Cedric Dupont Antiques Blog

Antique Dealer Cedric DuPont: Editorial in Brewster Connections

32 BrewsterConnections – Spring 2010 33 www.brewsteracademy.org

Hoopes: Have you always been interested in

antiques? Did you grow up surrounded by

them? Cedric: The answer is yes to both questions.

I was raised around antiques all of my

life. My parents – also antique dealers (now

retired) – taught me how to appreciate quality,

and I loved learning about styles, periods, and

everything else I could absorb. I remember not

being able to run around the house as a child,

but don’t worry – we had a yard!

Hoopes: Where did you get your training?

Was any of it formal, and if so, how important

was that knowledge? Cedric: I feel extremely

fortunate in having known from a really early

age what I wanted to do in life. At age seven

while living in Palm Beach, my parents loaned

me a small sum of money with which to make

purchases – it wasn’t much but I think I was

hooked from the start. Part of the deal was that

whatever profit was made would have to be

reinvested. I loved doing this so much that I

even started putting my own pocket money in

the pot. Of course, at that age, I had my parents’

guidance in purchasing the right piece, but I

was the one who got to point out what I liked.

The piece would eventually be placed in my

parents’ gallery to be sold.

While I was at Brewster my own inventory of

antiques was definitely piling up – and part of

the reason I ended up at Stetson University was

to be closer to my growing business. Eventually

I was renting a space out of my parents’ gallery

and had my own clients, and I was driving back

home every Friday to take care of my clients and

client, but I do it less than you may think.

Hoopes: When I think of antiques, Florida

doesn’t necessarily pop into my mind. Perhaps

in West Palm Beach it’s different as you seem

to be doing very well with your gallery and

your restoration shop – antiques must be

popular in West Palm. Do you cater mostly to

the wealthy? Has the recession slowed business

a tad? Cedric: The season down here brings

a wonderful mix of people. You always think of

old people living in Florida but clients of mine

like Donald Trump, Céline Dion, and Rush Limbaugh

– among others – appreciate living in a

formal rather than a beach-house setting. These

celebrities have done a lot in promoting the area

and have brought a new, younger crowd to the

region. Palm Beach has become an area known

for antiques – many clients are here on vacation

and have the time to visit galleries and ponder

over possible purchases.

Also, since the overhead of a gallery here is far

less expensive than having a gallery in Manhattan,

our prices are much more attractive to

collectors.

As for the economic times we are currently

dealing with – my business is doing very well.

I work with one-of-a kind antiques of a certain

quality. Therefore instead of investors buying

stocks, they prefer buying something from me

they can enjoy without having the headaches

that stocks bring these days.

I still do make purchases in Europe but currently

with the unfavorable exchange rate of the dollar

against the euro it is a much tougher situation

for me. And so I made purchases this past summer

in Palm Beach and in New York from collectors

who suffered through the Madoff scandal.

Hoopes: Do individuals come to you searching

for a special piece or type of piece? Do

you hunt for individual pieces for individuals,

or do they simply look through your large

assortment? Cedric: I have learned that it is best

to make purchases not thinking of a particular

client, since most of the time that client can feel

pressured to purchase what I picked, and that is

really not the way I do business. In choosing any

piece, whether new or antique, I always feel that

the piece should speak to me.

Hoopes: Do you find that antiques are popular

with the younger generation? Have you found

pieces that you enjoy so much that you decide

to keep them for yourself? Cedric: When I started

with my first gallery – next to my parents’

gallery – it was funny when my parents’ older

clientele came in with their 40-year-old kids. I

ended up selling to the kids, as I was closer in

age and less intimidating. I also feel that having

a European background but having been raised

in America that I have a different eye than my

very traditional parents.

One could say that an antique is an antique but

since there are different styles in antiques and

purposes for each piece, I find myself purchasing

items for my own collection that are functional.

If you are going to invest in antiques, buy

pieces that you can use and you will find that

you will appreciate them even more. Antiques

should not be of the type just to be looked at,

but you should want to use it while it grows in

your heart as well as in value.

• There is not a part of my business I dislike.

The hunting and buying is fantastic and I

really love meeting the people who are selling.

Because of what I deal in, I buy from

people with old family lines, meeting with

them in their manors and grand estates, and I

have been in many castles. Some of the

stories I hear make the pieces come even

more alive to me. If only all of the pieces

could talk ... I would be listening intently!

• Restoration is another big part of my business

and possibly part of my success. It is

important to restore these pieces the oldfashioned

way. I have a large full-time restoration

facility nearby staffed with European

craftsmen using only European materials

and catering only to the pieces I have

shipped back from France.

• And of course, the other aspect is selling. I

have an amazing clientele from young,

affluent couples to the elite. It is always

great to purchase a piece from a home and

place it in its new home.

Subsequent to this interview, Cedric informed

me that he is building a new 20,000-square-foot

space just a mile from his rented 9,000-squarefoot

present location. He also mentioned that

he opens his refinishing workshop to clients for

restoring their own collections, using his staff of

four for expertise. l

Cedric may be reached at:

Cedric DuPont Antiques

820 South Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, Florida

561-835-1319

www.cedricdupontantiques.com

Louis XV Style

Louis XV Style

This monarch has his name coupled with the most extravagant of furniture designs, known as Rococo. A style that spread throughout Europe.

The term means ornamented with shells, scrollwork, and similar patterns.

It is noticeable principally for a generous use of curved lines, and an 'unbalanced' look. Out of its elaborate setting there is no doubt that, Louis XV furniture appears very showy, but when it is seen in the rooms for which it was designed, it takes its place unobtrusively in the decorative scheme.

The French had a liking during the eighteenth century for small tables and cabinets, chests of drawers (called commodes), large writing tables with leather-covered tops with rows of drawers beneath, and upright cabinets with drop-down fronts concealing a writing space. Veneering was the usual decoration, aided by parquetry and marquetry set off with ormolu mountings. When compared with the sophisticated outside appearance, most of the pieces exhibit very rough finishing of the woodwork not usually seen, and a glance at the inside or underneath of a piece will prove this.

Many of the small tables and cabinets are supported on delicately curved cabriole legs so slight that it is a wonder they can stand without breaking. Chests of drawers always have a slab of colored marble as the top, and many other pieces are similarly finished. Chairs and settees were carved usually of beech wood, sometimes finished with gilding, and sometimes painted in pale colors. Mirror-frames were gilt, and are often very like English ones of the same date.