Antiques Journal: Your's Sincerely

It’s not often at an antiques show that we’re woken up by loons calling outside our bedroom window. But it happened in Maine. The cottage we were renting for the duration of the show was called, appropriately, “Loon Call Cottage,” and its interior décor was, you’ve guessed it, thoroughly loony. Loons in paintings, loons in carvings, loons holding the salt and a loon with a light fixture rising from his back beside the bed. Appropriately and comfortably loony.

The furniture wasn’t antique, but it was old, traditional, rustic. All in all, a perfect getaway for city folk who wanted to get back to nature (nature, of course, minus hardship, discomfort or threat). Now, why do we say “back to nature” instead of, for instance, “over to nature” or “up to nature?” There’s a sense that going back to nature is going back to the past, not necessarily to our individual past, but to the historic past. Nature and the past are what we’ve left behind, and we’re not all that comfortable with the modern, “unnatural” state of affairs we’ve created.

More than half the world’s population now lives in cities, and the proportion is growing steadily. And as soon as people in cities have made enough money (that’s the reason for going there) the one thing they want to do is get out of them, so that’s what they do. And getting out means going back.

We don’t actually have the phrase “back to antiques” but perhaps we should. The antiques that are handmade and hand-worn over the years appear “natural” in a way that’s not the case with the industrially made and briefly fashionable things that surround us. Americana, in particularly, seems closely touched with the sense of nature. And, of course, all antiques are from our past, and going to an antiques show or shop always involves going back.
When Americans go on vacation, surveys tell us, their most favored activity is, ugh, shopping! OK, we’ll strike that out. But right after shopping come visiting historic sites and buildings and going to scenic places in nature—from beaches to mountains. And, of course, listening to loons whenever possible.

Now, if an antique is both a historic site and a thing of natural beauty, then surely it ought to be a holiday destination. This past year a new word has entered our holiday lexicon – the staycation. A staycation is a way of getting everything you want from a vacation without going further than a day’s drive from home. Antiques, therefore, are the staycation par excellence: You don’t even have to put a foot outside the door to get everything (minus the shopping) that you want from a vacation.

And what’s more, antiques are a staycation every day of the year. Antiques are downtime for the workaholic; they’re tranquilizers for road rage; the still point for ADD; and dealing in them allows the profit-driven to experience the peace of not making any money. Is that all so loony?