Masters of the American West - 2015

As we approach the first weekend in February, everyone knows that we are all preparing for The Big Event!  Of course, I am talking about the Autry National Center's Masters of the American West.

The Masters of the American West is the premiere annual Western art show, featuring more than 75 of the top, nationally recognized contemporary Western painters and sculptors.

The Masters of the American West is the brainchild of John Geraghty, famed collector of Western art and "Special Master" of the Masters event.  The event is also supported by Jay Grodin, long time Chairman of the event along with the Masters Committee whose members sponsor the event year after year.

Howard Terpning
The Patrol - 1877
Oil, 50" x 52"

The show opens on Saturday, January 31, 2015 with an artist's presentation by the phenomenal wildelife sculptor Walter Matia at 10:30 a.m.,  the Chuck Wagon Luncheon and Award Presentation at noon and a presentation by Amy Scott, Chief Curator and Marilyn B. and Calvin B. Gross Curator of Visual Arts who will moderate a discussion on collecting at 2:00.

Award Winners from 2012 Masters of the American West
Front: Tammy Garcia, Special Master John Geraghty, Howard Terpning, Kyle Polzin
Back: Dean Mitchell, George Carlson, Tucker Smith, Masters Chairman Jay Grodin, Bill Anton & Gerald Balciar

At 5:30, the doors open for the evening's cocktail reception and Fine Art Sale.  Those attending this gala event each have special tickets that can be used to indicate their interest in purchasing any of the artworks for sale.  Interested collectors sign their ticket for the specific artwork and place the ticket in a box next to the work of art.  At the appointed hour of 7:30 p.m., a horn is blown and attendants open up each of the boxes and draw out three tickets.  The names of the purchasers are written on a board next to the work in the order that they were drawn from the box.  Purchasers then have 20 minutes to claim their purchase (yes, they can pass on the purchase) and if they fail to do so, the right to purchase the work will fall to the next purchaser.

Known as the "draw box method", a couple of million dollars in artwork will be sold in a couple of hours that evening.  Combining those sales with the select works that are auctioned off to the sponsors of the event at Friday night's Artists' Dinner, total sales generally exceed $4,000,000.  A portion of each sale is retained by the museum and the Masters event is one of the Autry's most important fundraising events.

To see the event photos from last year's Masters of the American West, go to:
http://autry.zenfolio.com/masters2014
If requested, enter the password masters2014.

If you would like to know more about the Masters of the American West, its artists, their work or the schedule of events, please visit:
http://theautry.org/masters-of-the-american-west/masters-of-the-american-west

The Masters of the American West stays on exhibit at the Autry National Center through March 8, 2015 and is well worth your visit to see it.


TinyURL for this post is: http://tinyurl.com/jimrea-masters-2015

My pledge to you is to professionally handle all of your real estate needs whether it is searching for a new home or property, selling one that you already have or helping you address your real estate needs anywhere in the world. My goal is to make your real estate experience pleasant, productive, focused and hassle free.

I would love to discuss any real estate needs that you may have.  Please give me a call at any time.

Jim Rea, Realtor
Sotheby's International Realty - Pacific Palisades 
(424) 354-0790
Jim@JimRea.com

LA Area Real Estate Sales - 4th Quarter Report

Happy New Year to everyone.  As we kick off 2015, it is always informative to take a quick look back at the 4th Quarter of last year and see how the local real estate business did in comparison to 2013.  Sotheby's International Realty recently released their Greater Los Angeles Market Update - Fourth Quarter 2014.

 

The report covers a wide number of local communities in the Los Angeles area as revealed by looking over the table of contents.  I am trying to track down similar reports for some areas in the Valley and Glendale/Pasadena areas and if I am successful in locating them, I will update this report.  

Generally, prices are up in most areas and in some areas they are up considerably.  When prices are down they tend to be in the relatively low perentage levels.  The report breaks out both Single Family Homes and Condominium Sales for each area.

As for the areas along the coast on the west side of Los Angeles, the table below shows the 4th Quarter Average Sale Price along with the percentage change from the 4th Quarter of 2013.

Allow me to give you an overview of how the reports work for each individual market area in the report.  Each area features two pages: one for Single Family Residences and one for Condos.  Let's take a look at the page for Single Family Residences for Pacific Palisades.

There are three sections on each page.  The top section is for Oct-Dec 2014, the middle section is for Oct-Dec 2013 and the bottom section shows the percentage change between 2013 and 2014.  Each section has four columns that break out the sale by dollar amount of the sale.  The first column presents total sales, the second column shows properties of less than $1 million (none of those in Pacific Palisades), the third column is for sales in the $1 - $3 million range and the fourth column is for properties over $3 million.

Last but not least, let's take a look at the detailed line items in each group.  They are:

• Average List Price
• Average List Price per Square Foot
• Average Sold Price
• Average Sold Price per Square Foot
• Total SFH Properties Sold
• Total SFH Properties for Sale at the End of the Period
• Average Monthly Supply of Inventory
• Average Sold Price / Average List Price (Ratio)

So now that you have the big picture on this informative report, if you are ready to climb into the data, you can download it here: Los Angeles Area Real Estate Sales - 4th Quarter Report

TinyURL for this post is: http://tinyurl.com/jimrea-4q-2014

My pledge to you is to professionally handle all of your real estate needs whether it is searching for a new home or property, selling one that you already have or helping you address your real estate needs anywhere in the world. My goal is to make your real estate experience pleasant, productive, focused and hassle free.

I would love to discuss any real estate needs that you may have.  Please give me a call at any time.

Jim Rea, Realtor
Sotheby's International Realty - Pacific Palisades 
(424) 354-0790
Jim@JimRea.com

Sotheby's RESIDE Magazine

Sotheby's International Realty publishes the ultra-luxury RESIDE magazine quarterly showcasing some of the finest in arts, jewelry, travel, wine and other essentials of luxury living along with some of the most exquisite estates available for sale in the world.  The fall edition of this wonderful magazine was recently published and I am happy to share with you a preview of its stories.  Even better than that, you can find a link at the end of this article to download the full copy for your personal enjoyment.

RESIDE features several fascinating stories related to the luxury lifestyle, beginning with the feature article "Living Out Is In" that explores the trend of creating outdoor living areas that create the feeling that one is at a luxury resort as opposed to a personal residence.  The American Society of Landscape Architects rates outdoor kitchens and entertainment spaces the second most popular outdoor design elements of 2014.

For those interested in getting away from home, Lyna Caruso's "Bliss in Belize" describes a little country with a lot to offer to globetrotters from around the world.  She explains, "The country's maturing tourism industry and some A-list heavyweights have helped amp up its profile.  Director Francis Ford Coppola owns two luxury resorts here and Leonardo DiCaprio has a private island."

'Wanna buy a watch, Matey?'  In a fascinating article entitled "Timed to Perfection", Malcolm Cossons tells about Patek Philippe's incredible 'Henry Graves Supercomplication' (what a name) that appears at auction this fall with an estimate of 15 million CHF.  The article describes the inception of this one of a kind timepiece. "The watch was commissioned directly from Patek Philippe in 1925 by Henry Graves, Jr. a member of a wealthy New York banking family.  Renowned as a patron of the arts, this avid watch collector nursed a passion to own the most complicated watch in the world."  it is a fabulously timely article.

Of course you will want to keep up with latest in travel, style, art and design.  That is where "The Exchange" comes in.  Ranging from a $4,000 "Raging Bull" smartphone from Lamborghini to a $50k - $290K custom Bonnet Maestro cooking range like the one used by the French Laundry's Thomas Keller, you'll surely want to sharpen your pencil for your upcoming holiday gift list.

And last, but certainly not least, Sotheby's International Realty presents "The Gallery" an international collection of the most extraordinary homes anywhere in the US and the rest of the world.  Each of these exceptional properties are available for acquisition.  Of course, it would be my pleasure to assemble a team of real estate specialists and professionals to assist you with any property that may be of interest to you.

.

I hope you will take a few minutes to enjoy your own copy of Sotheby's RESIDE.  You can quickly and easily download your copy here: RESIDE Fall 2014.



TinyURL for this post is: tinyurl.com/RESIDE-2014-Fall

My pledge to you is to professionally handle all of your real estate needs whether it is searching for a new home or property, selling one that you already have or helping you address your real estate needs anywhere in the world. My goal is to make your real estate experience pleasant, productive, focused and hassle free.

I would love to discuss any real estate needs that you may have.  Please give me a call at any time.

Jim Rea, Realtor
Sotheby's International Realty - Pacific Palisades

Autry Masters of the American West Paintout 2104 - Descanso Gardens

Saturday, October 25th, 2014 marked the 10th outing of the Masters of the American West Paintout and was held for the first time at the beautiful Descanso Gardens in La Cañada-Flintridge.

The Paintout began as a collaboration between the California Art Club and the Autry National Center.  John Geraghty, the primary force behind the Autry's Masters of the American West  worked with CAC Executive Director Elaine Adams to come up with an event which allows top collectors from both the CAC and the Autry to enjoy the day watching and getting to better know these top flight artists.  The Autry has produced the event since the inception while artists participating in the event come from the ranks of the Masters of the American West and top California Art Club artists.  For the past several years, fellow Autry Trustee Calvin Gross and I have served as the Co-Chairs for the event.

John Geraghty and Molly Campbell

About the Organizations

The Autry National Center is host to the annual Masters of the America West, one of the largest and most successful exhibitions and sales of fine western, southwestern and California art in the world.  Every year, collectors from around the country gather together to compete to purchase paintings and sculpture by some of the very top artists of this genre, producing several million dollars in sales in a single evening.  The works of art remain on exhibit for a month or more at the Autry Museum.  The upcoming Masters of the American West will be held beginning January 31, 2015.

For more information see: Masters of the American West.

The California Art Club is one of the oldest and largest professional artists organizations supporting artists who paint and sculpt fine traditional representational art in the tradition of the great California artists of the early 20th century.  Founded in 1909, the organization hosts multiple artists workshops, exhibitions, dinners and other functions every year.  The CAC's top exhibition is its annual Gold Medal Exhibition.  The 104th Annual Gold Medal Exhibition will be held beginning March 29th at the Fisher Museum of Art on the USC campus.

For more information see: California Art Club.

The Paintout

The annual Masters of the American West Paintout has grown from humble beginnings into a highly anticipated annual event. The first Paintouts were held at Malibu Creek State Park where artists and patrons enjoyed the beautiful natural setting and enjoyed box lunches at rustic picnic tables.  Over the years, the Paintout has shifted locations to the Abalone Cove Shoreline Park in Palos Verdes, the scenic Paramount Ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains, the incredible Ventura Farms estate (owned by Dole Foods CEO David Murdock) in Thousand Oaks, the lovely oceanside Montage Resort in Laguna Beach.

This year's Paintout was held at the beautiful Descanso Gardens in La Cañada-Flintridge.  Many of the 25 or so artists situated themselves around the Japanese Tea Garden while others spread out to other areas around the 160 acre botanical garden.

Stephen Mirich painting at the Japanese Tea Garden

Michael Situ and Peter Adams painting the colorful orange bridge

Z. S. Liang painting the entrance to the Tea Garden

Michael Obermeyer at wor

Lynn Gertenbach painting at the duck pond

Brittany Weistling painting a rose

Morgan Weistling painting next to Brittany

JoAnn Peralta with CAC Chief Operating Officer Cathy Crowser

Gayle Garner Roski painting ducks at the pond

The grounds had their share of other attractions.  Deer roamed through the forests, ducks floated on the ponds, we came across little waterfalls and large displays of autumn decorations.  All were potential subjects for the artists.

Come noontime, all of the artists and collectors gathered together back at the Van De Kamp Hall where a luncheon was served to the 160 artists and guests.  Many of the artists displayed their finished and partially finished paintings around the edges of the room. Collectors were free to discuss purchase of individual paintings with the artists and several paintings were sold.

The photographs presented here show only a small selection of the artists, guests and paintings that were present at the event.  A full selection of photos are posted on a gallery here.  If you would like to know about next year's Paintout, send me an email and I will be sure to let you know when the invitations come out!

TinyURL: http://tinyurl.com/Autry-Paintout-2014

My pledge to you is to professionally handle all of your real estate needs whether it is searching for a new home or property, selling one that you already have or helping you address your real estate needs anywhere in the world. My goal is to make your real estate experience pleasant, productive, focused and hassle free.

I would love to discuss any real estate needs that you may have.  Please give me a call at any time.

Jim Rea, Realtor
Sotheby's International Realty - Pacific Palisades

C-CAP Dinner at Redbird / Vibiana

C-CAP, the non-profit Careers through Culinary Arts Program works with underserved high school students in public schools around the country to help prepare them for college and career opportunities in the restaurant and hospitality industries.  Students work with chefs in some of the country's top restaurants to provide them with hands-on experience working in the commercial culinary arts environment.  This was the setting for the latest C-CAP Los Angeles dinner that was held at the new (and not yet even opened) Redbird Restaurant at the Vibiana special events center.

Vibiana is a special events facility in the beautifully restored Cathedral of St. Vibiana's in downtown Los Angeles.  Opened in 1876, the cathedral suffered heavy damage in the 1994 Northridge earthquake.  The archdiocese wanted to demolish the building and build a new cathedral but a protracted lawsuit with the Los Angeles Conservancy resulted in a compromise deal where the archdiocese would rebuild on a nearby property and the damaged building was deeded over to the City of Los Angeles.  A developer bought St. Vibiana's in 1999 for $4.6 million and undertook the restoration, which also included over $4 million in seismic repairs.

Celebrity chef Neal Fraser came up through several top restaurants including Wolfgang Puck's Eureka Brewery & Restaurant and Spago, Hans Rockenwagner's Rox and Joachim Splichal's Pinot Bistro and went on to open several successful restaurants including Boxer, Rix in Santa Monica, Grace, BLD and Fritzi Dog at Farmer's Market.  Fraser,  his wife and business partner Amy Knoll and  restauranteur Bill Chait operate Vibiana and also provide event catering services there.  Recently, the three took the next step to create their new restaurant "Redbird" at Vibiana.

The C-CAP event offered Chef Fraser the opportunity to give the restaurant staff a dry run prior to the official opening while working in the kitchen guiding seven C-CAP students who help prepare the banquet.

The evening opened with wine and hors d'oeuvres in the Vibiana courtyard.  Wine was served from three different distributors (Kiwi Distributing, Guadelupe Wines & Bonny Doon Vineyards) who generously donated their delicious beverages.  Chef Fraser gave the crowd a personal tour of the restaurant (still under construction) and the kitchen before everyone was seated at a single long banquet table.

The Wines

Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare

Greg Sabin & Terri Henry
Kiwi Distributing

 

Opening Reception

Chef Fraser's Tour

The Dinner

Wines Served at the Reception:
Cable Bay Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand)
Rosso di Montepulciano DOC (Italy)
Metairie Chardonnay (France)
Cable Bay Central Otago Pinot Noir (New Zealand)
Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare (California)
Cavas Valmar Tempranillo (Baja California)
Gaia Cabernet Sauvignon Syrah Tempranillo (Baja California)
Cavas Valmar Chenin Blanc (Baja California)
Sauvignon Blanc (Baja California)

Wines Served at Dinner:
Gamling Duck Chenin Blanc (Santa Ynez Valley, CA)
Seigneur de Fontimple Vacqueyras (France)

If you would like to learn more about C-CAP Los Angeles, you can visit their website at C-CAP Los Angeles.  There you will see information about their next event at the International Culinary School at the Art Institute of Los Angeles on October 19.  If you would like more information, you can contact their Director, Mitzie Cutler, at mitz207 "at" aol.com.

A full set of photos from the event can be seen at: http://www.jimrea.com/zenphoto/CCAP2014

The TinyURL for this posting is http://tinyurl.com/CCAP-Redbird