The LAPADA Fair in Berkeley Square is upon us. This year there is a new stand, run by LAPADA themselves, for members to showcase exceptional exhibits all in one place. It has been called ‘Legends’. We are fortunate enough to have four entries accepted. These include a pair of Admiral Lord Nelson’s silver dishes which were on HMS Victory for the dinner preceding the Battle of Trafalgar and an elm table by Maxie Lane table (above). The legendary status of Nelson and Trafalgar needs no explaining but Maxie Lane is hardly a household name. Nevertheless, he was a colourful character- a lumberjack, artist, sculptor and author who notoriously cut through his meal, a table and chair in a restaurant because he found the steak tough! He wrote a trilogy of autobiographical books, appeared on television with Russell Harty and Esther Rantzen and exhibited in some of the top galleries in the world including the Tate Modern. In the 1970s he was one of the few lumberjacks who could fell extremely large trees. He gradually realized that he was witness to the demise of the last great British elms, so he began to create furniture from them. His ‘Last Supper Table’ at Furzey Gardens, in the New Forest was his final homage and is the largest solid elm piece in the world.
Wick Antiques was established by Charles Wallrock in the early 1980s. Having grown up in the Antiques world Charles developed an extensive wealth of knowledge.
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