Episode 18 | Navigating Auctions and Building a Collection

Episode 18 | Navigating Auctions and Building a Collection

Author: Matt Ledbetter November 25, 2024 Duration: 17:41

In this episode of House of Folk Art, Sully steps out from behind the camera to join Matt Ledbetter in a candid discussion about folk art auctions and starting a collection. With humor and insight, Matt shares his auction expertise, emphasizing the importance of understanding value, history, and how to navigate bidding wars. He also dives into why every pottery collector should add baskets to their collection, highlighting their historical significance and timeless beauty.

CHAPTERS
00:00 - 00:02:00 | Sully Joins to Talk Auctions
Sully takes a seat with Matt to ask the big questions about auctions: How do they work, and where should a young collector start? Matt reflects on his own journey into folk art and introduces the key concepts of value and competition in the auction world.

00:02:00 - 00:06:00 | Bidding at Auctions: The Risks and Rewards
Matt walks Sully through the ups and downs of auction bidding, explaining how online buyers from across the country can drive up prices. He shares tips for navigating these situations, from understanding starting prices to knowing when you might be overpaying. “You’re not just bidding in this room—you’re bidding against the world.”

00:06:00 - 00:10:00 | Why Pottery Collectors Should Collect Baskets
Matt emphasizes the deep connection between pottery and baskets, explaining how America’s history was built on these functional yet artistic pieces. He details the significance of patina—the wear and grime that add value and tell a story—and why baskets are an essential addition to any collection.

00:10:00 - 00:14:00 | Patina, Walking Sticks, and the Beauty of Age
Matt demonstrates how the dirt and grime on folk art pieces, from baskets to walking sticks, represent their history. He cautions against cleaning or painting pieces, as it erases their authenticity and value. “That grime is 100 years of history—don’t wash it off!”

00:14:00 - 00:17:00 | Finding Folk Art at Auctions and Estate Sales
Matt explains how estate sales offer unique opportunities to find folk art treasures without competing against online buyers. He shares stories of memorable finds and the thrill of discovering pieces with rich histories.

00:17:00 - 00:22:00 | Decorating with Folk Art and Closing Reflections
Sully and Matt discuss how to incorporate folk art into home decor, from pottery on jug shelves to baskets and walking sticks that complement each piece. Matt closes by reflecting on the joy of collecting and preserving folk art, urging collectors to invest in pieces with stories rather than mass-produced items.

#HouseOfFolkArt #FolkArtStories #HOFA #CollectingFolkArt #PatinaMatters


Matt Ledbetter lives in a world of vibrant paint, carved wood, and compelling stories. In House of Folk Art, this Gibsonville, North Carolina auctioneer and collector pulls up a chair to share that world, drawing directly from his deep connections within the Southern folk art community. His perspective is unique; because he organizes renowned quarterly auctions, Matt often knows the artists personally and has handled their work firsthand. This isn't a distant academic lecture. Instead, each episode feels like a conversation about the objects and the people who make them, exploring the intricate history behind the creations and the profound, often very personal, motivations that drive the artists. You’ll hear about intimate encounters and the small details that give this art its soul, from the choice of reclaimed materials to the narratives etched into the surface. Tuning into this podcast means getting a backstage pass to a living tradition, where every whirligig, portrait, or memory jug carries a fragment of cultural history. Matt’s guidance helps unravel the rich tapestry of this creative landscape, making the stories behind Southern folk art accessible and deeply engaging for anyone curious about the visual heritage of the region. The House of Folk Art podcast builds, piece by piece, a vivid understanding of why these works resonate so powerfully.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 58

House of Folk Art
Podcast Episodes
Episode 58 | Matt and Kyle Get Back to Folk Art [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:08:28
Matt and Kyle are back at the Auction Gallery in Gibsonville after a run of antique shows. Liberty and Fishersville were fun, but this episode gets back to the roots of House of Folk Art: self-taught art, pottery, carvin…
Episode 57 | Van Side at Fishersville Antique Expo [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:10
Fishersville was a great show this year. Friday was packed from the start, dealers were moving material early, and by Saturday morning Matt was already back at the van digging through the pile of things that he’s taking…
Episode 55 | Riding Out to Liberty with Matt Ledbetter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:42
Matt Ledbetter sits down before heading out to Liberty, North Carolina to set up Wade's tent for the last Liberty Antique show.Held twice a year in Randolph County, the Liberty Antiques Festival has long been one of the…
Episode 54 | What Matt Bought at the Catawba Valley Pottery Festival [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:28
Matt Ledbetter and Kyle sit down with a table full of pieces from the Catawba Valley Pottery Festival and break down what they picked up over the weekend.Held once a year in Hickory, North Carolina, the Catawba Valley Po…
Episode 53 | 10 Picks Inside a 15,000 Sq Ft Folk Art Warehouse [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:08
In this episode of House of Folk Art, Matt Ledbetter and Kyle walk through the newly expanded Ledbetter warehouse and put it to use right away. With over 15,000 square feet of material to dig through, they each pick out…
Episode 51 | Mary Proctor: Called to Paint [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:13
In January of 1994, Mary Proctor lost her grandmother, her uncle, and her aunt in a mobile home fire. The grandmother who raised her, the woman she called mama, was gone. The grief was overwhelming. For thirty days, Mary…
Episode 50 | Rare 1990s Folk Art Footage from Tom Wells [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:19
Before museums and collectors caught on, Tom Wells was documenting Southern folk artists on VHS in the early 1990s.In this episode, Matt Ledbetter sits down with the longtime dealer to revisit those tapes and reflect on…
Episode 49 | From Football to Folk Art [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:19
Matt Ledbetter talks with Julian-Sherrod Summers, also known as Red Sanford, about how their shared background in football quietly ran alongside a growing interest in old objects, self-taught artists, and the stories tho…