Mike Garrison, owner of Garrison Auctioneers, looks at a collection of promotional posters from the Seattle Art Museum that are part of estate auction of William Rathbun at their auction house on Highway 12 in Chehalis on Monday afternoon. Rathbun, who was a curator of Asian Art with the Seattle Art Museum, has hundreds of pieces from his everyday personal items to fancy pottery, textiles, dishes and an assortment of various other pieces he collected throughout his life traveling through Asia.
Asian vases sit on a table at Garrison Auctioneers in Chehalis on Monday afternoon. The pieces were part of the living estate of William Rathbun, a curator of Asian Art with the Seattle Art Museum, which will be auctioned off starting Wednesday.
Mike Garrison, owner of Garrison Auctioneers, looks at a small, porcelain tea glass that was part of the living estate of William Rathbun on Monday afternoon at the auction house in Chehalis. Garrison noted that the particular piece was not going to be part of Wednesday's sale, but would be included in a future sale. Rathbun, a curator of Asian Art with the Seattle Art Museum, will have a plethora of personal items he had collected over decades of traveling throughout Asia.
Mike Garrison, owner of Garrison Auctioneers, pulls out a promotional posters from the Seattle Art Museum that is part of an estate auction for William Rathbun at their auction house on Highway 12 in Chehalis on Monday afternoon.
Garrison Auctioneers of Chehalis will hold its first all Asian auction Wednesday.
The living estate auction, held simultaneously live and online beginning at 5 p.m., will showcase about 230 items from the personal collection of William Rathbun, a former curator of Asian art at the Seattle Art Museum.
“You get a feeling for a person when you see these items,” said owner Michael Garrison. “This is a chance to get things you don’t normally see on the auction block.”
Rathbun, an expert on Japanese art and textiles, traveled and acquired materials for the Seattle Art Museum for many years. Now, Garrison will auction the items from Rathbun’s personal collection.
“Truthfully, the bulk of his high-end collection is not what we’re selling,” said co-owner Mary Garrison. “We’re selling his everyday items. It’s a lovely and fairly varied sale.”
Items on Wednesday’s auction block include Asian pottery, textiles, dish sets, paper items, privacy screens, pictures, vases, rugs, and antique furniture.
“The pottery is unusual,” Michael Garrison said. “I personally like a lot of the textiles and materials.”
The Garrisons said they think the big ticket items will be some of the rugs and dish sets, but it’s hard to say what bidders will go for ahead of time.
The public can preview the items at Garrison Auctioneers from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. or view the online catalogue prior to the auction.
“It’s such a varied auction,” Mary Garrison said. “There’s some very personal items.”
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