NewswireToday - /newswire/ - West Palm Beach, FL, United States, 11/11/2009 - The first event under new ownership was a great success in November.

West Palm Beach Antiques Festival owners Kay and Bill Puchstein reported great attendance and brisk sales at the inaugural event of the 2010 season November 6-8. The Early Buyers Admission feature was a hit with visitors and will become a permanent part of the festival. The next festival will be December 4-6 at the Americraft Expo Center in West Palm Beach. This edition of WPBAF will have the theme "Special Holiday Show" oriented towards gift giving with special presentations and ideas.

As has been the case since 1996 Bob LeBlanc will be set up displaying his awesome collection of Florida art with a heavy concentration on the Florida Highwaymen. The market for Florida Highwaymen art has been cyclical in the recent past and while LeBlanc says the better works still are standing strong in the market, conditions in general market present an outstanding buying opportunity for investors in that segment of Florida art. LeBlanc handled the first Highwayman to sell for more than$10,000 and has bought and sold over 3,000 Highwaymen works in his career.

The Highwaymen are more popular than ever. There are now eight books available on the subject and numerous online sites. LeBlanc has two informative sites, his regular website where viewers can browse his inventory and find more information on the subject and on his blog. One of the entries in the blog concerns a work by Donald Rust, an artist whom LeBlanc carries in his inventory. Work by Rust has been purchased by the Smithsonian and has been featured in the National Gallery. Other featured Florida artists include Eleanor Blair, Gordon Hall, A. S. Eltemtamy, Walter Tate and many more. If you enjoy Florida art or would like to learn more about it don’t miss Bob LeBlanc’s booth.

Remember to mark your calendars for the inaugural presentation of The Florida Modernism Show to be held in conjunction with the January edition of the West Palm Beach Antiques Festival on January 1-3, 2010. The Show will feature over fifty of America’s finest dealers specializing in the best of 20th century design ranging from Art Nouveau and Art Deco to Mid Century Modern and will include American and European furniture and accessories such as jewelry, art, glass and more.

The Americraft Expo Center at the South Florida Fair is located off Southern Boulevard in West Palm Beach, FL, 1.5 miles west of the Florida Turnpike and 1 mile east of 441/SR7. Show hours are 12PM – 5PM Friday December 4, 9AM – 5PM Saturday December 5 and 10AM –4:30PM Sunday December 6. Early Buyers Admission from 9:00 – 12:00 Friday is $25 and is valid for the entire weekend. Adult daily admission $7.00, seniors $6.00 with a 1$ discount coupon for adult admission available on the website. Anyone under 16 is admitted free. There is no charge for parking at the Fairgrounds. For more information contact the West Palm Beach Antiques Festival at (941) 697-7475, email or visit the website.

Agency / Source: Gail Taylor Furniture Detective

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