Changing tastes
Antique stores are becoming something of an antique themselves: The number that specialize in furnishings at least 100 years old the generally accepted definition of an antique is declining, said Connie Swaim of AntiqueWeek. Walk some of the local antiquing districts, and one can sense that. Among those hanging on: Connoisseur Antiques in West Hollywood, where a 19th century French chandelier, left, reminds shoppers of an era past. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
For antiquers, the closure of shops threatens a beloved pastime: browsing crowded aisles in search of the perfect find. Stores such as Connoisseur are becoming harder to find as tastes shift away from bronze and crystal chandeliers, terra cotta lions, marble sculpture and other ornate period looks. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
A French table from the 1800s awaits prospective buyers at Connoisseur Antiques. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
A Roccoco secretaire from Sicily represents the longtime focus of Therien & Co., a La Cienega Boulevard shop that has been selling European antiques since 1974. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
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As beautiful and evocative as the writing desk may be, it and pieces like it face a changing market. The concepts of an interior enriched with antiques and a lifestyle surrounded by history are no longer attractive to most people today, Therien owner Bob Garcia says. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Two years ago, Garcia started showing 20th century pieces, mostly one-of-a-kind furniture from France, Italy and Austria. This expanded range was a reflection of customers changing tastes, he says. Here, his store mixes an Italian parchment-covered cabinet, circa 1930, with a French wrought-iron and glass cocktail table designed around 1980 and a Swiss composite stone decorative piece, circa 1950. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
People use antiques as emphasis, contrast or counterpoint not to surround themselves with an atmosphere of times past, but to give a resonance to contemporary furniture, Garcia says. In a display from his store, a French black lacquer and rosewood bureau, circa 1935, is shown with true antiques to the left: a pair of 19th century mahogany and parcel-gilt bergères and a Portuguese rosewood contadora that dates to the late 1600s. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
