By Myles Ludwig
Champagne flowed and a treasure chest of riches glowed at the vernissage of the 11th Palm Beach Jewelry, Art & Antique Show. Charming beauties and sharp-eyed connoisseurs wandered the narrow alleys lined with the booths of some 180 international exhibitors in the Palm Beach County Convention Center.
This show is a studied, lovingly curated collection of the finest objets d’art. For all its polished sheen, there is subtle elegance on display in the exhibitions, which range from the masterfully jejune to the timeless. There are finely wrought paintings, furniture, museum-quality estate jewelry, Oriental rugs, silver, ceramics and porcelain, beautifully bound rare books, artifacts and collectable graphics and posters.
The show is refreshingly free from the tricky post-modern Toys ’R Us work, so fashionable now, that seems to be searching for some kind of ars terra firma.
I was particularly impressed with knowledge of the folks at The Chicago Art Gallery and their superb array of original posters; the good sense of art consultant Hope Lloyd Brown; the pleasure of The Illustrated Gallery (original paintings of work seen on so many American ads and magazine covers were enchanting); and antique American wicker in a comfy setting that felt like a place where Teddy Roosevelt might rest after bear hunting.
There was stunning jewelry and silver by Gioia, Provident, Georg Jensen and Rosenberg Diamonds. I enjoyed the enthusiasm of conservator Gordon Lewis and, at the Marc Ravet booth, the ingenuity of the unusual handcrafted polished steel, antiqued copper-topped furniture fashioned after the French style, and a shining ejection seat frame from an RAF jet fighter, though I’m not sure where I’d put that — maybe on the lawn.
I did wish the exhibitions were organized by relationship or category. There were moments when I felt assaulted by a surplus of beauty, with relatively little time for contemplation. This is an exhibition that requires repeat visits.
The shows also features interior vignettes curated by Scott Snyder for the Hope for Depression Research Foundation, sponsored by Marina B. Snyder’s central room setting is accompanied by Instagram interiors designed by Jim Aman + John Meeks, Bruce Bierman, Campion Platt and Jennifer Post. The “goal of the showcase is to inspire the audience with new ideas about how to use art and antiques to enhance their environment and their lives,” Snyder said.
Free lectures offered include presentations by Peter Trippi, editor-in-chief, Fine Art Connoisseur magazine; Brian J. McCarthy, interior designer and author; Carolle Thibaut-Pomerantz, French Heritage Society; Edward Faber of Aaron Faber Gallery; Paula Crevoshay, jewelry industry expert; Liza Laserow, Laserow Antiques & Design; and Gordon Lewis of The Fine Art Conservancy.
Ebony cabinets inlaid with ivory (c. 1860), by Henri Picard.
The annual exhibition runs through Tuesday. It is presented by the Palm Beach Show Group under the leadership of Scott Diament and Rob Samuels. Showtimes are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday and Monday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday. Visit palmbeachshow.com for more information.