The Chicago Botanic Garden Antiques Fair is coming very soon. The show opens April 16th and runs through the 18th. There is a gala preview party held Thursday night April 15th. All of the information for the show can be found here. The show was not held last year so we are very glad that it will be back this year stronger than ever. Click on images to enlarge.
This large hall was decorated like an 18th century Italian engraving with “della robbia” fruit garland around a boxwood garden planted with primroses.
Color everywhere you look. The show has three main areas for displaying the impressive array of garden antiques and artifacts that the antique dealers bring to the show, the halls connecting these areas are beautifully decorated with floral displays like the one shown above.
White, white, and white, with color all around you makes for a statement at one of the main entrances to the show.
At the beginning of set-up for the antiques show this lush english garden looked like a hill of wet dirt, not so great honestly. By the time opening night had rolled around a day and a half later it looked like the photo above. The variety of texture and form as well as color makes this hillside garden really dynamic and lust worthy. I want my garden to look like that! Click on images twice to enlarge.
Scot Lace’s booth at the garden show in 2008. I could move into this space.
Mariyln Draper of Thistle Antiques has a very distinctive look. Clean, sculpture forms playing wonderfully off of each other. Click on images to enlarge.
Industrial artifacts refurbished for today’s home in creative ways.
The Worden’s booth is always a feast for the eyes, their business name is Worden Select Objects and it fits perfectly.
This booth had a great assortment of very heavy stone objects from Ireland. The heavier it is the more I seem to want it and this dealer had plenty to want for, from troughs to stadlestones to church finials all covered with moss and lichen. The following photographs are images of my booth at the last Chicago Botanic Garden Show in 2008.
My usual mix of unusual objects all coexisting nicely. The marble top table is actually a 19th century operating table base with a round marble top added later, perfect for someone that wants to lower and raise their dining table. The stone birds were found in Europe and literally flew out of the show…sorry couldn’t resist. Click on images to enlarge.
I am lucky enough to be in “Nichols Hall” in the Botanical Garden Show, which is a large square room with a pyramid form glass ceiling, so the light moves across the booth during the day casting shadow puppets along the walls.
lThe academic drawing I found in Belgium and has two polished steel Jielde lamps on either side of the it. I have only one pair of Jieldes left in stock and I will be bringing them to the show.
1940′s oil painting in a melange of sculptural objects.
Life-size zinc dogs made in the late 19th century by Fiske in New York state. They have been long ago sold but I still miss them.
The booth after opening night had to be a little rearranged thank goodness. This year I have a larger booth and am bringing some great furniture, some industrial some not, mixed in with garden artifacts, mixed in with fine art and found objects. I will post photos from this year’s show in late April. After the Botanic Garden Show the Merchandise Mart International Antiques Show opens April 27th, now is the time to plan on going to both. Click on images to enlarge.
