European Ceramics, Glass & Chinese Export Art

Jody Wilkie

Jody Wilkie, International Specialist Head of European Ceramics and Glass, has 30 years of experience with Christie’s, initially working with Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque works of art and sculpture as well as 19th and early 20th century European and American sculpture from 1978-1993. With 16th century Italian maiolica as a link, she changed departments, heading up the European Ceramics and Glass department in New York. As of 2001, she took on the role of International Specialist Head, working with her colleagues in London, Paris and Amsterdam to make the department the market leader by a wide margin.

Under her leadership, Christie's sold Fine Continental Ceramics from the Collection of the Late Lola and Siegfried Kramarsky in 1993 and Important Italian Majolica from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections in 1993 and 1994. More recently, she has been responsible for many successful sales of important Vincennes and Sèvres porcelain, most notably the sale of the Pompadour Fontaine à Roseaux in May 2005 and the Portland Broc et Jatte ‘A Feuilles d’Eau’ in May 2006. Additionally, Jody has been an appraiser on The Antiques Roadshow since its inception in 1996.

Melissa J. Bennie

Melissa J. Bennie is a Vice-President of Christie’s and heads the 19th Century European Ceramics and Glass auctions. In addition, she is a senior cataloguer and appraiser for material dating from the 15th to early 20th century.

Melissa joined Christie’s in 1988 and has offered support on both the operations and technical side of the business. Ms. Bennie worked in our administrative offices from 1988 to 1990 assisting the President, the Head of Specialists and the Operations Manager of Christie’s East. In addition, she served as the London Liaison facilitating sales on both sides of the Atlantic. In the early 1990s she specialized in ceramics and glass.

Melissa is honored to have participated in many landmark collections inlcuding the Elizabeth Parke Firestone Collection of fine French porcelain; the Arthur M. Sackler Collections of early Italian maiolica; the Siegfried and Lola Kramarsky Collection of fine German porcelain; the Mildred S. Hilson Collection of fine English porcelain; the Jean and Kenneth Chorley Collection and the Herbert and Sylvia Jacobs Collection of early English pottery; the Homer Perkins Collection of antique glass paperweights; the Pompey Collection of Vincennes, Sevres and Mintons related porcelain; and the Countess Estelle Doheny Collection of antique glass paperweights and Meissen porcelain.

Becky MacGuire

Becky MacGuire began her career at Christie’s in 1990 as Director of Client Relations. In 1993 she took over the Chinese export category, developing Christie's share of export auction sales from 25% to its current 89%. Famed private collections Mrs. MacGuire has brought to market include the Benjamin F Edwards III Collection of Chinese Imari, sold in 2002, 2003 and 2004, and the Leo & Doris Hodroff Collection of Chinese Export, sold in 2007, 2008 and 2009. During her tenure, Christie's New York has achieved nine of the top ten American records for Chinese export porcelain, including the Talbot hounds that brought $497,500 in January 1999, the outstanding pair of soldier vases sold in January 2005 for $307,200, and the very rare “Priestly Blessing” dinner service sold in January 2009 for $278,500.

Prior to joining Christie’s Becky was a Chinese works of art specialist at another major auction house, and a founding partner of The Chinese Porcelain Co. She is a member of the Oriental Ceramic Society and the American Ceramic Circle, an adjunct professor in the Appraisal Studies Program at New York University, a frequent lecturer, and a guest appraiser on WGBH’s Antiques Roadshow.

Becky received her B.A. with honors in art history at the University of California at Berkeley, and did graduate work at the Study Centre for the Fine and Decorative Arts at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Carleigh Queenth

Carleigh Queenth is Assistant Vice President of the European Ceramics and Glass department. She began at Christie's in 2004 and specializes in 18th and 19th century European ceramics and Chinese export art. During her tenure she has worked closely on the sales of The Hodroff Collection, The Dr. W.A. Criswell Collection of Meissen, Maria Felix: La Dona, and The Greenfield Collection among others. She is a member of the American Ceramic Circle, Wedgwood Society and French Porcelain Society.

Carleigh attended University of Paris, Charles IV school and graduated magna cum laude from New York University with a B.A. in the individualized major of Art History, Porcelain and Glass. She was the female recipient of the Leo Bronstein Award for distinguished study in the Arts.

Hervé de la Verrie

Hervé de la Verrie joined Christie’s London from the Galerie Vandermeersch, Paris, in 1995. In 1997 he joined Christie's France and founded the European Ceramics and Glass department, as well as played a key role in the opening of Christie’s Paris in 2001 with the sale of the collection of Charles-Otto Zieseniss. Since then, he has been integral in all of the major sales Christie’s has held for ceramics and glass, contributing to many record prices including the 2008 sale of a Hispano-moresque albarello in faïence from the end of the 14th centrury (€360,000) and the 2005 sale of a pair of Meissen herons, made in 1732 for the Japanese Palace of Augustus the Strong in Dresden (€5.6 million), which achieved the world record for European ceramics.

Louise Phelps

Louise Phelps joined Christie's in 2002, following her graduation from Southampton Institute with a BA (Hons) in Fine Art Valuation. After spending a year as an intern in the King Street Furniture department, she joined the European Ceramics and Glass department where she is now a Specialist. Her work for the department involves frequent house sale valuations for notable estates both in the UK and abroad, and she has been involved in numerous high-value sales including, most recently, the Simon Sainsbury sale in 2008.

Emma Rainbird

Emma Rainbird joined Christie's London European Ceramics and Glass department in Janurary 2006. She is responsible for Ceramics sold at the South Kensington saleroom. After studying Fine Art Valuation at Southampton Institute, she graduated with honors and worked at a regional auction room in Sussex, cataloguing decorative arts.

Leila de Vos van Steenwijk

Head of Furniture and Decorative Arts
Amsterdam

Leila de Vos van Steenwijk studied Art History at the University of East Anglia, England. After graduating, she joined Christie’s to assist the Amsterdam Asian department with the sale of the Hatcher Cargo and the Nanking Cargo in 1986. Both as an auctioneer and a specialist, Leila has been involved in numerous successful Christie’s sales, such as the sale of Kasteel de Haar in October 1998. Together with specialist Hetti von der Gablentz, she can boast consigning the rare 14th century Yuan blue and white porcelain jar, which at £15.7 million became the most expensive Asian artwork ever sold at auction. In May 2007 she sold a Buddha Amitayus for €536,000, a Dutch auction record for an Asian piece of art. Leila speaks Dutch, English, French and German.