July
2002
Business
Spotlight:
Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery
Decking
the Walls of Trenton
By
Joe Emanski
Across the street from the new Lafayette Yard Marriott Conference
Hotel you'll find a slew of businesses that have staked out the
ground across Lafayette Street in advance of one of the city's
new commercial jewels. Among them is a little gem in its own right,
the Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery, where you can find art, jewelry,
sculpture and antiques to suit your artistic and decorating needs.
Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery is a labor of love for Louisiana native
Doug Rhinehart and Pennsylvanian Martha Fischer-Press. Now a resident
of Mill Hill, Rhinehart retired from the New Jersey Department
of Labor in 1997. Long an aficionado and collector of art, he
turned his avocation into a vocation in 1999 when he partnered
with Fischer, a Princeton resident who also worked for the Department
of Labor.
"Doug
had been dealing in art 20 years and decided to have an art gallery,"
says Fischer, who also had a background in art and art collection.
"I bought into the idea and we opened in 1999."
In the beginning, the Rhinehart-Fischer collection consisted largely
of Rhinehart's own collection of several hundred pieces. Today
it still hosts at least that many, though the gallery receives
new shipments weekly. Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery acquires its art
from the artists themselves, from some art dealers, as well as
from estate sales.
"Both
Doug and I are connected with the community, particularly Ellarslie
(the Trenton city museum)," says Fischer. "The quality
of art for their openings is very fine and gives (the area) another
avenue for education and involvement nearby." Fischer is
on the Ellarslie board of directors. Rhinehart is a member of
the Trenton Downtown Association and Trenton Arts Connection boards
as well.
"We
have worked methodically for three years to position ourselves
as a gallery with one of the largest and most diverse collections
in the area," says Rhinehart. The works in the gallery are
by prominent as well as local artists, painters and sculptors.
A
perk of being a local gallery is having the opportunity to deal
in not only the art of the famous, but also the unknown and on-the-rise
as well. A featured artist in Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery is as
likely to have had works on display at the New York Metropolitan
Museum of Art as in a mural on some of Trenton's public property.
According to Rhinehart, only one percent of the public collects
art-which may sound like a daunting statistic until you realize
that there are 281 million Americans and Trenton is smack dab
in the middle of an area where art is relatively well appreciated.
As far as how to assess art, Rhinehart and Fischer agree that
it's a pursuit that's equal parts knowledge and personal preference.
"It's
like any other area of expertise," says Rhinehart. "It's
a lifetime of study and experience. A lot of it is instinctual.
Taste can be acquired."
Says Fischer, who minored in art in college, "The best collectors
in the art world don't have art degrees. I think something people
don't understand about art collection is that people with collections
worth millions-they did not pay millions for them."
She adds, "Art has to make an emotional connection."
As for what motivates them as dealers in art, Rhinehart says that
nothing makes him happier than to help a young person or a young
couple who show an appreciation for art to acquire their first
pieces-one way or another. He tells the story of how he put his
daughter through $250,000 worth of college education and graduate
school through the buying and selling of art.
To the savvy collector, he says, a 14 percent return on a stock
market investment is nothing compared to the possibilities that
exist in the thoughtful and lifelong pursuit of quality art.
Many of the artworks that line the halls and walls of the Lafayette
Yard Marriott Conference Hotel are by local artists-and acquired
through Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery. Rhinehart and Fischer have
also furnished works to such area businesses as Café Olé,
Urban Word Café, Sun Bank, Executive Cuts, Blossoms and
Gifts and Maxine's.
In
many cases it's a partnership that allows the area merchants to
beautify their businesses while providing additional exposure
for the gallery and its artists. It's also a demonstration of
the way that Rhinehart and Fischer are willing to work with clients
to determine what will best suit their needs, their resources
and their tastes.
"We
stand behind what we sell. People come here and feel they get
value for the dollar spent," says Rhinehart.
In
July, Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery will have a show called "Williams
Five," featuring the works of Trenton's Lew Williams, Lambertville's
John Williams, listed artist Grace Williams, early-twentieth century
Trenton artist Marian Williams Steele and local jewelry designer
Tamara Williams.
In
September, Rhinehart-Fischer Gallery will feature a show entitled
"Cousins Naar," which will pair the works of world-renowned
photographer Jon Naar and a distant cousin of his who is an artist
and an art professor at Rider University.
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Rhinehart-Fischer
Gallery
46 West Lafayette Street
