The Dolls House Whisperer
Darren Scala prepares a collection for auction… created with love.
Darren Scala contributes his regular feature sharing his expert knowledge of the miniature world.
Jerry and Claire Buckalter of Suffern, New York had a decades-long marriage filled with love. They also had a shared love and passion for fine scale miniatures. Their devotion is reflected in the extensive collection of beautiful miniatures they worked together to curate. The Buckalters travelled to shows, collaborated on projects and even crafted their own miniatures which they lovingly placed in room boxes and mini scenes throughout their home. The love they shared for each other, combined with their love of miniatures helped assemble a beautiful collection of exquisite tiny treasures. I’m excited to be working with The Buckalter Estate to help to find the best new homes for this treasured collection and to talk about this love story.
Both husband and wife spent their professional lives working in education;
Claire was a schoolteacher and Jerry was principal in a high school in suburban NY, just north of New York City, where they lived for many years. It was during the late 1990s and early 2000s, during their well-deserved retirement, that they became entrenched in the miniatures world and focused on building their collection.
As a couple, they took classes in miniature-making and honed a broad range of skills enabling them to create flowers, furniture, works of needlepoint and room boxes. They also developed a keen eye for twelfth scale miniatures, navigating the show circuit, meeting artisans, making purchases and commissioning works. They built strong relationships with many artists and their collection grew to become filled with extraordinary miniatures made by some of the most talented names in the miniatures universe.
I am pleased to present here just a few of their treasures: a hand-carved Georgian II burlwood secretary (c1740) complete with a double-bonnet cornice by Neil Bateson, a set of French Rosewood furniture inspired by Andre Charles Boulle, decorated with ebony veneers and intricate brass fretwork
by Geoff Wonnacott and a limited-edition sterling silver and crystal epergene by Pete Acquisto. Other artisan-signed pieces from The Buckalter Estate include a leather top hardwood rent table by Michael Walton, a Victorian birdcage by David Krupick, a painted firescreen by Natasha Beshencovsky, porcelain by Debra Welsh and Lee Ann Chellis Wessel, a Chippendale sideboard by Ferd Sobel, framed paintings by Paul Saltarelli, 1/144th scale room box by Nell Corkin and a tufted leather comfy chair by Lynn Whisenant.
Every piece collected by the Buckalters is an expression of love and passion along with a story to tell. We can only imagine Jerry and Claire’s exciting conversations as they discovered once-in-a-lifetime treasured miniatures and made them a part of their collection. I am privileged to help find happy homes for the collection and to give each piece, the artists and, importantly, the Buckalters, the consideration and recognition they deserve. Every great love story should have a happy ending and inspire future great loves, especially when miniatures are involved!