Fall Finds, Revisiting Bette Fast sculpture
/I have been very busy bringing home new items, getting them cleaned up and ready for new homes! I have an array of kitschy things and high end stuff. This are going live on Etsy and Chairish as I go. Here’s a look!
Super 1976 Gae Aulenti design by Knoll is up for consignment. Leather upholsteRy, fabulous italian post modern design.
Iron desk, i recovered the seat in reproductiOn bark cloth, atomic design.
Mid century CONVERTIBLE couch opens flat for snoozing!
Vinyl upholstery, mid century day bed now Showing at fleetwood antique mall!
Orange vinyl and chrome lounge chair
King walnut headboard
Handsome low dresser with mirrors, walnut
Tall boy in walnut
SOLD Night stand pair in walnut
I have more coming! Working on resealing the marble top on the Platner cocktail table! We had to strip the remaining yellowed resin off first.
A heaT gun helpEd to soften the old resin sealant.
She’s a beauty!
50% off all pink dots! I PROBABLY tagged 95% of the items in mY upstairs space! Trying to move out this stuff! I have more to replace it with!
Downstairs has only a few markdowns But i am featuring some awesome itemS. Come see them!
Bette Fast revisited!
If you check a few years back in my blog updates, you will find my coverage of discovering Bette Fast, the late first wife of novelist Howard Fast. He wrote over 80 novels but he literally got himself banned from publishing (and subsequently investigated) because of his communist beliefs. His best selling novel, Spartacus, was self published due to the banning. Meanwhile, his lovely wife was an accomplished artist. In my collection, I have a pencil nude sketch, a 1960’s buxom women series painting (which Howard discusses in the Forward in the book he published regarding Bette’s work), and one of her magnificent sculptures. Having only exhibited 3 times, once in LA, once in New Canaan and once in Greenwich, most of her works are held by private collectors. This is important to note as many of them will start becoming available on the secondary market as their owners pass on and their worldly goods end up in auctions and estate sales. Bette’s work for the most part are female forms. She always was considered a feminist and her beautiful depiction of females in action is well noted. I have done varying amounts of searching for more info since I have gathered some of her works. One thing on my bucket list was to visit the only 2 sculptures she turned into statues. They are publicly available at the Temple Shalom in Greenwich, CT. Howard’s book was published in 1995, a year after his wife passed. Much has changed at the Temple Shalom since then as well, having some new structured erected. Upon checking google maps, I noticed not much of a courtyard, which is where the book said the sculptures were placed, I had a delivery in the area and wanted to find them, but was not sure if I could access them. I zoomed in my google and I had hope!!!
The image on thr right was from google maps. It sure lookS like her! Fingers were crossed! This is right off the parking lot so definitely accessible.
I pulled in and saw her! My heart fluttered as i parked my car.
From this vantage point, I looked to the left down the parking lot and saw the second sculpture.
These are some powerful sculptures. Beautiful from every angle. The maquette I own is equally as delicate. I have not figured out it’s ‘title’ and it is not shown in the book containing some of her works. I have found that the University of Pennsylvania has the ‘Howard Fast Papers’ in their archive. It includes lots of items from Howard’s book dealings, personal household items and more. I am not sure if any of Bette’s sculpture records are contained in it, but that is probably the next exploration I need to do. Lucky for me, it’s only in Philadelphia!
XO MALISSA
