{"id":24420,"date":"2023-08-31T14:57:07","date_gmt":"2023-08-31T12:57:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4e38f37f-8ca3-40e5-b7e3-8ce9110fcde8"},"modified":"2023-08-31T15:36:39","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T13:36:39","slug":"the-antiques-that-shaped-me-drew-pritchard","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/the-antiques-that-shaped-me-drew-pritchard\/","title":{"rendered":"The Antiques That Shaped Me: Drew Pritchard"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Salvage Hunter, whose memoir is out now, talks about his love of antiques and his life in the trade… <\/p>

By Charlotte Packer\n <\/p>

Published: Thursday, 31 August 2023 at 12:57 PM<\/p>

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What sparked your interest in antiques? <\/h2>

For as long as I can remember, I\u2019ve been fascinated by objects that looked, for want of a better expression, \u2018worn out\u2019. I was excited about the possibility of buying them and fixing them. <\/p>

My father was a sign writer, and the antiques dealers coming down the drive to have their vans and shop signs written always looked interesting to me. <\/p>

Now, all these years later, some of those dealers have become friends, and I now trade with them. I started as a restorer on the Youth Training Scheme and, on my first day, a van pulled up that said \u2018Architectural Antiques\u2019. <\/p>

When we opened the back, it was full of stained-glass windows, doors, door handles, carved timber and fireplaces. I instantly knew this was the world I wanted to be part of, and the way in was to become a restorer.<\/p>

What was the first piece you bought?<\/h2>

If I\u2019m honest, the first piece I bought wasn\u2019t an antique but a pair of Dr Martens boots. <\/p>

Being a little scooter boy mod, aged 12 or 13, everybody wanted them (and a Harrington jacket), so I wiled and dealt my way to a pair, buying and selling dinner tickets until I managed to make enough to buy a pair of eight-hole black Dr Martens. <\/p>

That was when I realised I was good at buying and selling things. I loved them, and I would wear them while listening to The Jam, The Specials and Madness\u2026<\/p>

What was your biggest mistake in relation to antiques and what did it teach you? <\/h2>

My biggest mistake was hesitating when I was offered a very good thing. I thought it was really expensive when, in reality, the money wasn\u2019t what was important: it was the fact that I\u2019d been offered the piece in the first place.<\/p>

Of the antiques you own, do you have a favourite?<\/h2>

My favourite item is a large plaster plaque of the Parthenon frieze that I bought on Salvage Hunters about 10 years ago. <\/p>\n

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A section of the Parthenon frieze, which Lord Elgin acquired for the British government between 1801 and 1805. – Tony Baggett \/ Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s important to me because it\u2019s a moment in time that will never be repeated, and it\u2019s anextraordinary example of the plaster maker\u2019s skills. <\/p>

It has an incredible history leading up to its creation and has an amazing presence in the living room of my house \u2013 the more I look at it, the better it gets. <\/p>

It really isn\u2019t about the monetary value, it\u2019s about a place in time where something ended up in another country when it shouldn\u2019t have \u2013 depending on your point of view.<\/p>

If money were no object, what would you buy and why? <\/h2>

I would buy a painting by JMW Turner. In my opinion he is the greatest painter of all time. I saw one of his works at a very early age, The Fighting Temeraire, which my father then copied and my mother still owns. <\/p>

Looking at that painting sparked something in me; I understood it and Turner, and I was overawed by the skill and beauty of it. <\/p>

Last week I was in Portugal and I viewed another painting by Turner that I hadn\u2019t seen before; standing there looking at it almost brought me to tears.<\/p>\n

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The Fighting Temeraire by JMW Turner. – Guy Bell \/ Alamy Stock Photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And, finally, what advice do you have for fellow collectors or future dealers? <\/h2>

Read everything you can on the subject that you\u2019re interested in, view as many things in collections and museums as you can, know your subject inside out and buy the very, very best example that you possibly can. It\u2019s better to own one great piece than 50 mediocre ones.<\/p>

More from Homes & Antiques<\/h2>