RICK: Interesting-- actually, a little creepy too.
[chuckling]
Who did it?
It's by Pedro Friedeberg. RICK: OK.
CHUMLEE: Who's that?
RICK: He was a pretty big deal in the '60s and the '70s.
He was a surrealist artist, and surrealism
was like, anything goes, just add a hallucinogenic drug.
[chuckling]
[boogie music playing]
ARTHUR: It's a very whimsical piece.
It is made in 1960s.
I'm asking for $18,000 to $20,000 for it.
What I love about this piece is that I have not
seen another identical piece like it,
and I find it to be truly unique.
RICK: This is really intriguing.
How much do you want for it?
[nervous chuckle]
I was hoping for $18,000 to $20,000.
RICK: OK.
Is it signed by him anywhere?
ARTHUR: It definitely is.
It's right here in the back, by his neck.
RICK: All right, um--
[sighing]
--I know he's still popular.
ARTHUR: Mm-hmm
RICK: What this is worth, I have no idea.
It's really weird.
I think it will sell, but let me have someone take a look at it
if you don't mind.
Can you hang on for a few minutes?
- Absolutely. - All right.
I'm going to go make a phone call.
ARTHUR: Great.
RICK: Do you like it?
I think it would look perfect in your house.
RICK: It might, actually.
My house is pretty weird.
ARTHUR: I feel confident that the expert is going
to come in and re-evaluate the piece,
because I bought it in confidence
that the piece is original.
RICK: This thing is definitely unique.
I think it's one-of-a-kind.
But there is damage on this thing.
So I called up my friend Brett, and hopefully he knows a lot
more about this than I do.
BRETT: Pedro Friedeberg, all right.
He was a pretty eccentric man, and this is very
much indicative of his work.
He did a lot of kind of semi-functional art.
You know, he did the--
the chair that was in the shape of a hand, where
you actually sat on the palm.
He made the hand chair?
BRETT: He was the-- he was the hand chair guy.
I know he sold thousands of those.
RICK: OK.
BRETT: In the 1950s, everybody was
trying to paint with meaning.
And then he came along, and he created these works that
were kind of the opposite of that, that were almost
kind of deco in their feel.
I think he used to call it "anti-art for art's sake,"
and it-- it really caught on.
Now, Rick, I imagine you've got some concerns.
Yeah.
These cards are all faded out, so I
think this was by a window.
We have chips on it.
We have wax everywhere.
And I don't know if it's one of those art things
that you should have put the candles in,
or just had candles sitting in it without being lit.
What would something like this be worth with the damage?
You know, I don't think the damage is going to impact
an artist like Friedeberg.
It wasn't about being pristine when he composed his work.
It was kind of just the overall aesthetic.
That being said, from a value standpoint, a piece like this,
I think, with the condition and everything,
it would probably be in the neighborhood of $20,000,
somewhere in there.
It's a neat piece.
All right well thanks, man. I appreciate it.
BRETT: Rick, it was a pleasure.
I think this is a work that would do well in the shop.
This is an artist whose works have sold
at Sotheby's and Christie's, and to have a one-of-a-kind work
like this, not one that was mass-produced,
or done in the thousands, is quite rare.
RICK: So what would you realistically take for it.
I was hoping to get $18,000 for it.
That's not going to happen.
I would give you $8,000.
We can meet halfway.
Um, how about $15,000?
RICK: No.
There's no money in it for me then.
Literally, what is your best price?
The lowest I can go is $12,000, and that's the best.
It is a beautiful piece.
It is very unique.
Unique, I'll give you.
Beautiful, I don't know.
[chuckling]
RICK: I'll go $11,000.
In my head, anything beyond that makes zero business sense.
I can't.
RICK: If you change your mind. - All right.
All right, have a good one, man.
Thank you.
I feel a little disappointed that we were
not able to make a deal today.
I had my heart set on selling it.