The Maryland Antiques Show of Hunt Valley Celebrates its Inaugural Year With Exciting Events.
An oil on canvas of the tugboat Samson by Otto Muhlenfeld circa 1880. The Samson was a steam powered tugboat that was home ported in Baltimore. (Owned by The Hanebergs Antiques)
Nearly every woman has a Little Black Dress hanging in her closet. Usually reserved for date nights and special occasions, the perfect cocktail dress can make her look and feel gorgeous. Like the perfect LBD, the perfect antique piece can make your home look and feel beautiful.
Kaye Gregg, director of shows for the Antiques Council, encourages potential collectors to think of antiques as “investment pieces,” similar to an LBD. “Something like that you’ll wear forever and ever,” she says. “You can find antique pieces that are unique and can become your LBD. One, because you love it. And two, it becomes an important piece you can use. It’s all about finding that foundation piece, such as a chest of drawers or a dining room table.”
This year, Gregg, along with other members of the Antiques Council, a nonprofit organization of antique dealers, is partnering with the Maryland Antiques Show of Hunt Valley, which will take place at the end of February.
For nearly 40 years, Hunt Valley has been home to an annual antiques show. But after Bob Armacost, founder of the Hunt Valley Antiques Show, passed away last year, the committee decided to continue the show under its new name and enlist the help of the Antiques Council.
This year’s show will feature nearly 40 antique dealers with more diverse collections than previous years. Some of those items include 20th-century merchandise, garden antiques, Russian icons, Majolica pieces, toys, jewelry, clocks, American folk art, marine art, and much more. “It will include more decorative arts and extend beyond the brown furniture stereotype I think some antique shows fall into,” says Jennifer Thompson, co-chair of the antiques show.
New this year, the show will feature a children’s tour for kids ages 7 through 13 on Saturday, Feb. 25. “If you put a 2,000-year-old Roman coin in a 9-year-old’s hand, his eyes will light up,” says Teresa Puckett, co-liaison for the show and Antiques Council member. “It will spark some interest. He’s going to go home and research it and maybe even aspire to start his own collection.”
For Generation Y-ers, there is a New Collector’s Soiree with a scotch and Maryland wine tasting. The event is targeted toward guests in their late 20s and early 30s “who are really starting to understand the importance of antiques and what antiques can do for their overall design aesthetic,” says Thompson.
“I think that there could be a mindset among younger people that if you decorate with antiques, you’re backing yourself into a corner,” Thompson says. “You really can incorporate antique pieces with more modern furniture from Pottery Barn.”
Although the name of the show may have changed, there is one thing that will remain the same at the Maryland Antiques Show of Hunt Valley. All of the show proceeds will benefit Family and Children’s Services of Central Maryland, or FCS, a private, nonprofit organization serving individuals and families throughout their lives.
The event will also feature a guest lecture by José Solís Betancourt, president and owner of Solís Betancourt & Sherrill in Washington, D.C., and his business partner, Paul Morgan Sherrill, on Friday, Feb. 24 and an appraisal event on Sunday, February 26.
“The whole focus of the event is to make it easy, accessible, and fun when people think of an antiques show,” says Gregg. “We want to make it an experience that’s interesting and engaging for them.”
If you go: The Maryland Antiques Show of Hunt Valley commences with an opening night party on Thursday, Feb. 23 through Sunday, Feb. 26. To learn more about the Maryland Antiques Show of Hunt Valley, visit mashv.org.
L’Oreal Thompson is the assistant editor for Chesapeake Home + Living.
