I am one of the really Oldsters still alive and kicking. The very first Art Auction Premier was held in the un-finished ballroom/counting house room at what is now the Historic New Orleans Collection. The room in front of it was (owned by General Kemper Williams) The Orleans Gallery 527 Royal Street. We had to move out when the General finally decided to renovate that huge property. The Gallery rent was $125.00 per month. The year: 1970-ish. After the Art Preview, the Wyes donations (which were hung on peg-board) were moved to the Presbytere for the auction. It was hilarious. Artisit names were mispronounced, a number of auctioneers (big donors) could hardly read the blurbs and several of the younger auctioneers were drunk as skunks. New Rules were institued for the years following,including the auctioneer reception room (where the booze was just enough to loosen up a couple of really camera shy auctioneers). I was Chairman of the Art Committe then and I apologize for being the one who invented the system of writing the art blurbs. The method even had the artists names written out phonetically. However, I never thought that the system would go on for years and years. My teenage son was the first teenager ever allowed to work at Wyes/TV. He stayed until he went to college. He would go into the station through the front door and I always worked in the garage with the other volunteers..writing up the Art and storing it. Jean Sears was a great help and eventially we had (mostly women) from all over New Orleans slaving for our beloved Art Auction. Years later Peggy Scott Laborde interviewed me about those days in the 60s . I never liked being in front of the camera. Once I was an auctioneer, after many years, and the camera crew said they never had heard Judy so QUIET in a decade. I miss tose days and all the wonderful people who built that org up under the grave doubts of all the nay-sayers. JudyN (now very retired to Georgia)
Posted on: Sun, 21 Sep 2014 01:08:10 +0000
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