'Antiques Roadshow' guest in tears after learning the value of the item belonging to his late husband
Guests on "Antiques Roadshow" may not necessarily know a lot about artworks in their possession, but the memories of their loved ones attached to them are priceless. One such individual was a man who was left in tears of joy after learning the value of his late husband's prized possession. The item, a 1966 Roy Lichtenstein Seascape Screenprint, was so unique that even the appraiser, Todd Weyman, was surprised to see it. Yet, the guest had absolutely no idea that it was worth over $20,000.
In the episode of the PBS show, the guest shared that his late husband got the screenprint from one of his clients while working in New York. "He was doing landscaping and landscape design out on Shelter Island, New York. He was designing a gate for one of his clients. He became friendly with the gentleman, and he invited him in to show him some of his art because they had talked about art. He showed him this, and Peter loved it, and he offered him $80 for it," the guest told Weyman.
He further shared that it was in the late 80s or the early 90s, and the artist was named Lichtenstein. "He thought it was a valuable piece of art, and he also liked the iridescent effect. I mean, it's kind of interesting. I looked up Lichtenstein, and I saw that he did a lot of, like, very large posters type of stuff. But I couldn't find anything on this particular piece," the guest said.
Weyman agreed that the piece in front of them was unique, since only one more copy of it exists. "This is a screen print, printed in black, that Lichtenstein made on mirrored colored Rowlux, which is a type of layered plastic with indentations in it. If you feel the surface of the print, you can feel some texture on it," Weyman explained. He added that it was made to give an optical effect, and there were various layers of color in that plastic. He further added that the piece was self-published by the artist in 1966.
"He was starting to become famous at the time he made this, and he was also
being criticized, at the same time that he was being renowned for his appropriation of comic book scenes, for copying and appropriating the works of other artists," Weyman explained. The expert estimated that the artist was looking to create something original, which is why the print came into existence. "It's signed in felt tip pen, and numbered from an edition of 70," he noted. Weyman explained that many of the artist's pieces were initially considered a failure, which is why only a few survived.
Weyman estimated that the client of the guest's husband must have gotten it from the artist himself, as the piece wasn't for sale. Coming to the appraisal, Weyman said, "I would say you need to insure this for around $20,000." The guest gasped in disbelief and nearly broke into tears, saying, "Oh, my God! That's incredible. I had no idea."
In the end, the guest noted how beautiful the piece was, and his late husband, Pete, would be absolutely overjoyed to know how valuable his prized possession was.
