Kohlert Appraisal Services LLC

01/17/2022

Here are a couple of microscope photographs of Corundum which has a hexagonal crystal stucture. Under the microscope we can see the concentric hexagonal growth bands in the stones. Corundum occurs in every color of the rainbow, but is best known as red Ruby and blue Sapphire…..

01/17/2022

Over the years, I have had the opportunity to appraise a few artworks by Eldzier Cortor. Cortor, a Capricorn, was born on January 10, 1916 in Richmond, VA and was raised in Chicago. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and worked for the WPA, painting depictions of the historic Bronzeville neighborhood on the south side of Chicago. In the 1940s, he lived and worked in the Gullah communities in Georgia and South Carolina, painting the residents and lifestyles of those who resided there. In addition to painting, Cortor was a skilled and prolific print maker. He focused his work mainly on the Black female, depicting her strength and beauty in a goddess-like manner. When I find myself standing before an artwork by Cortor, I am absolutely awestruck by the power of his art….

12/08/2021

I have always been fascinated by the work of Otto Dix. Born in Germany on December 2, 1891, he was a leading figure in the Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity) movement which was the most extreme and intense form of German Expressionism. His artwork is characterized by bone jarring objectivity, soul baring reality and a search for the ultimate truth. I am not at all surprised that he was a Sagittarius. You can see it in his portraits and self-portraits: a burning desire for higher insight and knowledge , thus forsaking conventional beauty for something deeper, more intense, more real. He searches for, and finds true painful beauty, such as in the portrait of actress Anita Berber or in his own self portraits. In his own words: “self portraits are confessions of an inner condition. I am surprised again and again to discover that I don’t look like that at all….there are so many sides to a person”

11/09/2021

Hilda af Klimt was a Swedish artist and mystic. A Scorpio,born Oct. 26, 1862-Oct.21, 1944. Her paintings are considered to be some of the earliest examples of Abstraction in western art. She began her career as a gifted young realist. She developed an interest in metaphysics, studying the works of Madame Blavatsky, Christian Rosenkreuz and Rudolf Steiner. She delved deeply into the inner workings of the mind and her style changed radically. Her pioneering abstracts were not exhibited during her lifetime. Her work is known, studied and respected worldwide today…..

10/16/2021

October birthstone, opal under a high power microscope……

10/08/2021

Happy Birthday to Faith Ringold, brilliant and beautiful Libra born in Harlem New York on October 8, 1930. Visual artist, author and social activist, she is known worldwide for her inspiring paintings, soft textiles, quilts and children’s books. She is Professor Emeritus of Art at the University of California, San Diego and has received 23 Honorary Doctorate degrees. I recently had the opportunity to view “Maya’s Quilt”, 1989 at Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas

09/05/2021

Happy Birthday to the German Romantic period artist, Caspar David Friedrich (1774-1840). A Virgo and expert draftsman, his paintings also convey intense emotion. Friedrich succeeded in fusing the macrocosm of Nature with the microcosm of the individual residing within it. He teaches us that Nature is a force far more powerful than we are…..

08/27/2021

Nature’s art….a photomicrography image of interlocking quartz crystalline structure taken from a core sample at Stonehenge. The monoliths are comprised of 99.7% quartz crystal: incredibly strong when bonded together….lots of energy and a wonderful abstract mosaic, courtesy of Nature….

08/08/2021

And how does a garnet grow? …..in a dodecahedron structure……garnets can also be indicator minerals on the search for diamond Kimberlite pipes, as both crystals often emerge together from deep in the earth’s volcanos….sometimes a cut
Diamond will be presented for appraisal and we will see garnet inclusions in the stone….I always enjoy those discoveries….

07/27/2021

One of my favorite artists is George Grosz (German, 1893 - 1959). He is an outstanding figure in the German Expressionist movement. ( Neue Sachlichkeit, New Objectivity) and also in the Berlin Dada movement. Grosz is one of the most powerful social satirists of all time…..Keenly observant and a superb draftsman, he was able to peel back the layers of society like an onion to expose its true and raw interior. Grosz, a Leo, was born on July 26, 1893. His bold depictions illuminated the shadows of society as he saw them and his images will burn in our minds and hearts forever…..

07/23/2021

07/16/2021

Today’s topic is the chatelaine. Worn by “the mistress of the castle” since Medieval times. At their peak popularity during the 19th century Victorian era when they were worn by many women, from the mistress to the maid….the quality, quantity and type of attachments provide clues as to the wearer’s occupation and social status…..the first photo illustrates the type of chatelaine worn by an upper class British woman. It has many whimsical attachments and was probably worn for show. The second photo is a more modest upper middle class American example. It’s attachments include a vinaigrette (smelling salts), needle case, mirror, pill box, knife and a rabbits foot for alleged good luck….the last photo is a simple sewing chatelaine, likely worn by a servant. Chatelaines fell out of fashion by the first part of the 20th century, usurped by the wristwatch and the handbag….they remain with us as reminders of a bygone era….