JF Chen: Vignettes Wednesday, September 18 – Thursday

 PRESS RELEASE
JF Chen: Vignettes
Wednesday, September 18 – Thursday, September 26
A sale of design curated by legendary antiques dealer Joel Chen
Online auction house Paddle8 is pleased to announce JF Chen: Vignettes, a sale of
extraordinary and eclectic design curated by legendary antiques dealer and tastemaker Joel
Chen. The sale features works drawn from JF Chen, his Los Angeles gallery and showroom,
which offers furniture and decorative arts spanning from exotic, one-of-a-kind period pieces
to masterworks of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
Bidding opens on Paddle8.com on Wednesday, September 18 at noon EST, and closes
Thursday, September 26 at 6 PM EST.
The sale presents a distinctive mix of modern and contemporary works that reveals Joel
Chen’s singular vision and unique eye. Chen has established himself as a resource for
museums, collectors, and even Hollywood set decorators, who rely on his intellectual rigor
and the breadth of his interests—from rare Eames chairs, on which he is an acknowledged
expert, to primitive and folk art.
For JF Chen: Vignettes, Chen has created four groupings of furniture and design objects
organized around specific themes: Urban Safari, Great Pond Retreat, Plimpton’s Sanctuary,
and New England Estate. In addition to online viewing and bidding, each vignette will be
available for live viewing and in-person bidding at JF Chen’s 34,000-square-foot showroom,
located at 941 North Highland Avenue, Los Angeles. A vignette of highlights from the auction
will also be on view and available for bid at the Parachute Market, 405 Mateo Street, Los
Angeles on September 21 and 22.
Highlights of JF Chen: Vignettes include:
Nymphenburg, A painted and gilt-decorated porcelain skull with flower and butterfly
decoration, 2009 (estimate: $5,000–7,000)
A striking memento mori with an incongruously festive Cumberland floral design on white
porcelain, from a limited edition of 25.
Industrial Work Table with Drawers, American (estimate: $1,800–2,500)
Stripped wood and metal.
René Fache, Plaster bust of a gentleman, 1852 (estimate: $2000–3000)
A white painted plaster bust by the 19th-century French sculptor.
A giltwood bench with tufted Ikat upholstery, 19th Century (estimate: $3,000–4,000)
A 19th-century bench in the French taste, which Chen upholstered with a vibrant textile,
modernizing the piece.
Tanya Aguiñiga, An upholstered Humpback Chair, 2012 (estimate: $2,500–3,000)Inspired by
small wool animals made by Mayan women in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico, the
abstracted animal form of the chair is hand-carved and upholstered with contrasting fabrics
to accentuate its two halves. The fabrics are joined with a traditional Mayan embroidery
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motif, visually alluding to an animal’s spine. LACMA recently acquired a piece by Aguiniga for
their permanent collection.
Rhino sculpture, Southeast Asian (estimate: $1,500–2,000)
A sculpted rain wood pachyderm, carved from a single piece of wood.
Renaissance revival armchair, 19th Century (estimate: $900–1,200)
A Continental ebonized wood armchair upholstered with contemporary red leather.
A pair of Chinese lacquered papier-mache elephants, 19th Century (estimate: $3,500–4,500)
A duo of charming, fantastical pachyderms, emblematic of the type of whimsical touches that
Chen integrates into his interiors.
Michael Wilson, An American walnut and patinated metal spider table, 2010 (estimate:
$5,000–7,000)
An organic form hand-carved from richly grained hardwood with traditional joinery. The
table’s design straddles function and fine art, merging Eastern and Western sensibilities.
Bidding is available beginning September 18 at paddle8.com/auctions/jfchen.
JF Chen: Vignettes is Paddle8’s first auction dedicated solely to design. Additional fall sales
devoted to design will include Coburn Revisited: The Beverly and James Coburn Collection, a
single-owner sale of the exotic art and design amassed by Hollywood legend James Coburn,
curated by noted California interior decorator Oliver M. Furth (October 10 – 27); and
Curiosities: Curated by Kelly Wearstler, a sale curated by design icon Kelly Wearstler,
featuring her signature mix of color and wit, spanning from Surrealism to Hollywood Regency
(November 6 – November 13).
About JF Chen
Founded in 1975, JF Chen, a family-owned business, is one of the country’s most respected
resources for antiques and vintage furnishings as well as a frequent venue for exhibits on
innovative art and design. In April 2012, C Project (830 N. Highland Avenue) joined
JF Chen Loft (941 N. Highland Avenue) and C Vault (8590 National Boulevard) as their latest
Los Angeles venture. For more information, visit www.jfchen.com
About Paddle8
Paddle8 is the online auction house, connecting buyers and sellers of fine art and collectibles
across the Internet. Paddle8 presents two types of auctions: monthly themed auctions, and
benefit auctions in collaboration with non-profits. Founded by Alexander Gilkes, an
auctioneer and LVMH veteran, and Aditya Julka, a Harvard Business School MBA and serial
entrepreneur, Paddle8 eases the sale and acquisition of art and collectibles via a fully online
auction model, offering the lowest available commissions, no public sales records, and
extended auction visibility and timelines, enhanced by educational content, in addition to
automated post-sale services.
www.paddle8.com
For further information, please contact Sarah Goulet, [email protected].
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Images
Tanya Aguiñiga, Upholstered Humpback Chair, 2012
Michael Wilson, Spider Table, 2010
Nymphenburg, A painted and gilt-decorated
porcelain skull with flower and butterfly decoration,
2009
A pair of Chinese lacquered papier mache elephants, 19th
Century
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