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January 13, 2020

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The well-known & the little-known are in Johnson Publishing’s art auction

Posted in Art

As I was flipping through the catalog for the upcoming auction of artwork from Johnson Publishing Company, I quickly noticed that most of the artists were from Chicago where the company was located. I had…

November 12, 2018

Ragan A. Henry, radio pioneer & art connoisseur

Posted in Art

Ragan A. Henry amassed a bevy of radio stations on the East Coast, starting in the 1970s when it wasn’t easy for black people to own any at all. But with smarts, wits and a dream, he…

“ART WITH HEART: How I Built a Sweet Collection by Buying Cheap at Auction”

I collect art, but I’m not someone who has the means to pay $500,000 for a Charles White or $12 million for a Rembrandt. I’m one of the “rest of us” who want beautiful artwork in our homes but can’t afford to pay big bucks for it.

I found a novel way to build my collection – by buying art for very little money at mom-and-pop auction houses near where I live. I started out buying African American artists whose works spoke to me and were ignored by the mainstream art world. Then I discovered some other neglected artists who called out just as loud.

My book “ART WITH HEART” Is a selection of stories of how I found art that I loved, how I lost out on some, won others, learned some lessons that I share with you – and enjoyed every minute of it.

So, grab a seat next to me as I take you through the moments I spent building a collection that stirred my heart.

Watch the Book Trailer

Listen to and read an excerpt

Read more at sherryhoward.com

Buy the paperback

Contact me for presentations/book signings

I started going to auctions to fuel my love for African American art – but at a bargain. I wanted to find works of the masters and discover others whose art may have been hiding in an attic or basement, and forgotten.

I have amassed a collection of their works but also those of unknown and little-known artists of all stripes, many of them from Philadelphia. I have also uncovered black history intertwined with American history, showing that one did not happen without the other and demonstrating that my ancestors’ history was just as powerful and significant.

Auction Finds is filled with fascinating stories – from books to photographs to documents to artifacts – on subjects that are as diverse as we are as a country. I’ve learned some things that I think will excite you as much as they excited me.

Photo by Jimmy Baynes, Cleveland, OH.
Photo by Earl Ford.
Photo by Jimmy Baynes of Cleveland, OH.
Photo by Arthur Eddie Williamson, Kansas City, MO.
Photo by Mitchell Studios, Cleveland, OH.
Photo by E.F. Joseph’s Studios, Oakland, CA, 1942.
Photographer Jimmy Baynes.
Photo by Clement Perry
Photo by Jimmy Baynes, Cleveland, OH.
Photo by Jimmy Baynes, Cleveland, OH.
Photo by Moorer.
Photo by James. E. Smith, Muskegon Heights, MI.
Photo by Jimmy Baynes, Cleveland, OH.