Meet Kate
It was probably inevitable that I would end up in the world of antiques: Both my parents were dealers who met at a fleamarket. I grew up in New England surrounded by old things: We used antique stoneware bowls & wooden spoons in the kitchen, & kept the dishes in an early Victorian pie safe. An enormous spinning wheel dominated the living room. The house itself was quite old, too, with a huge, sprawling garden where I regularly unearthed old treasures like marbles & keys, & where a locked door lead nowhere.
That said, I didn't take an active interest in collecting until I was in my teens, when discovered that there was more to antiques than the rustic, early Americana that my parents favored. My tastes veered in the opposite direction, towards the extravagant & eccentric world of the Victorians.
My academic background is in dramaturgy, & what I loved most about working in theatre was educating the cast & the audience in the world of the play: Providing research material, doing presentations, consulting on historical details; writing notes for programs & lobby displays. It encompasses a broad knowledge of cultural history & numerous, specific areas of expertise beyond theatre: Art history, film, music, literature, design, etc. This passion for the arts informs everything I do, & I like to think that the same skills that made me a great dramaturge also make me a great dealer & curator. These are both excellent jobs for a very curious person who loves falling down rabbit holes & transporting herself to another time & place.
These days, my interests range far beyond the confines of Sarah Bernhardt’s living room, but aesthetically, the 19th century still feels the most like home. I specialize in Victoriana, devotional objects, keepsakes, books, & ephemera. I especially love sentimental items like hair work, women’s crafts, memorials, & love tokens: Material manifestations of one person’s affection for another. I take a fastidious, curatorial approach to collecting, choosing items for their quality, uniqueness, & beauty.
"Roses & Rue" is an early poem by Oscar Wilde, which he wrote for the actress Lillie Langtry. Always fond of dramatic gestures, he used to throw stargazer lilies at her feet. It's not a particularly good poem, but a line that never made it into the final draft has always stuck with me: "You had poets enough on the shelf- I gave you myself!"