You think you know the story of Barbie. However, unless you are an insider to the real history you may not know the name, Jack Ryan. He is now being thought of as The Father of Barbie who ushered in her true coming to life as the most iconic doll in history. He was an engineer, designer and the genius behind every nuance and curve of a doll recognized around the world. His story is a fascinating one. Not just as an engineer of missile projects for the Pentagon who later found himself as Mattel’s principle Engineer of Toys - but his later flamboyant and eccentric lifestyle that was at times both remarkable and complex. Ann Ryan, his daughter, literally grew up with the origins of her father’s creation, his life, and the wealth he created seemingly overnight. From their castle in Bel Air where Hollywood A-listers would party and visit nearly every day, to the ultimate pain her father would endure later in life by seemingly being wiped away from Barbie’s history. Throughout it all, Ann was in the room. This is her father’s story...as well as her own.

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

Every collector is unique in their focus. With that, every collector has the opportunity to build a unique brand as to their particular passion. Whether broad or narrow there are opportunities in doing so. Theriault's President Stuart Holbrook shows us in this episode how your identity is essentially a brand that can work for you in building your collection as well as help to protect and educate the world of doll collecting on the particular genre you love the most. Further, he explores how it adds a layer of enjoyment for collectors in becoming a researcher and spokesperson for a particular niche. Collecting is more than gathering. Collecting is a pursuit and discovery of your identity within a category you feel connected to and are passionate about. 

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Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

In this episode, Theriault's President Stuart Holbrook, takes us into the origins of a collector’s heart and discusses some of the many reasons that collectors start collecting. That is, what was the trigger to it all? Using the collecting of dolls as one example, he takes his experiences at Theriault’s, and meeting collectors around the world over several decades, to unpack these recollections of the emotional and nostalgic reasons behind why we collect and continue collecting.

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

Sure, this title is a bit of fun click bait that is seemingly absurd. Or is it? In this episode Theriault's President Stuart Holbrook explores the value equation between the heart and mind. That is, how collectors personally connect to certain objects is far more powerful than perceived values. Why do some items at auctions soar above thought of values or estimates? What was behind the thinking of those collectors? Stuart takes us down the road of his 38 years of auctioning to better understand how collectibles are emotional markets and really, they should be. It’s an important opportunity for collectors who may be new to collecting, or steeped in the old school ways of price guides, to better understand how “pricing" works today amidst the intersection with the heart. 

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

Stuart Holbrook has spent 38 years on the podium at Theriault’s guiding auctions of some of the world’s most unique collections. A few of these stand out in his  memory and not always because they were the biggest. Sometimes because of a special moment - or even surprising events leading up to the auction that made the sale all that more memorable. In one case it’s due to a complete failure! This episode of The Curious Collector is a journey through Stuart’s memory bank of those auctions he still thinks about today and the gained stories he has from those experiences. Some may be obvious. Others might come as a complete surprise. Either way it is a fun small recap of a few of these events from the past 37 years. 

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

Tariffs have dominated much of the news for months now. But how does it affect collecting antiques? What do collectors need to know about the costs and how it relates to them? In this episode Stuart Holbrook, the President of Theriault's, takes us down the rabbit hole of explaining not just tariffs, but VAT, Import taxes, and sales taxes - how they work across the world depending on where you collect from. It’s a complex discussion which culminates with the reality that cultural items of age should unite us - not divide us with disparate abilities. 

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

Every great collector brings their own experiences to their passion in how they build, connect, and engage a hobby. Each is unique. Few collectors have had more influence or inspired more collectors of dolls than Gail Cook. Her 45 years in the hobby has seen generational shifts in the way people buy, determine value, display and engage in the joy of collecting.  With that, Theriault's President Stuart Holbrook takes us on a journey through some of the unique ways that Gail’s vision brought about so many changes in the approach and how she became part of the shift to a new pragmatic age. This episode is a personal look at Gail’s persona, how she became such a beloved and respected figure in collecting, and the determination of her building one of the most renowned collections in the world. 

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

Collecting is full of opportunities. Many of these opportunities arise as “pockets of moments” in which you can jump in on certain categories that were once hot but are suddenly not. These are the ebbs and flows that every market displays. And by learning to track these movements, collectors have chances to add exceptional examples before that category inevitably rises again. In this episode of The Curious Collector, Stuart Holbrook, President of Theriault’s, helps us understand the whys of market shifts and the ways to not only identify them, but to feel confident in engaging them at the right time. 

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

Everyone has a Covid story - at least one and probably many of them. In this new episode of The Curious Collector, Theriault's President Stuart Holbrook shares his experiences at Theriault’s as to how the worldwide pandemic not only affected his own journey through managing an auction house, but how collectors adapted to these changes and were ultimately affected long term in the way they collect. He also talks about how the Covid period of 2020-2022 created one of the greatest surges in engagement ever seen in collectibles. It’s a fascinating introspective as society marks five years from when the world, and collecting, was forever altered. 

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.

The Barry Art Museum in Norfolk, Virginia, founded by Carolyn and Richard Barry, serves as a beacon across the world in showcasing dolls in an extraordinary setting. That is, an art museum. Theriault's President Stuart Holbrook says this is a rare and unique opportunity for the narrative of dolls as an art form to be received by the general public. For too long dolls have been cast into the hinterlands of the art world. The Barry, driven by the vision of Carolyn Barry’s passion for the subject, brings legitimacy to the subject and validation to those who collect them. In this conversation with Dr. Sara Woodbury, Curator of Art at The Barry, she share this vision and her thoughts on dolls as an art form. She also talks with Stuart about the Barry Art Museum’s plans for expanding the doll gallery and further showcasing how this extraordinary collection intersects with its entire art collection. 

Keep up with Stuart at curiouscollect.com and check out Theriaults.com as well where you can learn more as to the exciting auctions held throughout the year at Theriault’s, the world’s leader in the auction of dolls and figurative art.