APPRAISER: If you like subtlety, this painting may not be for you. What can you tell me about it?
GUEST: Other than what my mother-in-law's spoken to me about. The painting itself, she thought, might be oil on paper. Karel Appel was a Dutch artist. Started a movement, I'm not sure how big, "COBRA."
APPRAISER: You're absolutely right. Karel Appel, who was born in 1921, lived to 2006, was one of the founding members of COBRA. COBRA is an acronym, so it's C-O-B-R-A, Copenhagen, Brussels, Amsterdam. What you have is an acrylic on paper, and I know that from the label on the back. It says, "AC/P." And this COBRA group, short-lived though it was, formally from 1948 to 1951, was essentially a group of rather rebellious artists. Basically, they shunned what was going on in formal Parisian art societies at the time. They meet in Paris in 1948. They decide, "We're going to create this movement" that is essentially a radical movement "and create artwork which is bold and expressive and colorful and really moves away from some of what was going on traditionally." And people might look at this and say, "My goodness, what is this? My child could do this."
GUEST: My wife has said that many times.
APPRAISER: I certainly don't feel that way. We can see two figures here, very much abstracted. The question arose: what's it called? And it's called "Untitled." What's the gallery where it came from, and is there a connection to you and the gallery?
GUEST: My mother-in-law, her uncle married Martha Jackson. The Martha Jackson gallery is where this came from.
APPRAISER: So how long have you had it?
GUEST: Just a few years.
APPRAISER: Do you like it, personally?
GUEST: I love it, I've always liked it.
APPRAISER: What draws you to it?
GUEST: It's very whimsical, it's very simple, but the colors and everything just kind of keep you there.
APPRAISER: You've got this unbroken line of provenance from a major New York gallery, condition is wonderful. Colors are strong, there's nothing faded. At auction today, with the interest in COBRA art, we would value this work at $12,000 to $18,000.
GUEST: Wow! Did not expect that at all. I'm blown away.
