Decorative Artifacts for the Home

Even the most contemporary interiors can benefit from decorative artifacts, which add instant soul to a room. We at Currey & Company have been putting more emphasis on unique finds and one-of-a-kinds during the past several years. Not only does our intrepid scout Jean-Charles Chappuis scour a number of countries for relics, our President Brownlee Currey is an avid sleuth who knows a personable artifact when he sees one!

Decorative Artifacts in Atlanta

Jean-Charles Chappius and Brownlee Currey with Nancy Fan, the sourcing manager in our Dongguan, China, office as they source one-of-a-kind artifacts in China.

They brave the hunt, which can be an overwhelming and exhilarating endeavor, so that our customers don’t have to go to such lengths in the pursuit of vintage pieces, antiques, and new artisanal accessories. You’ll be able to see for yourself if you are attending the Atlanta summer market that begins today and runs through the 17th because we will have an array of artifacts on display throughout the show, or as long as they last. How strenuous is the process of procuring incredible finds? It demands perseverance, patience, and a deep understanding of historical contexts. Jean-Charles says of Nancy Fan, the sourcing manager in our Dongguan, China, office, who accompanies them on many of their trips (shown above), “She is talented, curious, methodical, and can enjoy both the building of a lamp from a lamp body and the translation of a poem from a Chinese antique vase. Travelling with her guarantees culture will be experienced with gusto and laughter will be abundant.”

One-of-a-kind artifacts being perused for possible purchase.

With her by their side, Brownlee and Jean-Charles have seen time and again how the most interesting finds may rest at the bottom of a rather messy and daunting pile of hits and misses or in faraway places that are not easy to reach. But challenges like these do little to dampen their resolve as they embark on captivating expeditions, meticulously hand-selecting artifacts one by one. While ceramics, carved stone, and terracotta items may have languished for decades, bronze pieces are also scoped-out in order to find profiles that fit perfectly within our Vice President/Creative Director Cecil Adam’s Bronze-Age design story (as seen in the image below).

Bronze sculptures that illustrate themes from a bygone era make terrific inspirations for new sculptures.

Donning comfortable clothes and shoes, Brownlee and Jean-Charles hit the road and never know what they may find (or not find) on any given day, but considering the wealth of items we will have on view in Atlanta, they’ve been incredibly successful in their acquisitions. Seeing the array of artifacts Jean-Charles is surveying below, it’s no wonder they point out that one of their most important tools as they source items is a discerning eye.

Jean-Charles Chappuis combing rows of artifacts and vintage pieces for one-of-a-kind finds.

An unerring eye is important for a number of reasons—understanding the long history of materials and why they are so special, for example; knowing how the best gilding should age; and understanding a beautifully forged item juxtaposed against one that was not as refined are all aspects of a well-informed collector’s point of view. Jean-Charles points out that certain display rooms they comb through are so filled with goods, it is difficult to walk through them. One showroom they frequent belongs to a collector of lost-wax-process bronze vessels, animals, and deities. “Currey & Company has known this collector for ten years; he sources so avidly, he doesn’t have any space left to store his extraordinary stock,” Jean-Charles notes. “What is interesting is the way he piles them to create arrangements that are artistic in themselves, so that not only are the individual pieces artful, the way they are stacked on top of each other is another layer of artistic expression.”

JA moody view of a landscape captured by Brownlee Currey in China and examples of time-honored artifacts.

Jean-Charles remembers how surprised he felt when he first saw how the valuable items are being “preserved” and stored. He adds, “It took Brownlee and I hours to make selections that make sense to Currey & Company both artistically and culturally.” The specificity of a collector of bronzes is but one point of view they come across; when they are sourcing newer artisanal pieces, they’re aware that certain areas of certain countries are known for particular materials. They enjoy seeing the tremendous amount of pride the generations of “makers” feel, the sense of heritage they are protecting lending depth and soulfulness to the process of purchasing. Whether it is terracotta, stone carving, forging, or lost-wax molding, the treasures they come across illustrate how quality results when craftspeople and artisans dedicate themselves to one material for an entire lifetime.

JAn example of why finding exquisite artifacts can be so challenging.

Traveling to source objets-d’art has a side benefit, which is evident from the moody photo they captured above: the entire trip from beginning to end is an adventure! Being on the road in a foreign country, even when it has been traveled numerous times, always brings previously missed sights, sounds, smells, and vistas. We feel energized when we see the images from the trips abroad that our inimitable sleuths share with us. Each time Brownlee returns, we experience a veritable travel log through the photos his lens captured!

We’re Celebrating!

Also happening during Atlanta market is our celebration of 35 years in business. Come and join us as we toast over three decades as a brand and salute our intrepid founders, Robert and Susie Currey, shown above with the always photogenic Reeves. We’ll have the champagne flowing on July 13th beginning at 4 p.m. In case you haven’t visited us in a while, we’re in the AmericasMart Building 1 in Suite L3 at lobby level.