 |
 |
Dr. JAMES McCLEERY'S Decoys at Sothebysby Linda and Gene KangasDr. James McCleery "patted his feathered wooden friends goodbye" and sent them out into the world again. One by one, over thirty years, Jim had carefully selected each duck, goose and shorebird decoy he brought to his Pasadena, Texas home. Shorebirds were approximately one-half of Jim's collection, with ducks and geese from all North American hunting regions making up the balance. His emphasis was on working decoys. They encompassed examples from the major factories as well as many prominent makers and excellent examples of unknown folk art. He loved each wooden bird nearly as much as he adored his live feathered and furred housemates. And, when his collecting was done, he determined that they go, one by one again, into new homes, those of his good friends, acquaintances, and others he had not met but who are kindred spirits.SOTHEBY'S in association with GUYETTE and SCHMIDT, INC. of Maine offered Jim McCleery's waterfowl collection in New York City on January 22nd and 23rd. To the collaborative event, Guyette and Schmidt brought their unparalleled expertise and extensive, dedicated decoy clientele while Sotheby's brought their New York position and their folk art customers. This unparalleled joint effort was intended to expose high quality decoys to an expanded audience. It was the first decoy auction of the new year and of the new one hundred years. Each "first" in this year 2000 seems to have importance as we leave the 20th century behind. The leap from 1999 to 2000 gives the impression that antiques have aged significantly. This perception leads to a very real phenomenon...placing greater value on antiques. In the age of the microchip and internet, "handmade" may have new significance. This, coupled with a once-in-a-lifetime sale, resulted predictably in a blockbuster auction!
Many of Jim's purchases set private and public records. He personally raised the bar for others to reach. Year after year, Jim bought birds at prices "knowledgeable" people considered much too high. They would enthusiastically relate that such a decoy was, arguably, the "best known pintail by Charles Walker," or "the condition of that mallard is unparalleled," or it was a "one-of-a-kind painted in summer plumage, to be sure." But they'd prophesize, "He'll never recoup his investment." Did he ever intend to? Jim's connoisseurship and artistic preferences formulated his choices; he bought those most successful bird portraits by master carvers, known and unknown; he loved classic forms and most unusual sculptural representations. His passion carried through his last years when he was able to purchase a coveted Mason Premier Wood Duck drake directly from William Mackey's family, nearly 30 years after the author's death. It matters not what he paid for that bird, either; it gave him happiness to personally enjoy such a fine, fine artifact. The fact is, Jim McCleery's estate sale astounded even the most veteran in the field. The sale grossed nearly ELEVEN MILLION DOLLARS with WORLD RECORD PRICING left and right throughout the auction. Bidders in the audience and on the telephones were flabbergasted as, time after time, prices soared past their personal limits. Sixteen lots sold for over $100,000. The combination of decoy collectors strongly challenged by Sotheby's more eclectic folk art buyers paced numbers higher and higher. Dr. Jim bought for the love of the sport, the sport of hunting and the sport of collecting; no doubt about that. At the same time, he chose to invest significant sums of money in these artworks rather than put that same amount of money in more traditional venues. The curious might wonder what his returns were. It's important to remember that Jim didn't invest in decoys for the "return." He invested for his love of the art. However, he was wise and knew that his decoys would, on the whole, increase in value over the years. Jim purchased many of his birds at public auctions; therefore, the published after-auction prices tell us how much he paid and allow us to compare the purchase prices with those at Sotheby's/Guyette&Schmidt final disposition of his birds.
One of Jim's last great additions to his collection was the Mason Decoy Factory Premier Wood Duck that brought $354,500. That along with a William Bowman nestled Lesser Yellowlegs, bought at $244,500, returned to Texas with a close personal friend of Jim's. In 1973, Jim acquired from the Stewart Gregory folk art auction at
Doyle Auctions in New York City the great Susquehanna Canada Goose,
one of only three known, for $12,500; it just brought $233,500. The
Hucks Caines Mallard (South Carolina) came to Jim privately in the
1990s; reportedly for a figure under $50,000. The Caines brought
$189,500. In the authors' opinion, the extreme snaky-neck Caines
Mallard and the elegant Susquehanna Goose are classic folk art and bargain
purchases in a star-studded field.
Two Rhode Island Dowitcher shorebirds by Dr. Clarence Gardner and Newton Dexter were among the birds whose values went over the one hundred thousand dollar plateau. The comfortable nestled-head brought $107,000 and the alert turned-head was a close $101,500. Jim was a true student of decoy history. He was a collector who enjoyed his collection every day. And, he was respected for his generosity in sharing his knowledge and personal collection with others. He telephoned and wrote his friends and acquaintances seeking or sharing information. In an exchange with a mutual friend in 1990, Jim expressed his intentions for owning these Gardner/Dexter's offered in an upcoming auction. Jim had one in his collection that he had owned for a long time. Both collectors had strong interest in the birds, and discussed them at length. In a March 7th, 1990 letter to his friend, Jim said, "Nothing short of bankruptcy will prevent my bidding on the Rhode Island pair. Come visit us." He had to pay $17,000 for the nestled-head and $18,000 for the turned head. (Previously pictured in the 1966-67 Annual Decoy Collectors Guide by Sorenson.) Since Jim McCleery had a major impact on decoy auctions over the past thirty years, it might be interesting to review some of the other prices he paid and how his investments increased. For example, in 1971 he bought a Long Island Labrador Duck by an unidentified maker for $225; it sold for $12,650. In the same auction he got two cork- bodied Elmer Crowell decoys, a Widgeon for $200 and a Pintail for $500. The Widgeon just brought $4600 and the Pintail $9200. At the same time, he bought an English/Dawson Redhead for $1350, it sold for $35,650; a Nathan Cobb Plover for $325, it sold for $20,700; and a pair of Mason Factory Premier American Mergansers for $2400, which went for $60,950. Jim was a very active participant in the 6-stage Mackey estate auctions
held 1973-1974 at the Richard A. Bourne gallery in Hyannis, Massachusetts.
An Obediah Verity feeding Black-Bellied Plover bought then for $1100 sold
at Sotheby's for $156,500. Some acquisitions from that time were a Daniel
Lake Leeds Ruddy Turnstone for $500, just brought $35,500; During the 1980s, Jim continued to add to his collection. At a Doyle
sale in 1981 he was the successful bidder on a Nantucket Golden Plover for
$4600 which just sold for $63,000. 1983 saw a new Texas home for a Dave
Watson Yellowlegs for $2400, an Ira Hudson Hen Hooded Merganser for $7000,
and a Nathan Cobb Brant for $28,000. In order, they were re-purchased for
$6325, $35,650, and $101,500 at Sotheby's. In 1986 the Frank Kellum Gull
decoy was offered at Bourne's auction and went south for a hefty $36,000
along with an O. Bibber Old Squaw at $8,000. The gull just sold for a
modest increase at $40,250 and the Bibber doubled its money at $17,250. A
record-setting Lothrop Holmes Ruddy Turnstone at $73,700 sold for the
second highest bid at Sotheby's for $470,000. Jim was just as active in the 1990s buying on and off the record. In
1993 at a Guyette/Schmidt sale he made one of a few purchases that sold for
less than he paid. An Elmer Crowell Goldeneye pair brought $29,000 then
The benefits of long-term investing over short-term are evident in an overview. Using only the highlighted purchases in the above samplings, we see that in the 1970s Jim paid $36,300 for fifteen birds that in January of 2000 sold for $1,051,99, 28.9 times his investment. In the 1980s samples, he spent $159,700 for seven birds that sold for $793,975, 5 times his investment. The figures are also clear as to the potential increments in an upward-bound antique marketplace. With the 1990s examples, he spent $145,500 on five decoys that not too much later brought $372,400, 2.5 times his investment. Dr. McCleery was known for doing his "homework." Although auctions usually might have an ensemble of knowledgeable curators, there are typically errors and misidentifications. There were those in this auction. Five fish decoy spears were mislabeled as eel spears. Instead, they are of Midwestern origin designed for use with fish decoys in frozen "fresh" water lakes; and they had been seen in private collections many years ago. Lot number 59 is attributed to Ivar Fernlund of Ontario; but in actuality, it was carved by Robert Jones. This identification is common knowledge among Canadian decoy experts. A significant number of the McCleery decoys were photographed and included in the 1983 DECOYS: A NORTH AMERICAN SURVEY where they were featured as important additions to the book. Sotheby's citations almost totally ignored this literature which would have been additional reference material for prospective bidders. The success of the McCleery auction is clearly the result of a combination of significant ocurrances. The joining of Guyette and Schmidt with Sotheby's was one factor, the change to a new millennium was another, and the offering of a major group items from a distinguished collection resulted in the most successful decoy auction ever held. Years ago, fellow collector Dr. Lloyd Giffith of Virginia paid tribute to Jim McCleery, and his words are more poignant today. "[Jim is a] person I hold in such tremendous regard because of his unsurpassed eye and selectivity in collecting. Over the years, Jim was the man who always saw the spectacular bird, the unique qualities of a bird, before anyone else did. He never compromised in his selections. When he made a selection, it went home with him. He has such in-depth knowledge; I think he has almost total recall. His knowledge of his birds is encyclopedic. I would have to say, if there is to be a Dean of Decoy Collectors, he should have the mantle and the mace." [Wildfowl Carving and Collecting, Spring 1988, The Doctor From Texas, Gene and Linda Kangas, p. 38]
|
For over three decades, Jim McCleery was a leading
force in the decoy collecting field as his taste, discerning eye, and
buying power helped antique decoys rise from obscurity to international
recognition as an art form. A dramatic example of Jim's early influence
was his 1973 purchase of the first single decoy to sell publicly for more
than $10,000; a new world record at the time. This special bird was a
magnificent Hudsonian curlew carved by the famous shorebird maker William
Bowman of Long Island. McCleery's $10,500 winning bid bought it from the
estate sale of author/collector/dealer William Mackey of New Jersey.
While Mackey's assemblage was one of the most publicized, McCleery's
became one of the most in-depth, well-rounded, high-quality collection in
private or public hands.
a Nathan Cobb Black Duck for $425, now $24,150; a John Dilly
Dowitcher for $1600, here $28,750; a Plover by Dilly bought for $14,00,
brought $40,250; and a Joseph Lincoln Green-Wing Teal was a big price at
$3800 nearly three decades ago, and soared to $71,250 this year. In 1974
the Warren Dettman Ring Neck was only $200. Today is was $4887; and a
Charles McCoy Goldeneye was $375 against $5462 now. In 1979, a
Massachusetts robin snipe feeder went home with Jim for $2750 and recently
left at $112,500. The $10,500 record-setting William Bowman Curlew resold
for $464,500.
and were only $24,150 now. And in 1994 a lovely
pair of Rowley Horner Buffleheads was won by Jim at $65,000, and resold
for $57,500, just a bit under his purchase price. However, a classic
Augustus Wilson Eider with a mussel in its mouth purchased that year for
$16,500 went to $82,250 this time. We sat next to Jim when he bid on
this decoy and discussed it with him prior to that sale, since Gus Wilson
is one of the authors' specialties. In that same year, Jim bought the
Gardner/Dexter Dowitchers for a total of $35,000 and they later brought
$208,500.