Patterns of Collecting: The Ethnographic Collections of John Woodall, William Leazer, William Swann, and others.

Quinn’s Auction Galleries March 25^th Ethnographic Art Auction features, among others, the works of three collectors, John Woodall, William Leazer and William Swann, who approached collecting in separate and distinct ways. Through their artwork one can see just how personal collecting can be and how fascinating these different approaches often are.

                John Woodall began his life in the arts as performance artist in Northern California during the 1970s and quickly became immersed in the Native American culture of the area. Woodall literally became a part of his collection spending time with the Hupa people learning to weave baskets in their distinct style. For Woodall, collecting became a process of sharing a lifestyle and experiencing the cultures from within. Understanding this helps us appreciate why he collected what he did. A unique collection, with a wide scope, Woodall’s items reflect the special journey he took to obtaining and learning about them.

            Equally fascinating, William Leazer and his partner William Swann worked together for over forty years to create their collection as they traveled the United States, Mexico, Central America, and South America. For them, each item became a part of a personal scrapbook of their life together. Each object bringing back a memory from the past as they enjoyed the artwork in the present for its aesthetic merits in the home they shared.

            The artwork from both gentlemen proves there is no right way of collecting. It is the joy experienced on the personal level that supersedes any external art criticism that is so often placed on the shoulders of collectors. Quinn’s Auction Galleries is proud to offer a vast array of objects from these collections that bring together the work of many cultures and the memories of how they were collected and cherished.

        Gallery Preview Times

Saturday, March 18, 2017:            10:00am-2:00pm

Monday, March 20, 2017:             10:00am-5:00pm

Tuesday, March 21, 2017:             10:00am-7:00pm

Wednesday, March 22, 2017:      10:00am-6:00pm

Thursday, March 23, 2017:           10:00am-5:00pm

Friday, March 24, 2017:                  10:00am-4:00pm

Saturday, March 25, 2017:            9:00am-11:00am

     Auction—Saturday, March 25, 2017: 11:00am