The most immediate effects were to events at the 7th Regiment Armory on the Upper East Side where Wendy Show Management cancelled their September 19-23 antiques show and Haughton International Fairs reluctantly decided to call off their September 29-October 2 International Art and Design Fair .
Further downtown, the 26th Street Armory, a popular venue to antiques and collectables fairs, was being used to house the homeless and the first Vintage Fashion and Antique Textile Show planned for this September was postponed until February 2002.
One of New York’s busiest organisers, Stella Show Management were also due to hold fairs in the 26th Street Armory during October. Stella lost a member of staff among the firemen who died attending the World Trade Centre disaster and they donated all the proceeds from their Waterloo Antiques Fair, held the previous weekend in Stanhope, New Jersey, to the Twin Towers Fund.
Looking ahead, Stella plan to continue with all the shows on their calendar, including the big Triple Pier Expo on the two weekends of November 10-11 and 17-18. Collections and spontaneous acts of remembrance took place at shows all across the States. Typical was the antiques fair at Gladstone, New Jersey on September 21-23 where dealers suggested to the show management that each of the 50 exhibitors should donate one piece of stock to special booths raising money for the Red Cross Disaster Fund.
The dealers all took turns in looking after the stalls raising money and organiser Simms Rogers said, “I am really glad to have been a part of this tremendous pulling together and support being offered from the dealers to the victims of the New York crisis.”
New York tragedy affects whole US antiques community
USA: THE EVENTS of September 11 in New York had repercussions well beyond the city and its environs as antiques and collectables became a low priority for most Americans. Although most fairs did go ahead, a number were postoned or cancelled in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks and the effects on show schedules could stretch well into October and beyond.
