HOOK

24 HOOK from is 1644 [Ming dynasty]. It could be from as early as 920 A.D [Late Tang]. Every piece that I look at when I'm auc3oning, if I see it, I know I have to have it. And some3mes I overpay because that's how much I need to have that piece. I need to own it for a while. It's got to stay with me un3l I find the right home for it. I had a beau3ful French green enameled scale, and I'd say it was from the late 1880s and it was stamped and marked in the brasses, and everything was just beau3ful. I know it went to a good home because the woman who purchased it ab- solutely loved the piece as much as I did". Kiki loves to connect a piece with a customer and will go out of her way to make sure the fit is perfect, even if it means turn- ing business away. "When shop- pers come in, I will ask what style house do you have? What do you have in the house cur- rently? What do you lean towards? Do you collect anything spe- cific? If they're looking for artwork, what style of artwork do you already have? If I don't have what they're looking for, I'll send them somewhere where I think they might find it. I'm like a house curator concierge. If I don't have it, somebody's going to have it. I want you to have what you want and what you're looking for. I think that's my job—to put these an3que pieces where they belong." As she surveys her rooms of an- 3ques, she notes that an3ques can be prac3cal as well. For exam- ple, "When it comes to furniture, I try to explain that this piece will last another 300 years because it's real wood. The ar3stry and the cra$smanship on these pieces is extraordinary. Most of my furni- Kiki Cunningham, Owner

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