Valuable Art Found - 1 of 8 Antique Japanese Scrolls / Thrift Store Treasures

Welcome back to Thrift Store Treasures a thrift store shoppers blog about treasure hunting among another persons trash.

Several months back I made a stop into one of my favorite thrift stores. I've learned that they don't have a very good selection of clothes and furniture. But I have found some pretty cool items on their shelves - lots of hard to find colors of Fire King cups, mid-century candle holders and entire dish sets from the 50's. But it's way in the back of the store, where their donated art is, that the best treasures are found. It's in the back where I totally lucked out and scored eight antique Japanese scrolls rolled up and thrown on a shelf with other people's unwanted art.

The truth is I almost didn't notice them. They were piled one on top of the other and I'm not sure what I thought they were, but surely not what they turned out to be. The scroll that you are looking at here is one of my favorite. It measures 4.6 feet in length and 1.8 feet in width. Surprisingly, it's also in great condition, with no tears or holes in the paper.Speaking of paper, I'm not actually sure whether it's painted on paper or silk, as I'm just not that familiar with Japanese art. The back appears to be paper and the front is a silk material.

The detail of the fisherman is incredible. Everything down to the fishing line is a brilliant color and you can see the artist took their time painting this scroll. I have heard that scrolls tell a story or represent something important. I wonder if this is a self-portrait. I wonder if this is a painting of a man in a small Japanese village.

Detail of Fisherman - Antique Japanese Scroll

Coming across these scrolls at $6.99 was amazing in itself, but I'm a little frustrated that I know so little about the history... or the artist. There is a lot of Japanese text written on the top and I have no idea what it says.

Is it a story? A poem or a ode to a lost love? If anyone who reads this can understand Japanese, I would love some insight. Otherwise, feel free to share, comment or ask any questions I haven't answered here.

Happy Hunting!

Ink and Silk Paper - Original Art Print Signed / Thrift Store Treasures

Welcome to Thrift Store Treasures a thrift store shoppers blog about treasure hunting among another persons trash.

I've always been a thrifter, long before Goodwill became popular among the masses. In fact, I think of Goodwill as a place for beginners to get their feet wet, a place to observe and learn from the people turning over a unique piece of glassware to look for a signature. Personally, I prefer the jaunts where little old ladies donate and shop, or the local church stores that the Goodwill shoppers don't know about.

Over the past year, I've found lots of cool spots that I try to hit at least a couple of times a month. I'm so familiar with these places, that I have a shopping routine for each of them. Usually it's something like this - furniture, framed art, glassware, shoes, purses and another glance through furniture just before leaving. Everyone has their own unique style and taste when thrifting. I am drawn to mid-century furniture, unique original art work, vintage owls in glass or metal, antique nesting dolls and old medicine bottles that I fill with ivy and put in my windows.

In the past few months I've began to notice that through my thrift store treasure hunting, I'm building quite a nice collection of art. It's not something that I initially set out to do, but there have been many pieces that I've felt drawn to. There are pieces that speak to me in one way or another and hence... my collection has evolved and this blog has begun.

The first treasure I want to share with you is something I picked up yesterday. It's one of those items that I was immediately excited to find. Looking at it, I could tell that it was a piece of art that took a long time to create and that a lot of devotion and detail went into it.

23" x 29" Antique Ink on Silk Drawing, Signed by Artist

The piece is in a semi-ornate frame made of wood, with a gold colored glaze over it. The inside of the frame has a weaved fabric, which I have found is common among antique japanese art. It's a large piece of art; with frame, it measures 2.6' across and 3' high. The actual art measures 1.91' feet across and 2.41' high. If I look closely, I can see where the picture ends and it appears to be an ink drawing on silk. I recognize the fabric from a collection of Japanese scrolls I was lucky enough to find several months ago.

On the back, there is a handwritten tag with the name of artist and the date of 13-9-78 and a set of numbers. Unfortunately I cannot make out the artist name.

Ineligible Artist Signature

There are also two other labels on the back, which both say Vanguard Studios. The second one also list the catalog number 4932. After doing some research, I learned that Vanguard Studios was located in Beverly Hills California and would provide affordable oil paintings out of their gallery. I did find a phone number and contact person for them, although I don't believe they are open any longer as their is very little information about them anywhere online.

Vanguard Studios Labels

Please let me know if you have any further information about this piece of art. It really is beautiful and I'd love to know more about it. Check back often as I'm going to try and post something new every few days.
Happy Hunting!