On The Job – Daniel Horan

Auctioneer

Daniel Horan is an auctioneer and appraiser and owner of Schmitt Horan & Co., an auction house in Candia.

Explain your job and what it entails.

We are auctioneers and appraisers specializing in selling antiques at auction. We travel the country and the world collecting consignments for sale at several of our auctions throughout the year, hosted at our gallery in Candia. Every lot is assessed and photographed by experts and then presented to a live audience in attendance at our gallery and across four different online auction sites that span a global audience. We are truly an international operation.

How long have you had this job?

I have been in the auction business for almost 25 years. In 1999 I started work for a small auction firm owned by a family member while I was attending UNH and studying chemical engineering. In 2009, I assumed a role as partner in R.O. Schmitt Fine Arts in cooperation with its founder, Bob Schmitt. In 2017, when I assumed full control of the company, we became Schmitt Horan & Co.

What led you to this career field and your current job?

While working at my first auction firm, I got bit by the entrepreneurial bug and forsook refining petroleum in Houston or fracking the oil fields of North Dakota for the thrill of running a small business. I have never looked back and went straight into auctioneering full-time after college.

What kind of education or training did you need?

Auctioneers in New Hampshire must be licensed by the Secretary of State. My license number is 5060. To be granted a license, auctioneers must either attend auctioneer’s school or apprentice and have two licensed auctioneers attest to their competency, and also pass a written test. In addition, I have specialized knowledge about the history and value of antiques, specifically watches and clocks, which is our specialty.

What is your typical at-work uniform or attire?

Overalls and comfortable shoes, except on auction weekends, when I wear a three-piece suit and a pocket watch with chain.

What is the most challenging thing about your work, and how do you deal with it?

Being on the road picking up consignments is very challenging. Being away from the home, family and the office, potentially for weeks at a time, can be grueling. Oftentimes, I will try to do a little sightseeing to break up the monotony. I have been to over 35 U.S. and Canadian national parks, many of them while enroute for consignments.

What do you wish you’d known at the beginning of your career?

How valuable a resource the Small Business Administration can be for companies like ours.

What do you wish other people knew about your job?

How fulfilling running a small business can be. It is oftentimes more work and responsibility, but I believe more reward is the result. We also hope more young people get involved in learning about antiques.

What was the first job you ever had?

I was a clerk running a register at Best Drug on Elm Street in the early 1990s as a teenager. Like many independent pharmacies, Best Drug has been closed for many years now.

What’s the best piece of work-related advice you’ve ever received?

Your ultimate success is a long-term commitment.

Five favorites

Favorite book: Don Quixote
Favorite movie: Braveheart
Favorite music: Pink Floyd
Favorite food: Aged cheese
Favorite thing about NH: Proximity of natural beauty and culture

Featured photo: Daniel Horan. Courtesy photo.

Kiddie Pool 23/05/18

Family fun for the weekend

Showtime

• All three Chunky’s locations (707 Huse Road, Manchester, 151 Coliseum Ave., Nashua, 150 Bridge St., Pelham) will screen Shrek 2(PG, 2004) on Friday, May 19, at 3:45 p.m. as part of their Little Lunch Date series. The story picks up after Shrek and Fiona are married, when they get invited to come to Far Far Away, Fiona’s parents’ kingdom. The only problem is that her parents don’t know that she’s now an ogre all the time. Admission is free but reserve a spot with a $5 food voucher at chunkys.com.

• Escape to Narnia with the Majestic Academy of Dramatic Arts’ presentation of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobeat the Majestic Theatre (880 Page St., Manchester; majestictheatre.net, 669-7469). Opening night is Friday, May 19, at 7 p.m. and other performances are at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, May 20, and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 21. Follow the four Pevensie children as they battle for good alongside Aslan the lion against the White Witch. Tickets cost $10 for kids 17 and under, $13 for seniors and $14 for adults and can be purchased at majestictheatre.net.

• Catch the teen performers with the Peacock Players (peacockplayers.org) in the musical Xanadu on Friday, May 19, at 7 p.m.; Saturday, May 20, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, May 21, at 2 p.m. at their theater at 14 Court St. in Nashua. Tickets start at $15 for adults ($12 for students and seniors).

Outdoor fun

• The 65th annual Kiwanis Club of Concord Spring Fair is back from Thursday, May 18, through Sunday, May 21, at the Everett Arena (15 Loudon Road in Concord). The fair will have a variety of food, games, vendors and rides. The fair runs Thursday, May 18, from 5 to 10 p.m.; Friday, May 19, from 5 to 10 p.m.; Saturday, may 20, from noon to 11 p.m. and Sunday, May 21, from noon to 6 p.m. Admission to the fair is free; unlimited ride wristbands cost $30. Visit concordkiwanis.org.

• Celebrate spring the Scottish way with Beltane: Scottish celebration of spring at Oscar Barn (191 W. River Road in Hooksett) on Saturday, May 20 at 3 p.m. There will be live Celtic music by The Rebel Collective, Prydein, and the Pipes & Drums of NHSCOT. There will be haggis toss (cornhole), street curling, and marshmallows for roasting on the outside warming fires, a Scottish tradition for protection and growth during the summer season. There will also be a celebration of spring with the Hawthorn tree and spring flowers as traditional Beltane symbols. Tickets cost $32. Visit nhscot.org.Inside activities

• Get messy with kids’ canvas painting at the Canvas Roadshow (25 S. River Road in Bedford). Kids will learn to paint a cute panda climbing bamboo on an 11-inch by 14-inch canvas. All arts supplies are provided. This program is geared toward kids 7 years old and older. Registration closes on Thursday, May 18; the event is on Saturday, May 20, at 2 p.m. Registration costs $25 and can be completed at thecanvasroadshow.com.

• Escape from the tavern at the American Independence Museum (1 Governors Lane, Exeter) at the special event Trouble in the Tavern: An Escape Room Adventure on Saturday, May 20, from noon to 4 p.m. Groups of up to eight will work together to figure out puzzles and clues and learn some history about the start of America. Tickets are $25 for adults, $12 for children. Visit independencemuseum.org for more information.

• Bookery (844 Elm St. Manchester) will host Matt Forrest Esenwine to celebrate his new book, Everybody Counts!, for storytime and craft on Saturday, May 20, at 11:30 a.m. Kids will hear Esenwine read his book and do a craft related to it. Visit bookerymht.com for more information.

Save the dates

• Did you ever wonder if you were a demigod? Hear Percy Jackson’s story in The Lightning Thief at the Capitol Center for the Arts (Chubb Theatre , 44 S. Main St., Concord; ccanh.com) on Friday, May 26, at 10 a.m. The musical, based on the popular children’s book series Percy Jackson and the Olympians, follows the story of Percy and his two friends Grover and Annabeth as they go on a quest to find Zeus’ stolen lightning bolt. Tickets cost $8.

• There are a bunch of new summer camps being provided by Studio 550 (550 Elm St., Manchester). Registration is now open for tween/teen clay camps with sessions June 26 to June 30, July 24 to July 28, and Aug. 21 to Aug. 25 from 2:30 to 5 p.m., as well as illustration camps Aug. 14 to Aug. 18. The studio is also offering an arts explorer summer program for artists ages 8 and older with sessions running July 10 to July 14 and Aug. 7 to Aug. 11. Registration costs $195 and can be done at 550arts.com.

Treasure Hunt 23/05/18

Hi, Donna.

Here’s a photo of a desk that has been in our family since the 1920s. Can you tell us anything about it? We were living in Michigan at the time.

Thanks.

Judi

Dear Judi,

Nice clean piece of furniture. It could have even been manufactured in Michigan.

It looks like a secretary desk or butler’s desk. This is why the front drops down. The piece dates from between the early 1900s and the 1930s. It’s walnut and, as I said, very clean and in great condition. Looks great where you have it.

Values are tough because demand dictates everything. But if I appraised it for insurance purposes, I would say in the $1,000 range. Not sure it would market for that. But to me it’s worth that. It has stood time well.

I hope this was helpful, Judi, and thanks for sharing with us.

Donna

Early season treats from the garden and the woods

Savor sorrel in soup and salad

Even if you planted your peas and spinach in April, you will not be eating them anytime soon. Despite days of full sun and occasional days of high temperatures, spring in New England is often cold and rainy, too. Our vegetable gardens putter along, but few things are ready to eat until June, or later. There are vegetables you can be eating now, however, if you plan right.

I eat parsnips as soon as the snow melts and the ground thaws. How? I overwinter parsnips in the ground, which sweetens them up and makes them even tastier. I plant parsnip seeds in June. They need warm soils to germinate. Even then, they take two to three weeks to come up out of the ground.

Parsnip seeds only are good for one year, so buy new seeds each year. Plant the seeds an inch apart and half an inch deep. A key to success is to thin your parsnips so they are not crowded. Thin them in July when the greens are 4 to 6 inches tall. They need 3 to 4 inches of space between plants if you want good-sized parsnips. If you mulch the plants well with ground-up autumn leaves or straw, your work is done until harvest time the following spring.

Parsnips are an old-fashioned vegetable, but prepared properly they are delicious. I peel and chop parsnips into half-inch-thick slices and steam them until slightly soft. Then I cook them briefly in a frying pan with butter. At the last moment I add maple syrup and cook at low heat until it caramelizes. Yum! Don’t have any this year? You can buy parsnips at your farmers market or even the grocery store.

A little-known perennial green is sorrel. Once established, it produces a plethora of light green, lemon-flavored leaves, year after year. The French make soup with it, perhaps because the greens themselves pretty much melt and disappear if you sauté them. So for years I just added them raw to salads.

Then I got Deborah Madison’s wonderful cookbook, Vegetable Literacy. She uses sorrel with peas and leeks to make a soup. But I don’t really follow recipes, and found that yes, indeed, sorrel goes well with peas. But I found I can boil frozen peas, then at the last minute add chopped sorrel. Just boil it for another minute, drain, add butter and enjoy!

closely packed leaves on low growing plant, in ground
Sorrel is ready to eat now for me. Photo by Henry Homeyer.

Another early perennial vegetable, asparagus, is also coming into season. If you like asparagus — and I can’t imagine anyone not liking it steamed and slathered in butter — you should grow it. It is mostly sold as crowns (roots), not seeds, for starting a patch, but seeds are available if you want to start an acre of asparagus.

Don’t crowd your asparagus. The roots are sold in bundles of 25, which is fine for a family of two. Plant them 18 inches apart and 6 inches deep. Buy any of the Jersey hybrids; they are all male and won’t start new plants that will crowd out your established plants. When planting, add lots of compost and some organic fertilizer. They like full sun and plenty of moisture, but will grow with as little as four to six hours of sunshine if that is all you can offer.

To keep on getting good asparagus every year, keep it well-weeded and top dress it with organic fertilizer every year after you finish picking. Mulch is good for keeping weeds down. And don’t over-pick your asparagus: Three weeks is the season for a well-established patch. Don’t pick any in Year 1 or 2. The plants need to store lots of energy for next spring’s production, so they need to grow fronds all summer for that.

Fiddleheads are a great spring treat. They are the new shoots of the ostrich fern, a big shade-loving fern that is common in New England. All ferns come up as fiddleheads, but only the ostrich fern is tasty. There is an easy way to identify them: They are the only ones that have a groove up the inside of the stem, just like celery.

I sauté fiddleheads in butter in a cast iron frying pan. First I brown some slivered almonds in olive oil, then I add the fiddleheads and some chopped garlic or the bulbs of ramps (more on them below). I pick not only the curled part of the fiddlehead but also the first 6 inches of stem. But I only take one or two fiddleheads from each plant to allow it to develop well.

Ramps, also called wild leeks, are easy to grow if you have an open wooded area with maple, ash or beech. They are commonly sold now at farmers markets. Both the bulb and the leaves are edible, so cut off the bulbs and plant them. Next year they will please you by showing up in early spring. If you plant 25 to 50 bulbs each year for three years or more, you will develop a nice patch. Once established they will spread by seed and root.

My favorite way of eating ramps is to clean them and rub off the gelatinous covering of the bulb, and then chop the entire plant for cooking. I fry them in a cast iron pan until the leaves wilt, then make scrambled eggs. They can also be added to anything that requires garlic or onion — they are the same family.

We will have to wait until July or August to get our tomatoes, even those like ‘Early Girl’ and ‘Fourth of July’ that are quick to produce. But if you start some perennials in your garden, you can be enjoying tasty treats even now, in May. I am.

Henry Homeyer is the author of four gardening books. His email is henry.homeyer@comcast.net. He is a lifelong organic gardener and a 20+-year veteran of the UNH Master Gardener program.

Featured photo: Ramps are easy to grow and a real spring treat. Photo by Henry Homeyer.

The Art Roundup 23/05/18

The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities

• Sculptors at work: See the four artists participating in this year’s Nashua International Sculpture Symposium at work on their pieces at Picker Artists (3 Pine St. in Nashua), where they are working Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on this year’s pieces. The artists are Anna Rasinska from Poland, Parastoo Ahovan from Iran, Tanya Preminger from Israel and Jim Larson, who grew up in New Hampshire and now lives in Maine, according to nashuasculpturesymposium.org, where you can sign up to donate to or pick up a meal for the artists. The pieces, which will become part of Nashua’s townwide exhibit of sculptures, will be unveiled in their installation locations on Sunday, June 3.

• A trip to Narnia: The Majestic Academy of Dramatic Arts (Majestic Studio Theatre, 880 Page St. in Manchester; majestictheatre.net, 669-7469) will present The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe featuring children and teen performers on Friday, May 19, at 7 p.m.; Saturday, May 20, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, May 21, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $14 for adults, $13 for seniors and $10 for 17 and under.

Jack of Diamonds
Pittsfield Players (Scenic Theatre, 6 Depot St. in Pittsfield; pittsfieldplayers.org, 435-8852) presents Jack of Diamonds, a comedy mystery set at a retirement home where a group of skilled residents realize the man who has stolen their nest eggs has newly moved in, according to the website. The show runs Friday, May 19, and Saturday, May 20, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 21, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $15 (call or go online to reserve).

• Drama on skates: Teen performers with the Peacock Players (peacockplayers.org) will present the musical Xanadu on Friday, May 19, at 7 p.m.; Saturday, May 20, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, May 21, at 2 p.m. at their theater at 14 Court St. in Nashua. Tickets start at $15 for adults ($12 for students and seniors).

• On view downtown: New Hampshire Art Association Artist Michelle Peterson has her paintings on display in an exhibit called “Threads and Where They Lead” at the Concord Chamber of Commerce (49 S. Main St. Suite 104 in Concord; concordnhchamber.com) through Friday, July 7. “In the artwork string is depicted in patterns and shapes that reference the playground pastime of cat’s cradle. ‘By using symbols such as a water bottle, rocks, birds and hands interspersed and oriented around visible and invisible strings, I begin to map a personal psychogeography,’ says Peterson,” according to a press release. The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Spring show: The Seacoast Artist Association will feature new artwork from its members in the show “Primavera: The Art of Spring,” which wraps up this weekend when it is open Saturday, May 20, and Sunday, May 21, from noon to 4 p.m. at the Exeter Town Hall gallery (10 Front St. in Exeter; the gallery is on the second floor). See seacoastartist.org.

• Supporting art with music: The Andres Institute of Art Center (106 Route 13 in Brookline, 845-9174; andresinstitute.org) will present kNowhere Kids, a band playing New England rock with a mix of blues-flavored originals and covers, on Sunday, May 21, from 6 to 8 p.m., according to a press release. See the band at theknowherekids.com. Tickets to the concert cost $25; purchase them online. The next show will be The Soggy Po Boys on Sunday, June 25.

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
The Hatbox Theatre (270 Loudon Road in Concord; hatboxnh.com, 715-2315) and Not Too Loud Productions will present Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? from Friday, May 26, through Sunday, June 11. Performances will run Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $22, $19 for seniors and students.

• Art with your museum visit: The Children’s Museum of NH (6 Washington St. in Dover; childrens-museum.org) is displaying the exhibit “Thirteen Moons — An Abenaki Child’s Year” in its Gallery 6 through the end of May. The exhibit features photographs, drawings, diagrams, scale models and stories to illustrate the daily life of a child in an Abenaki village before the arrival of Europeans, according to a press release. The gallery is open when the museum is open (you can visit just the gallery at no charge; museum admission costs $12.50 for everyone over 12 months, $10.50 for 65+). The museum is open Sundays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to noon; Wednesdays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m.

• 75 years of work: The DublinArts and Muse Gallery (1459 Main St in Dublin; musegallery.art) will present a retrospective of Sylvia Nicolas on display through Tuesday, June 6. Nicolas, a Netherlands native who came to the U.S. in the late 1930s and now lives in Mont Vernon, has paintings, drawings, sculptures and stained glass, the press release said. The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Strings celebration: The New Hampshire Fiddle Ensemble — a community orchestra of fiddles, guitars, banjos, mandolins, basses, harps and cellos — has a concert this Saturday, May 20, at 7 p.m. at the Exeter Town Hall (9 Front St. in Exeter). Tickets in advance cost $16 for adults, $7 for seniors and students and are free for kids 8 and under, but in all cases reserve seats at nhfiddleensemble.org/concerts. Tickets will be available at the door for an additional $2. The ensemble also has a concert scheduled for Sunday, June 4, at Franklin Opera House (316 Central St. in Franklin).

Exeter Arts & Music Fest
Find live music, an arts market, kids’ activities, food and more during the Exeter Arts & Music Fest on Saturday, May 20, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The main music stage, food trucks and kids’ activities will be at Town House Common (6 Bow St. in Exeter) and the artist market and singer-songwriter tent will be at the front portion of Swasey Parkway near Water Street, according to a press release. Scheduled for the main stage are Tim Parent & The Grim Bros. (11 a.m.), Marcus Rabb Quartet (12:30 p.m.), a Musical Arts Showcase (1:45 p.m.), WoodWind & Whiskey (2:30 p.m.), and Cold Engines (4 p.m.). The food trucks scheduled to appear include Cafe El Camino, Memories Ice Cream, Fat Pockets and Cosmic Kettlecorn, the release said. The artist market will feature more than 30 vendors, the press release said. There is a suggested donation of $10, $20 per family, the release said. See teamexeter.org.

Hats off for women

Artists inspired by a once-essential part of the feminine wardrobe

Twiggs Gallery is celebrating women through the art show “Head’s Up: The Many Hats Women Wear.” The show, which features all artists from the Women’s Caucus for Art’s New Hampshire Chapter, prompted artists to use hats as inspiration, whether through making the hats, using hat imagery, or recycling hats to be used as part of the media for the artwork.

“There’s really only two hats you could actually wear,” Laura Morrison, the gallery director at Twiggs, said. “The rest are really sculptures.”

There are approximately 30 different hat-inspired pieces on display at the gallery. The goal with the show was to display many of the ways women exist in both modern and older societies. The artwork is on display until May 27, and most of the artwork is for sale.

There weren’t any strict rules to interpreting the theme, Morrison said. Some of the artwork on display takes inspiration from iconic women and their hats, like Carmen Miranda, who famously danced with a pile of fruit on her head.

Morrison said that the majority of the pieces are sculptures, with a handful of hanging pieces that were photography or mixed media. The artwork includes paintings and photos, sculptures using flowers and nature, and one piece that incorporates sound.

large oblong shaped hat hanging from ceiling, woman standing under had covered down to shoulders
“Negative Hat with a Positive Attitude” by Donna Catanzaro. Courtesy photo.

That piece, titled “Negative Hat with a Positive Attitude,” by Donna Catanzaro, turns photo negatives from Catanzaro’s youth into the structure of a bell-shaped hat that is suspended so viewers can stand inside. The audio aspect comes from a short monologue Catanzaro recorded, explaining how she became empowered by the old reels of negatives and the girl she once was.

“We asked the artists to broadly interpret the theme,” Morrison said. “Some of [the art] is nature, like Mother Nature, or about a woman’s work, or self-image, agency and power. We try to offer themes that can be broadly interpreted. It’s giving visual representation of thoughts and ideas that [the artists] have.”

This is the third installment from the partnership Twiggs has with WCA/NH that Morrison has inspired. The first was “Busting Out: Powerful Women” also known as “The Bra Show,” and the second was “Kick-Start” or “The Shoe Show.” Morrison said she isn’t sure what other piece of uniquely feminine clothing could be used to inspire art, but hopes to figure one out.

Morrison wants people to experience the show as a serious celebration of women but also to see it as something amusing.

“Whoever comes in will come out with something to think about, with what women are thinking about, and what challenge they have,” Morrison said. “Also, it’s just fun, too. I’ve heard people laugh a few times while they’re in there because they enjoy the show so much.”

Head’s Up: The Many Hats Women Wear
Where: Twiggs Gallery, 254 King St., Boscawen
When: During gallery hours, Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Visit: twiggsgallery.org

Featured photo: “Forest Guardess Headgear” by Kathleen Lovett. Courtesy photo.

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