Fran Taylor Brought Art and Talent to Gay Fad by Kelley Summers Jent
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Taxco silver will shine at Moran in Tiny porcelain dish made a bold March statement at $9,000 $1.50 National p. 1 National p. 1 AntiqueWeekHE EEKLY N T IQUE A UC T ION & C OLLEC T ING N E W SP A PER T W A C EN T R A L E DI T ION VOL. 52 ISSUE NO. 2629 www.antiqueweek.com FEBRUARY 17, 2020 Fran Taylor brought art and talent to Gay Fad By Kelley Summers Jent Women have been working from home since the beginning of time but making money and starting companies from home is something we think of happening in the last 25-30 years. That is not the case. In a 1949 book by Polly Webster titled How to Make Money at Home there is a small blurb on page 82 about Gay Fad Studios. Some called the woman who started it “fool hearted” for quitting a successful dress designing job to paint tin waste cans. It goes on to say that Gay Fad Studios was a premiere hand painted glassware company. This blurb did not even mention the woman’s name let alone list her many accomplishments. Fran Taylor was born to Polish immigrants in 1915 in Pennsylvania. The family lived by modest means. When she was young her father moved the family to Detroit to secure a job in the automotive industry and better the life of his family. Growing up in Detroit Fran learned fashion and that she had a love of art. She attended art school in 1938. Her first love was fashion and she had a dress-making business. At some point she realized that while she enjoyed fashion she had a true passion for art See Gay Fad on page 19 All photos on page one: The tumblers accompanying this article are all from the Rich Man/Poor Man set decorated by Gay Fad. The set is painted with vibrant black, red and white paint. The detail is perfect in making them real yet fun at the same time. They are great examples of the quality of Gay Fad pieces. Atlanta xpo enters 3,500 Booths! hio xpo enter SCOTT ANTIQUE MARKETS Atlanta, A olmbs, 800 - 1,200 Booths! ANT AN N TM nd eeend TM 740.569.2800 www.scottantiquemarkets.com Mar 11 May 10 very Month eb Nov 9 2020 America’s Favorite Treasure Hunts! 2020 Apr 91 n 111 Mar 9 ec 190 Page 2 WWW.ANTIQUEWEEK.COM February 17, 2020 NEWS MAA annual conference awards MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. — Jason around the Right: MAC- Clark of Alma, Mich., won the title, farm and sold a MRC Michigan Auctioneer Champion, at the lot of cattle off Winners for Michigan Auctioneer Championship. a 4010 John 2020 The Championship took place on Jan. Deere while 30 at the Michigan Auctioneers feeding them. He didn’t Association Annual Conference held at realize it at the time, but the Comfort Inn & Suites. For winning pretty much everyone the title, Jason received a champion- around the farm could ship ring, trophy, and entry into the hear him, but instead of International Auctioneer laughing, they encouraged Championship in July in San Diego, him. Calif. That encouragement led Clark was born and raised on a to his first paying job with small dairy farm and exposed to a lot John Tomaschko working says that winning the Championship is of auctions. One of his earliest memo- as a contract auctioneer. After four an honor and a highlight in his life. ries of an auction was a small farm years working for other auctioneers, he Ever since he was a little boy, he want- liquidation that his Uncle Dick and felt comfortable enough to be in busi- ed to be a good father, farmer and an Bill Clark conducted north of ness on his own and purchased Pioneer auctioneer. “I’m proud to say that I Above: Last year, Mattel released a Barbie Breckenridge, Mich. Clark says, “I Auction Service from his Uncle Dick. have worked hard to become all of doll commemorating the late Civil Rights remember this sale because it was the Over the 14 years he’s been in the these things thanks to the help and activist Rosa Parks. first sale I felt the excitement of the industry, he’s competed five times in encouragement from others. I would auctioneer saying ‘SOLD’ to me per- the Michigan Auctioneer strongly encourage any auctioneer to sonally. I was bidding on a small two- Championship. The first few times, his become a member of the Michigan wheel trailer that I could haul my pig nerves got the best of him, and he was Collecting Auctioneers Association and to com- manure in. I remember the excitement so hard on himself he didn’t come back pete in the Michigan Auctioneer of the auction, with the huge crowd of for a few years. Every time he compet- Championship. You will better your- people standing around and visiting, ed, he felt he left as a better auction- self and your auction business all Rosa Parks the auctioneers on the loudspeakers, eer, so he kept trying. In 2019, he around.” and the food wagon— it seemed more finally made the finals and placed 2nd By Brett Weiss During the conference, Jason was like the county fair than an auction!” runner up. He was so glad he didn’t Determined to be a good auctioneer take time off this year because it felt Even among people who don’t follow See MAA on page 4 like his Uncle Dick, he practiced more familiar than in years past. Jason history, the late Civil Rights activist October 14, 2019 WWW.ANTIQUEWEEK.COM Rosa Parks is a household namePage for5 simply refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a bus. It was indeed a Find the right venue to disperse collection simple act, but it took a lot of courage and was a cornerstone of the American There is a season for everything. The that work best for the owner of the collection. Civil Rights movement. Collectors best time to sell an antiques/collectibles Make a choice and move forward. Second RINKER ON don’t have to wait for Black History collection, especially if utilizing the auction guessing only delays the sale process. Month to celebrate Park’s life as there route, is during the months of January/ COLLECTIBLES It is almost impossible to sell an entire is quite a bit of memorabilia on the February or September/October. These are collection privately in the 21st century. market for anyone wanting to put the months in which buyer participation is Historically, collectors added up the together a collection around an amaz- at its highest. Kids are in school; vacation BY appraisal value of their objects and added a ing woman. season is over. Most weddings have 25 to 50 percent premium to represent the HARRY L. On Dec. 1, 1955, the 42-year-old occurred; and holidays are minimal. Even time spent assembling the collection. Today, RINKER African-American was headed home better is that most potential buyers are not a buyer of a collection expects to receive a 30 after a long day of working her job as a thinking about income taxes. to 40 percent discount from the appraised seamstress at a department store in Determining the right market is easy. price for buying everything. Montgomery, Ala. Parks boarded the Examine past sales and note where sales of a viable disposal plan, the greater the dollar When selling privately, the biggest Cleveland Avenue bus, taking a seat in a collection have been the strongest. This return will be to the collector. Time is not problem is cherry picking, that is to say, the first of several rows assigned for also is helpful in deciding which sale venues endless. Collectors need to be acutely aware selling the best pieces in the collection. The “colored” passengers. The front section to use. Selling a collection locally usually is that there is a time when continuing efforts sale of each ultimate unit (masterpiece) of the bus was reserved for white folks the wrong answer. The collection needs to are counterproductive. and/or upper echelon piece reduces the while the back section was designated be taken to a location where the largest Second, collectors need to understand the overall value of the remaining items in the for black people, an aspect of the Jim number of potential buyers are likely to be hidden costs of sale — time, supplies, collection by a greater percentage than the Crow “separate but equal” segregation found. insurance, and transportation. Sales cost of the piece against the collection’s laws. Digital age sellers will argue that sale commissions are only the beginning. The value as a whole. At one point during the route, the location is no longer relevant thanks to scale needs to be balanced between the Selling privately also is a quick way to white section filled up, so the bus driv- online bidding platforms. Do not believe desired amount hoped from the sale against make enemies. No matter how carefully er told the four passengers sitting in this. Location remains an extremely the time and costs to receive that amount. collectors select a buying order (who will the front row of the colored section to relevant consideration. Location, location, Third, the longer it takes to sell a have the first choice, the second, and so stand up. This would effectively add location is more than a real estate cliché. It collection, the more painful the selling forth), someone’s nose will be out of joint.