Experiencing the Antique Road Show

- by Julia Dong， June 15th, 2023 -

The #AntiqueRoadshow is an American television program that has become popular throughout the United States for its unique style.

I was lucky to attend the one that was held in #OldSturbridgeVillage, Massachusetts on June 13th, it was a big event with many attendees from all over New England.

The event began promptly at 7:30 a.m., after going through the e-ticket check point to enter the facility,  guests could take pictures in front of the big AR (short for Antique Roadshow) back drop, before greeted by volunteers who would guide each group to the specific area for appraisal of the items at the registration area.

A total of 23 categories of items for #appraisals were divided into 6 areas, under large tents, with a long row of tables. Experienced expert appraisers were sitting behind the tables, patiently talking with each guest about their items.

The highly knowledgeable professional appraisers are truly the soul of the #Antique Road show. They can often tell the name, origin, characteristics and value of the objects at the first sight. Some objects were followed by long armed cameras to capture valuable footages for the show. Once they find something particularly intriguing or valuable, they will call the guest aside for a private conversation, often in a scene that is almost comical with the super excited staff holding the treasure and the totally confused owners. If the treasure has been selected, the staff will lead you to the Green Studio where the guests wait for the shooting.

The Green Studio is divided into two rooms. A variety of snacks, drinks and fruits was provided in the 1st room to keep those who were waiting for the shoot refreshed. (You can have up to three family members or friends accompany you during this process.) Later the guests were escorted to the second room where they were assigned to sit at specific tables. (Coffee, hot tea and bread were provide in this room.) Then another staff member checks the guests’ information, this time in greater details such as, first name (no last name), gender, ethnicity, religion, which generation of immigrants, home address, phone number and email, etc., to make sure you are not a tomb raider. A picture of the guest holding the treasure was then taken to avoid confusions of ownership of the piece. Afterwards, another waiting period, during which the guests were accompanied by a staff member throughout the whole time. You can chat with the staff member about anything but not with other guests or watching their stuff. The wait time was about an hour or so, before we were called and escorted to the shooting booth by designated staff members.

In the shooting booth, our identities and the signature of the escorting staff were again verified, and the treasure was placed on the display table. Even though there were just a few steps between us and the display table,  the staff was holding the treasures as carefully as it was the most precious baby in the world. Such dedication is truly admirable. After about twenty minutes, the appraiser arrived. The staff placed the microphone on the appraiser and the owner respectively, then the shooting began. (Based on previous instructions, there will be touchups by makeup artist but we did not have any this time.) The appraiser and owner stood on each side of the table, after greetings and welcome, the appraiser started by asking about how the treasure was obtained and what the purchase price was. Then he began to provide the origin, time, function and character analysis of the treasure, presenting the great wealth of knowledge and informative data regarding the piece, which eventually leading to the current value of the treasure. The appraised value often brings the owner a pleasant surprise. Towards the end, the photographer may want to take a few more shots if needed. When the recording is completed, the camera crew gave us a heartfelt congratulations. Even though the segment was recorded, it only has a 15% of chance of making the final cut into the program. Because of my accent, the chance might be even more slim.

The whole shooting process was about two hours. When we walked out of the studio and looked around, many long lines people were waiting in line to get their treasures appraised by the best experts of the country, in hopes to confirm that they are indeed the owner of a piece of valuable treasure.

Through this experience, we were able appreciate the quality, professionalism, dedication and chivalry  of the Antique Road Show staff, the team work was just impeccable! There were so many people participating in the event, yet everything was well coordinated, and every step in the process was smoothly connected. In addition, the guests can gain so much knowledge regarding identify the value of arts and antiques.

On another perspective, what is treasure? Treasure is something that is good for the heart, it doesn't matter how valuable or how antient it is. It's all about if you care. The experience itself is valuable, regardless the value of your item, or if it was chosen to be filmed or not, everyone was happy to be there and enjoyed the process. That's what made this event such a success. As a matter of fact, to us, the first generation of immigrants, from the moment we set foot in the United States of America, the free world where everyone long to be at, we have already found our treasure, haven't we? So be happy with what you have, my friends.

P. S., I feel so lucky to be able to participate in the Antiques Roadshow TV show, thanks to CAWM for this valuable opportunity. When I was chatting with the staff member, he told me that Chinese antiques are in high demand right now, so that the program has set up an #AsianArt category. I am proud that Asian art is a special part of the Antique Road Show now, which signifies that our culture is gaining more appreciation in this country. And as a Chinese American, our effort to promote cross culture understanding could be a contributing factor to this recognition.

古董路秀记

- 作者Julia Dong, 2023年6月15日 -

古董路秀是美国的一个电视节目，以其独特的风格而风靡全美。

今年6月13号在麻省的Sturbridge开办的活动更是盛况空前。

活动于清早七点半准时开始，接待从四面八方赶来的新英格兰大区的如云人潮。

首先扫码进入活动区，你可以在有醒目AR （古董路秀的英文缩写）标示的幕布前留影，然后有义工一对一的引导前去注册告知你所要去的区域进行实物鉴定。

实物鉴定分六大板块共二十三个区域，每个区有临时搭建的帐篷，帐篷里有一大排桌子，桌子后面坐着经验丰富的鉴定师们，耐心接待每一位来宾。

训练有素的专业鉴定师们是古董路秀节目中的灵魂所在，他们在看到实物的第一眼就能说出其名字，来源，特点和其价值。每种实物都有快闪摄影跟踪，用来扑捉有价值的镜头。一旦发现特别有价值的东西，他们会把你叫到一旁单独交谈，常常会出现拿着宝物的激动的工作人员和一脸蒙圈的物主的喜剧性场面。一旦你带的宝物被选中，工作人员会把你领到绿色通道工作室等候拍摄。

绿色通道工作室分两个房间。第一个房间里有各种各样提供给等待拍摄的人们的零食、饮料和水果以养精蓄锐。（等待拍摄的人最多可以有三位家庭成员或朋友陪同）稍后会有工作人员把你带到第二个房间，指定你坐在带有编号的桌子旁。（房间里仍然有咖啡，热茶和面包。）然后又一工作人员核对你的信息，这次核对的更加详细。名字（不问姓）性别，血统，宗教信仰，第几代移民，家庭地址，电话，电邮等，确定你不是摸金校尉。再和你带的宝物一起照个相，以免人和物混淆。之后就是等待。在等待期间有工作人员全程陪同，你可以和他胡吹海侃，但是不可以和别人搭话看人家的东西。大约等待一个小时左右，有专门叫号的工作人员和专门送人的工作人员把你送到摄影棚。

到了摄影棚，有人再次核对身份和核对送鉴师的签名，然后会有人把你的宝物放到展台上。从你手里接过宝物到展台上短短几步路，工作人员手捧宝物像手捧十世单传的婴儿那样小心翼翼，这种敬业精神真的使人折服。大约又等了二十多分钟，鉴宝师到位。工作人员把微型麦克风分别给鉴宝师和物主戴上，接下来就开始摄影。（按以前的规矩摄影之前有化妆师化妆，这次没有）鉴宝师和物主分别站在展台的两侧，先是鉴宝师说欢迎之类的开场白，再以问答的形式明确宝物的来源和买入价，然后鉴宝师以渊博的学识，翔实的数据交代该宝物的产地、年代、作用以及品相分析。最后告诉你该宝物现今的价格。价格往往会带给物主一个惊喜。快结束的时候，摄影师会根据需要，再补几个镜头。等到完全录制结束，摄影工作人员由衷给你道一声祝贺。至于能不能上电视，大概齐有百分之十五的希望。由于英语口音的原因，再减去百分之十。概率很小。

前后经历大约两个来小时，摄影终于结束。走出摄影棚，放眼望去，一队队等待鉴宝的长长的队伍就像一条条巨龙蓄势待发。

这次鉴宝经历，使人真切地感受到古董路秀节目组所有的工作人员的素质、专业水平、敬业精神以及对来宾的绅士风度都是无可挑剔的，虽然参加活动的人很多，但是一切都安排的井井有条，每个程序衔接顺畅自然，并且来宾还学习了不少鉴宝知识。

从另一角度来说，什么是宝？宝是心头好，无关乎如何贵重，如何古老。在乎就好。所以这次鉴宝活动，无论你带的东西价值多少，选上与否，每个人都很高兴，重在参与鉴宝的过程。这也是这次活动的成功所在。事实上从我们踏上美利坚这个人人向往的自由世界开始，我们就已经挖到了宝，不是吗？知足吧哥们，知足常乐。

这次有幸参加了古董路秀的电视节目，特别感谢麻西华协创造的这次难得的机会。在和工作人员聊天的时候听他说现在中国的古董炙手可热。节目组还专门设置了亚洲艺术类，足见于亚洲特别是中国在国际地位上的提升，这也有我们海外华人的一份努力和付出，我骄傲！