RICK HARRISON: What do we have here?
Obviously a very old painting.
Yes.
I believe this is the earliest-known painting
by Eanger Couse.
And I think this was painted by him when he was about 12,
13 years old.
RICK HARRISON: OK.
I know that he did some impressionist paintings.
You know how to tell the difference
between impressionism and post-impressionism?
No.
Blurry, extra blurry.
[laughs]
[laughs] I took a risk when I purchased the painting online.
But the one thing that I'm very proud of
is that I saved this painting from ending
up in a trash heap someplace.
And I actually was fortunate enough to preserve
this part of history.
RICK HARRISON: I know a little bit about him.
He was a really famous American painter.
And he got famous for painting American Indians.
It was always family life.
It was, like, a mother and a child,
the father weaving a basket.
He was one of those artists, I mean,
not quite Norman Rockwell, but people
know him because he did all the calendars
for the Santa Fe Railroad.
TROY: Right.
And that's how everyone got to know his art.
You mind if I pick it up?
TROY: Oh, no, not at all.
Go ahead.
All right.
And why do you think Couse did this?
I mean, I see his signature there.
But his paintings don't look anything like this.
Well, I contacted the Couse Foundation,
and I talked to his granddaughter.
And she is a foremost expert on Couse paintings.
And she invited me out to Taos.
And when I showed her the painting,
she took me in a back room and showed me a really early
signature that nobody's seen.
And she's like, you're not gonna believe this,
but this is a dead-ringer signature.
[laughs] OK.
Well, it's definitely old.
I'll tell you that, OK?
But it's also in really, really bad shape.
And my big concern is we have brackets
here that say 1885, OK?
He was already a sophisticated artist by 1885.
He would not have painted what was on the other side of this.
It looks to me like these brackets were
used to make the stretcher.
And this isn't a Couse if it was made after 1885.
What did you want for it?
I was told that it could possibly
be worth $75,000 to $100,000 to the right collector.
But I'd be comfortable letting it go for around $50,000.
There might be something here.
I don't know if it's 50 grand.
But there might be something here.
I have a friend.
He's coming down anyway.
So I'll have him look at it.
I'll get his opinion.
And we'll go from there.
OK.
When he gets here, we'll come and help you out.
Sounds great. All right.
Thank you.
I think when the art appraiser comes in and looks
at the painting, looks at the paperwork that I have,
I believe he's going to say that it is the real deal.
RICK HARRISON: Check this out.
This guy says he has an Eanger Couse.
And it doesn't look like his stuff.
Not at all.
TROY: Well, we're going by what a 12-year-old boy
would think of Native Americans at that point.
BRETT MALY: Is that when this is believed to have been painted,
when he was 12 years old?
Yeah, this is like the earliest painting that we think
exists.
OK.
Well, I guess that explains things.
I mean, this isn't bad for a 12-year-old.
But for a Couse, it's pretty rudimentary.
No.
[laughs] Yes.
From what I know of the artist,
he grew up surrounded by Native American culture.
The Chippewa tribes were around the area that he grew up.
So I could-- he had an early fascination.
And this kind of demonstrates a little bit of that inspiration
without having a full understanding
of what goes into it.
Now, since you obtained the piece,
did you do anything to authenticate
it or trace the history?
Well, I called Virginia Couse Leavitt.
And she's a foremost expert on his work.
So after inspecting it, looking on
under black light on the signature,
she made the decision that the signature
was original to the painting.
OK.
Well, that's good.
It's not in great shape.
It's obviously faded.
The colors are very muted.
You know, it's kind of funny to say this,
but I think I'm less concerned about the authenticity
than I am, you know, the piece itself.
You did a nice job tracing the history and the authenticity.
You went to the right source.
She's recognized as kind of the go-to on Couse artworks.
And the fact that she says it's authentic,
that's good enough for me.
TROY: Cool.
The problem you get into--
I mean, this is a piece that I think
would be much more valuable to a museum, somebody that had
an exhibition of Couse's work.
It's-- you know, it's in poor condition.
It would take a lot of restoration just to get this,
you know, to a real marketable state.
How much would it cost to repair this?
You'd probably be looking at about $5,000, I think,
if you used a real competent conservator.
And if it was restored, what do you think it would be worth?
To a fine art collector, if it was restored, it might be--
because of the name, it might be,
you know, maybe a $20,000 piece, but that's about as much
as you can put on it, I think.
OK.
Thanks, man.
Hey, Rick, my pleasure.
Good to see you, as always.
If you go up front, Travis has got
some stuff for you to look at. - Excellent.
I'll take a look. Thank you, guys.
All right. Have a great day.
Thank you.
The painting isn't bad for a 12-year-old.
But when you consider how esteemed the artist became,
it's a pretty bad piece.
That's a piece that would have interest to a museum
to show how the artist progressed
and transitioned to the type of work that he was famous for.
But it's not the type of work that an astute collector
is going to hold in esteem.
I know it's not what you want to hear.
No.
RICK HARRISON: [laughs] I mean, but if you listen to him,
you understand what he has to say.
Yeah, I totally understand.
I know you wanted 50 grand for it.
But I just don't see a deal happening here.
It's just too difficult for me to sell.
- All right. - OK.
Have a good one, man
Thank you very much.
Not to have an offer made, I feel a little deflated.
I believe the painting was worth more
than what the appraisal was.