G. Sergeant Antiques' booth from the 2015 Newport Antiques Show.

Over the past decade, the Newport Antiques Show has emerged as a mainstay of the summer antiques show schedule. Held at the St. George’s School in Middletown, Rhode Island—a seaside town just north of Newport—the show attracts a top-notch crowd of collectors, curators, and enthusiasts thanks to its abundance of superlative material and sophisticated atmosphere. Another aspect that sets the Newport Antiques Show apart is its indefatigable dedication to education.

Artist Unidentified, American, probably New York, ca. 1830–1845. Portrait of a Young Girl Holding a Bouquet of Flowers and a Cat, oil on canvas, original mahogany veneer frame, 28" h x 24" w; 38" x 33¾." framed Condition: In a remarkable state of preservation (see full condition report). Provenance: Mildred E. Oyler, Perry County, Pennsylvania Schwartz Gallery, Philadelphia Private Collection, Connecticut. Courtesy of Jeffrey Tillou Antiques.

Each year, the Newport Antiques Show presents a robust educational program brimming with fascinating lectures and a must-see loan exhibit. For its tenth anniversary, the show is putting out all the stops and will introduce a special section spotlighting collecting trends across the centuries. The series, Curating the Future: Trends in Collecting Today, will showcase objects from the Newport Historical Society’s illustrious collection that together, chart the changes in collecting antiques since the Society was founded in the mid-nineteenth century. Ruth Taylor, Executive Director of the Newport Historical Society, says, “Given that this year marks the Show’s tenth anniversary event, we’re celebrating collecting in all its forms...Curating the Future: Trends in Collecting Today...highlights collecting trends of the past through specific objects in our collection, alongside more current collecting trends.”

An early Chippendale bonnet top highboy of striking Cuban mahogany with claw and ball feet and Newport shell, original finial, c. 1765. Provenance with Olney family of Providence/Newport. Attribution: John Goddard, based upon the John Brown chair sold at Christie's, January 2002, lot 351, related claw and ball feet modeling. Courtesy of The Stanley Weiss Collection.

Another exciting addition to this year’s show is What’s It Worth?—a one-day event held on Sunday, July 24, that will allow visitors to meet with experts from Freeman’s, the country’s oldest auction house. Guests will receive a personalized verbal auction estimate for one or two objects from participating specialists, including jewelry expert Virginia Salem and Tim Andreadis, Freeman’s Twentieth Century Design, American Furniture, and Decorative Arts specialist, who oversees the auction house’s annual Pennsylvania Sale, which celebrates artists from the region including Harry Bertoia, Wharton Esherick, George Nakashima, Paul Evans, and Phillip Lloyd Powell. Kelly Wright, Director for Freeman’s Trusts & Estates department and a regular on PBS’ Antiques Roadshow, and Nicholas B. A. Nicholson, Senior Vice President and Division Head of American & European Furniture & Decorative Arts, will also be on hand.

Jean Baptiste Camille Corot (1796–1875) Pâturage dans les marais (Souvenir des environs d'Amiens). Oil on canvas, 15¾ x 23¾ inches. Signed. Courtesy of Rehs Galleries.

The Newport Antiques Show will feature over forty of the country’s top dealers—all of whom have been hand selected by Show Manager Diana Bittel. Exhibitors include Jeffrey Tillou Antiques, The Stanley Weiss Collection, Avery Galleries, Arader Galleries, Rehs Galleries, The Cooley Gallery, and G. Sergeant Antiques. Among the myriad offerings at this year’s show are a rare ship weathervane and an arresting folk art portrait of a young girl from Jeffrey Tillou Antiques, an early Newport Chippendale bonnet top highboy of striking cuban mahogany from The Stanley Weiss Collection, and a handsome English Windsor settee from G. Sergeant Antiques. A number of fine paintings will also be on view, including a harbor scene by the American Impressionist Jane Peterson from Avery Galleries and a charming landscape by Jean Baptiste Camille Corot from Rehs Galleries. This year’s show will also include a number of dealers who have a modern focus, such as photography. Exhibitor Jeffrey Tillou says, “The show is great for someone like myself who has a more diversified inventory. I can take a little Americana and folk art, marine art, great decorative arts, American furniture, and I can bring a few formal things for the more formal homes in Newport.” Dealer Stanley Weiss adds, “We look at the Newport Show as an exhibition of the depth of The Stanley Weiss Collection in our area of fine furniture, whether Chinese, English, or American."

The Newport Antiques Show kicks off with an elegant Gala Preview Party on Thursday, July 21 and will run through Sunday, July 24. Proceeds from the show will benefit both the Newport Historical Society and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Newport County. Click here for more information.