A friend of mine called me last week and said she was at an estate sale and had found something that caught her eye. She texted me a quick photo and I agreed she should buy it. She paid $200 for what is a signed Peter Max lithograph worth $3000.
Several years back another friend visiting an estate sale found two paintings, one marked $18 and the other $25. Both paintings had the famous Knoedler Gallery of New York identification sticker on the back. After the purchase it was found that one is by Russian painter Antonin Soungouroff and the other by Italian painter Alberto Guerri — a financial grand slam.
Yet another friend was in a small antique store near Andover and bought a clay rooster candle stick for $10. Turns out it was an original Lester Raymer piece, easily worth over $1000.
And last but not least, yet another friend last year found an original William Dickerson oil painting in a DAV bargain bin for $3. This is the same guy that bought a rough piece of stone, used as a doorstop, at an estate sale for $5. Turns out it was an emerald.
All of these art finds took place fairly recently and all happened in Wichita, or the surrounding area. Under the radar, there are amazing art collections in this city! Things are given away. People die. Things fall by the wayside. Valuable art and objects are basically thrown away by people who don’t know what they are dealing with. There are impressive pieces out there just waiting for you to claim, for next to nothing!
And wouldn’t you agree the stories alone are worth their weight in gold?