Previous spotlight posts have focused on what may be considered the old guard of antiques. Sit & Read Furniture is based in Brooklyn (the showroom at 236 Grand Street is open by appointment only) and maintains a well kept stock of mid-century and industrial pieces. Their blog details current inventory, each post giving concise background to the profiled item. Additionally, related and informative bits (like Herman Miller commercials pulled from youtube) help contextualize the chosen wares.

I caught up with owner/founder Kyle Garner for a brief Q&A about the inspirations behind Sit & Read.

Enjoy the interview and some images after the jump.

Going to veer slightly off the course for this week’s spotlight. Given their status as famed members of the Antiques Roadshow and their own Found!, Leigh and Leslie Keno need little introduction. While successful in the antiques trade, they have both made significant additions to our understanding of American decorative arts through scholarly inquiry.

I’ve chosen a video produced for an exhibition on Connecticut River Valley Furniture for two reasons. First, I’m a fan of the regions style. Secondly, it is indicative of the Keno brothers skill as public historians.

Today marks the reopening of the V&A Medieval and Renaissance Galleries. They’ve been reviewed by Richard Dormant of The Telegraph, who has declared them “a complete success.” Given the wonder of the new Ceramics galleries, there is little doubt that these too will amaze, educate, and entertain visitors.

The space is broken into themed periods. For example the years 1450-1600 (“A World of Goods) are used to assess how design ideas were exchanged within and outside of Europe. A final section, “Living with the Past” sheds light on the material that exists outside the museum… highlighting how fragments of the past still exist in English towns today. This portion is evidence of the V&A’s excellence in interpretation – time and again the museum proves willing and able to address multiple learning styles, angles, and to contextualize the past in current terms.

For those (like me) unable to get in today, the related website is filled to the brim with excellent information. Don’t let it consume your working day. Do, however, give it some time.

A few more images which accompanied Mr. Dormant’s review are found after the jump.

Specializing in American Federal Furniture, Artemis Antiques has been in operation since 1975. Given a personal fondness for furniture of the period, 1790-1830 (aesthetically and intellectually) it has been a pleasure to see the stock of proprietor Jesse Goldberg over the years and pick his brain. From Hepplewhite and Sheraton, to the Empire fashions of Duncan Phyfe, and wonderful range of New England and New York period furnishings are represented by Artemis.

I’ve selected a few case pieces and tables to highlight. Many more are available on their site – as are examples of seating furniture and other decorative arts.

In the study of British Decorative arts there are few people whose work informs and inspires as much as Michael Snodin. Currently Senior Research Fellow at the Victoria & Albert Museum, Snodin’s latest publication examines the history and reception of Horace Walpole’s collection at Strawberry Hill. Along with other scholars, Snodin (the editor) brings full life to the home, its contents, and the world surrounding both.

The son of powerful Whig Minister Robert Walpole, Horace grew to be the best known commentator on Georgian life in England. His collections ranged from arms & armor to rare books, all carefully displayed in his groundbreaking home Strawberry Hill. A related exhibition is now on view at The British Art Center at Yale, where it will run through January 31, 2010. In March, the exhibition will open at the V&A and remain in situ until July 4, 2010.

Horace Walpole’s Strawberry Hill is available from Yale University Press.

Over the past fifteen years, Sumpter Pridy III Inc. has achieved an impeccable reputation as dealer in outstanding American furniture and decorative arts. Much of this reputation is drawn from the groups director, Sumpter Pridy III, whose scholarly contribution to the field is quite simply magnificent. A frequent contributor to The Magazine Antiques and American Furniture, Priddy is also author of the outstanding book American Fancy. The study privileged again the language of “Fancy,” a movement that was expressed in literature, music, and decorative arts, giving new meaning to objects traditionally viewed as folk art. American Fancy: Exuberence in the Arts: 1790-1840 was published by the Chipstone Foundation in 2004 and was complemented by an excellent exhibition at the Milwaukee Art Museum (which also traveled).

Priddy’s work as both dealer and scholar continues to unearth new material and strains of thought within American decorative arts, and as such American Culture at large. The gallery is located in Alexandria, Virginia.

Above is a pair of Fancy chairs attributed to Thomas Renshaw and Robert Fisher from Baltimore, Maryland, dated 1810-1815. They are built of Maple and walnut and adorned with painted and gilt ornament and cane seats. More examples of Priddy’s wears can be found after the jump.

The inaugural showing at Prism, MindtheGap, brings Barry McGee and Phil Frost to Los Angeles’ newest art space. Prism Gallery is the latest venture from 23-year old gallerist PC Valmoriba and housed in a specifically designed structure from PATTERN. The building casts a signature shadow on Sunset Strip, and with a mixture of high and low brow MindtheGap helps to establish a firm identity for Prism in the LA scene.

MindtheGap opens on November 20 and will remain on view until February 20, 2010. Prism is located at 8746 West Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, CA.

A full review of both building and exhibition has been published at Wallpaper*. Images of both after the jump.

Don and Trish Herr have been in the antiques business since 1975. There speciality of Pennsylvania German decorative arts brings in a wealth of material to their rotating stock. Of particular note, the Herr’s focus on 18th and 19th-century textiles has led to important new scholarship on the subject. From time to time, articles are published in the library section of their own website which provides a solid platform for learning more about antiques and decorative arts.

Of course, there are also sound offerings in painted furniture, Fraktur, and pewter (the metal being another strong point for the Herrs.

Above is a figural coverlet woven by Emanuel Meilly of Lebanon County, PA in 1842. Head to the jump for more.