Jim Alterman, Gallery Owner

 

 

 

 

Meet Jim Alterman

Owner of Ashley John Gallery

 

 

 

 

Jim Alterman's passion for collecting fine art began when he was approximately 12 years of age.

Raised near the antiques-filled town of New Hope, PA, Jim and his mother rented a shop in a nearby town selling antiques. Throughout high school, Jim would work at the flea markets buying and selling anything he felt he could make a profit on. He would peddle his wares to all the antique shops after school while frequenting garage sales and auctions on the weekends. 

DID YOU KNOW, JIM...

Has been asked to be the subject of a reality show several times over
Is self-made and not the product of a wealthy family
Is the author and publisher of four books, including New Hope for American Art
Is a longtime boxing enthusiast
Represents the estates of artists:
- Vaclav Vytlacil (1892 - 1984), American Abstract artist
- Mercedes Matter (1913 - 2001), Amercian Abstract Expressionist 
- Charles Searles (1937 - 2004), African-American painter and sculptor
 
 

At 21, Jim opened his own antiques shop. One day, while delivering an antique piece to a client's home, Jim spotted an Edward Redfield painting on the client's wall. "It looked blurry to me. I didn't understand impressionism yet. I preferred clear, hard-edged pictures," Jim explained. "He (the client) proceeded to tell me it was worth $50,000 - more than ten times my net worth at the time!" From that point on, Jim was hooked. He started his collection of Pennsylvania Impressionists in 1991. Jim's first purchase was "Road to Centre Bridge" by Kenneth Nunamaker.

When asked what is the best piece of advice you can give someone who is trying to build an investment quality collection, Jim always advises, "the art we sell not only adds warmth, beauty and culture to your home or office, it also relieves stress upon viewing and can outperform many intangible assets over time."

 

 

"Invest in something you can live with."