Wadsworth Jarrell Watercolor Painting, ca. 1965
GUEST: Well, my parents bought it. I'm from Chicago, from the South Side of Chicago. My parents purchased it at the Hyde Park Art Fair, 1963. It could have been '64, but I do think it was '63. And it was hanging on their walls for my entire childhood. And then when they both passed away, it-it came down to us.
APPRAISER: Do you know if they purchased it directly from the artist?
GUEST: They did, he had a booth at the Hyde Park Art Fair, and he would come every year.
APPRAISER: How much did they pay for it?
GUEST: $75. When my parents passed away, because I loved the picture so much, I found the artist's email address and I wrote to him and he was kind enough to write back. I sent him a picture of-- an email of the, of the art and he wrote to me about it and-and told me a bit about it, which was wonderful.
APPRAISER: Well, that's very generous-- a lot of times...
GUEST: Yeah.
APPRAISER: you don't get that kind of reaction.
GUEST: No.
APPRAISER: You either get ignored or, or...
GUEST: Right. Exactly.
APPRAISER: or something else, right?
GUEST: I expected to be ignored, I did. (chuckling)
APPRAISER: Exactly.
GUEST: But it meant a lot to me.
APPRAISER: So, as it turns out, you do have a-- part of that, uh, email.
GUEST: I do.
APPRAISER: Do you mind reading what he said?
GUEST: He wrote that he had returned to watercolor in 2003. "I probably haven't used it since the '60s. And I observed some delicate and sensitive use of watercolor in this painting that I still admire. Frankly, I think it's a very fine painting."
GUEST: So he loves his work
APPRAISER: (chuckling) That's excellent! That's excellent. He endorsed it.
GUEST: He did. He did.
APPRAISER: And you know, I noticed the painting is not signed. So having that information actually confirms the fact that…
GUEST: Right.
APPRAISER: …he did the painting.
GUEST: He did.
APPRAISER: This is a watercolor painting by Wadsworth Jarrell, probably done in the '60s, as you just indicated.
GUEST: Yes.
APPRAISER: And the subject matter is Charlie Parker on the saxophone and Dizzy Gillespie on the trumpet. Wadsworth Jarrell, he was born in 1929 in Georgia.
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: He later moved to Chicago...
GUEST: Didn't know.
APPRAISER: ...and he actually had, uh, some instruction at the Art Institute of Chicago, as well. Wadsworth Jarrell was a co-founder of AfriCOBRA, which was founded in Chicago in 1968.
GUEST: Okay.
APPRAISER: AfriCOBRA actually stands for African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists.
GUEST: (chuckles)
APPRAISER: He's still alive, he was born in 1929.
GUEST: Yes!
APPRAISER: But he's still with us.
GUEST: Amazing, almost, okay. 90s.
APPRAISER: In his, in his 90s, yeah. But a painting like this, I think I would put an insurance value of $75,000.
GUEST: Oh, my God. (groans) $75,000?
APPRAISER: Yes.
GUEST: Okay, wonderful! It is. (chuckles) It's wonderful, it's worth it, it is worth it. It's a wonderful painting and we're very grateful.
$75,000
Featured In
episode
Denver Botanic Gardens Chatfield Farms, Hour 3
NEW! ROADSHOW discovers treasures during the third hour from Littleton, CO.
2D & 3D Art Media
appraisal
Frank Zappa Painting, ca. 1960
appraisal
Edgar Alwin Payne Painting, ca. 1925
appraisal
American School Portrait, ca. 1820
appraisal
Understanding Our Appraisals
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
