Art Elder, PCA TX member and newsletter editor, has recently twice been published in the Antique Trader.
The first article, published April 18, 2008, is entitled: Rare beauty under glass: A look at fine antique paperweights and Art writes: Paperweights are surprisingly precise wonders to behold. When you hold a fine paperweight in your hand, feel its silky smoothness and cool weight, and then gaze into the clear glass-magnifying dome, there is an undefined but undeniable magic. You are absorbed into it, mesmerized by its precision and beauty.
The second article, published May 22, 2008, is entitled: The collecting conundrum and Art asks the question: Have you ever wondered why collectors collect? The mystery has been studied by scholars through the years trying to answer this conundrum. Why collectors collect what they do is another fascinating topic.
Ron Gauny has been named the Chair of the newly formed PCA TX Scholarship Committee. The committee will investigate recipients and/or glass schools to receive financial aid from our organization. The scholarship will be an ongoing extension of the PCA TX education program. The first report of the committee will be made at the Annual Meeting on February 16, 2008.
A new digital projector, recently purchased by PCA TX, was unveiled at the past meeting in Fredericksburg. It produces brilliant and sharp images that will be appreciated and enjoyed by our members (and speakers) for years to come.
Recently, new technology has nearly made obsolete the old standard Kodak projector and carousel for film slides. Some members may recall when PCA TX bought our present commercial grade slide projector in 1993, with the help of an $800 Exxon grant. That projector served us well through 14 years and over 40 meetings. Now we find many of our guest speakers are using computer derived PowerPoint presentations which have the advantages of being easier to prepare and producing superior images. Although the PowerPoint program is very efficient and has many benefits, it does require a digital projector to be seen by an audience. And technology doesn’t come cheap! Until recently, the cost of these projectors was prohibitive. In the past, when one was needed, we gratefully accepted the help of Tim Novak and the use of a projector owned by the Forsyth Center Galleries.
But what technology takes away through initially very high costs, it sometimes gives back later through manufacturing efficiency and the resulting lower costs! These specialized projectors have recently become more affordable, and PCA TX determined it was time to purchase one for use at our meetings.
Paperweight Press recently published a book by PCA TX member, Art Elder. The book, A Passionate Affair, is about paperweight collecting, describing the passion and attraction that collectors feel for them. It is the first book in recent history written about paperweight collecting from a collector’s viewpoint!
The book also describes how Art became interested in paperweights, how the passion for them developed and how his tastes have changed through time. It also tells of Art’s trip down the “yellow brick road” of collecting with descriptions of some of his experiences and the people he met on his 30-year journey.
Also discussed are past well-known collectors, and what happened to their collections. Advice is given on the best ways to display, inventory and care for a paperweight collection. An Epilogue includes a scholarly discussion of the question of whether paperweights are considered an art or a craft, and a lively comparison of the artistic merits of paperweights compared to art glass. The book ends with an interesting discussion of the properties of glass, how it is made, and its other uses. A Glossary and Bibliography complete the book.
Fifty photographs of paperweights from Art’s collection are included in the book. The images were taken by Larry Wadsworth—the same photographer that recorded the Stars of Texas images. Each picture is truly a portrait, and places the publication into the “art book” category.
All profits from the sale of the book will be donated to the International Paperweight Society Foundation for the benefit of the Paul Jokelson Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund. The book is available to purchase from L. H. Selman, Ltd., telephone 800-538-0766, or from their website. It is also available from Amazon. The cost is $65 for the hard cover, or $40 for the soft cover edition. It should be a valuable addition to any collector’s personal library.
The book was officially released in May 2005 at the PCA convention in Appleton, WI, where about 90 copies were briskly sold, and orders for more were taken. Readers of the book have reported favorable reviews, and wrote that they found it to be easily read, interesting, and informative. Comments include: “The illustrations are beautiful, and your enthusiasm of paperweights is contagious. What an accomplishment!”; “I really love your FABULOUS book!!! I find it fascinating! Thanks so much for writing it…the book is a MUST for all paperweight collectors!!!”; and “Larry’s crew always does such lovely work, but I think the cover is the best I’ve seen them do. So simple yet so stunning.”
Art recently gave a book review to a group of about 30 enthusiastic ladies at the Huntwick Racquet Club. Many said they had no idea that paperweights were so interesting or so beautiful, and the slides of the images from the book were outstanding.
As many of our members know, talented glass artist, Steve Lundberg, is suffering from ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). Steve has been a very good friend of PCA TX through the years. We first reported his illness in the PCA TX newsletter dated January 15, 2003. There is no known cure for this disease, and Steve is increasingly confined to a motorized cart, and experiencing difficulty speaking. As a result of his illness, Steve needs more and more specialized equipment and medical care. These costs continue to rise during Steve’s physical deterioration, and he has not been able to work for the past two years.
A group of Steve’s friends (Sam Osaki, Sam Graf, Larry Selman, and the International Paperweight Society Foundation) have organized a movement to solicit support from the paperweight collecting community to help the Lundberg family through these difficulties.
PCA TX members voted to donate $1000 to the Steve Lundberg Legacy Fund at our February 19, 2005 meeting. Individual members wished to give their personal contributions, which added an additional $400. These contributions were sent by the PCA TX Treasurer, Bob White, to the administrator of the fund, the International Paperweight Society Foundation. The money will be made available to the Lundberg family immediately for their relief.
The primary fundraiser for the Lundberg Legacy Fund will be an auction of donated paperweights, being planned by the organizers of the fund. Donations of paperweights for this auction are being solicited from Steve’s many friends, collectors, artists, and dealers. Anyone wanting to donate paperweights for the auction may send them to Larry Selman (address listed below). Please specify they are for the Lundberg auction, and include the donor’s name and estimated value of the each piece.
The special auction will tentatively be held on May 7, 2005. It is anticipated there will be much publicity about the event. All proceeds from the auction will go directly to the Lundberg family to help with Steve’s medical care. The donations for this auction have been very generous, with many donations received. Two items are valued at $5000 and $8000! Cash contributions are, of course, welcome at any time and will be particularly useful before the auction is conducted. Donations may be sent to:
International Paperweight Society Foundation Attn: Steve Lundberg Legacy Fund 123 Locust Street Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Cards or messages of encouragement may be sent directly to Steve at:
Mr. & Mrs. Steve & Ola Lundberg 121 Wagner Butte Talent, OR 97540 tel (541) 535-7134 slundberg1007@webtv.net
All contributions to the IPS Foundation should be tax deductible, but donors are advised to consult their personal tax advisor.
Members will recall that our organization has participated in the Kroger Share Card program since June 2003. Their program is generously offered to tax exempt groups to support community organizations. They donate to the participating organizations one percent of gross revenues of items bought in their stores by members or friends who show a card. The card has a barcode that identifies our organization as a participant in the program.
The application of this program by PCA TX is hampered by the fact that Kroger does not operate in Austin where many members live. Nevertheless, for the first six months that PCA TX has participated, we have earned $18.06 on gross sales of $1806. While this is not as much as we had anticipated, it is a start, and we hope that more members will participate. Cards are available at the meetings, or by request from President Jayne Gilbert.
The program does not require anything from members who shop at Kroger, except remembering to show the card. If you are not already committed to another organization, please consider getting a card and participating in this program to help earn funds for our organization.
Our PCA TX Website continues to attract the interest of “surfers” and others seeking information about paperweights and paperweight collecting. On the most popular Google search engine, if you type in “Paperweight Collecting” or “Paperweight Collectors”, our website is prominently listed!
We continue to get regular inquiries from visitors for additional information, ranging from our meetings, to identification, or how to sell a paperweight they inherited. We also get new members signing up as well.
Frances Miller, a longtime member and talented needlepoint artist, thoughtfully donated a paperweight theme piece of her work to PCA TX as a fundraiser. She requested that it be auctioned at the March 6 meeting. Art Elder, outgoing president obliged, and the piece was carefully shown to the members for close inspection. A spirited auction ensued, and one lucky member was the winner with a bid of $275. Our thanks to Frances, and the winner for their contributions.
Jayne Gilbert exhibited Christmas weights in the foyer of St. Luke's United Methodist Church over the Christmas season. Her report of the details of the exhibit follows.
“I displayed 38 Christmas paperweights. Included were five from the Whitefriars series (1975-1979), a red poinsettia and a miniature poinsettia by Rick Ayotte, the double Christmas candle by William Manson when he was at Caithness, the 1987 Caithness Christmas weight, the cute Cape Cod Christmas tree, the 1998 Snowman by William Manson, a John Deacon Christmas tree weight, Randy Grubb's Christmas Mistletoe with red ribbon, 2 Lundberg Studio weights of poinsettias, several Perthshire Christmas weights, a Danny Salazar poinsettia weight, a Francis Whittemore 1970's weight, and several Wheaton Village weights from the 1970's.
The Stars of Texas book was also donated to the church library. The exhibit was viewed by many people attending 3 services every Sunday in addition to several Christmas programs.”
We all thank Jayne for doing her part to spread public awareness of the art of the paperweight.
Most paperweight images courtesy L. H. Selman
PCA TX Webmaster: Niki Maas
http://www.pcatx.org/
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