at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers of Chicago, who will discuss, “How to Detect Fakes and Forgeries.” Hours: 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. both days. Attendance is required for both days. Cost: $150 per person, which includes lunch both days. Location: Leslie Hindman Auctioneers, 215 W. Ohio St. Call: 312-670-0010.
– “Living the Good Life: Simplicity, Beauty and Ornament in the American Arts and Crafts,” is a talk on Sept. 28 by Michael Fitzsimmons, president of the River North gallery, Michael Fitzsimmons Decorative Arts, and a respected scholar of the increasingly popular Arts and Crafts era. Hours: Begins at 12:15 p.m. Fee: Free for members of the Chicago Architecture Foundation, $2 for non-members. Location: The Chicago Architecture Foundation’s Lecture Hall off the atrium lobby of the Railway Exchange Building, 224 S. Michigan Ave.
– Lectures on “British Delft from Colonial Williamsburg,” the current exhibition that is open through Nov. 6 at the Art Institute of Chicago, will explain all about this blue-and-white pottery that was popular during the 17th and 18th Centuries. Hours: 12:15 p.m. Wednesday and Sept. 26. Fee: Free, except for museum admission, which is $6.50 adults; $3.25 children, seniors and students. Location: 111 S. Michigan Ave. Call: 312-443-3600.
– A public lecture Wednesday at the Oak Park Public Library features Lyman Shepard, world-renowned Frank Lloyd Wright character impressionist who wears a porkpie hat and cape. Shepard gives a lively presentation on Wright’s “California Romanza” architecture. Hours: Begins at 7:30 p.m. Admission: Free. Location: 834 Lake St., Oak Park.
– Bakelite, an early form of plastic that rivals many natural substances in beauty, is hotter than ever. Learn more about this desirable collectible at a lecture sponsored by the Chicago Midwest Bead Society Oct. 11. Cease Giddings, owner of Evanston’s Folkworks Gallery and collector of vintage costume jewelry, including gems of bakelite, will present “Bakelite-America’s Costume Jewelry Art Form.” Hours: Begins at 7:30 p.m. Fee: Free. Location: Originals, a gallery at 1020 Davis St., Evanston.
– The Harbor Country Antique Trek, a five-day event, Nov. 11-15, offers everything from auctions and open houses to a history/mystery dinner and is highlighted by 12 lectures and six workshops. A sampling of the lecture program includes: “The Fine Art of Buying and Selling Antiques at Auction” by auctioneer Maron Hindman, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Nov 12 at Harbert Antique Mall, 13889 Red Arrow Highway, Harbert, Mich.; “Oriental Rugs as Art and Collectibles” by John A. Knudsen, president of the Chicago Rug Society, 2 to 3 p.m. Nov. 12 at John A. Knudsen Workshop/Gallery, 16157 Red Arrow Highway, Union Pier, Mich.; “Antique Quilts, How to Tell Age and Identify,” by Verna Davis Wilson, quilter and member of the Berrien Towne and Country Quilters Club, from 2 to 4 p.m. Nov. 14 at Memories Antiques, 7 N. Eagle St., New Buffalo, Mich..
Workshops include: learning how to identify and care for lace, painting furniture and hand-coloring photographs. Preregistration is necessary.
Some of the events have fees. For more information about fees and preregistration, and for a brochure listing all events, call: 800-362-7251.
