From time to time someone will ask me how we choose pieces for the gallery. A buying trip in India seems like the perfect time to ponder this question.
Before we landed, Patricia and I vowed to only bring back pieces that are “a perfect 10”. As we wandered a warehouse of antiquities, we might spy a lovely Indian door, or painted shutter, or antique Buddha. The ensuing conversation might be something like, “I wish the green was more apple than lime”, or “his face isn’t as precisely carved as others we’ve seen”. Eventually we would look at each other and simultaneously blurt out our score, “eight!” or “nine!”. And pass it by.
In a very hot, very dusty warehouse in Jaipur, we found a collection of nearly 50 very old temple trunks. Hand painted and weathered with age and use, we could barely winnow it down to the best 26. We are pleased to report that each one is a “perfect 10”.
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