Lables
All Directional piece designed by Paul McCobb are either clearly labeled as being by Paul McCobb or entirely unlabeled in the case of the earlier (pre-1956) Directional upholstered goods which were sold from the showroom using the purchasers own fabric which did not contain any labels at all.
If it says Directional on it and does not say Paul McCobb you can be assured that the piece was not designed by Paul McCobb.
Actually if it says Directional on it you can be guaranteed that it was not designed by Paul McCobb as all signed pieces by Paul McCobb for Directional had the Manufacturers name on them, Directional is NEVER mentioned on a single tag.
Illusion
Antiques do not have a defined "worth" as per se. There are many contributing factors to what prices are commanded, and by whom in what situations.
The numbers you see on 1st dibs for instance are totally misleading, first of all almost all sales on 1st Dibs are "to the trade" which means that the average discount of the marked prices is 20% right off the bat. Second of all, I have seen pieces sit on 1st Dibs for years (literally), these dealers can, and will, wait for their sale to come in.
Second of all location plays a role, take a look at auction results in a given year, then factor in where the auction houses are located. For instance, I am in the New York area, mid-century modern pieces at auction in Connecticut bring much lower prices than the identical items auctioned 15-20 miles away in Westchester. A designer might be popular, and thus command greater prices, in one region but have no real attraction in another. Happens all the time.
So the bottom line would be to suggest that it is only worth what you can buy it or sell it for. Best suggestion would be to buy that which you love because you love it. If you think that you are making an investment you might be sorely disappointed later on when you cannot realize the big bucks on what you thought was a sure thing.
This being said, miracles do happen, people do win the lottery. Good luck and God Bless!!
Who Owned Directional?
Directional was "owned" by B. G. Mesberg.
Paul McCobb's work for Directional was entirely on the basis of an independent contractor. He did receive some salary/fees plus a percentage of sales for those designs he made for the Mesberg concern. He was never a partner.
A number?
You want a number? Here you go:
http://www.designaddict.com/design_addict/forums/index.cfm/fuseaction/th...
baaaababababaaababababababaaaaaawhada ya giveeeeeeeeee
badbabababababababababababbabababsddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd Do i hear 300 333 33 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3biddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd now 5 bid ddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd now $400 do i hear $400 SOLD!!!
Responsible sales practice
Where I don't really mind taking the time to authenticate/debunk a Paul McCobb attribution (Being the fellow who is writing the book on Paul McCobb) what bothers me is when someone, having been given the benefit of the best possible information, then goes and posts their item on Ebay and claims the misattribution anyways as the fellow who started this thread has done.
Now of course the greater number of those people who will spend any significant money on Ebay will not fall for this, it still rankles me.
But what the hell, people lie. I suppose it's a deep seated part of human nature, certainly far too deep seated for me to change with anything so ridiculously ineffective as a post on a forum.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Eames-Era-Modern-PAUL-MCCOBB-Directional-Lounge-Chai...
If you need any help, please contact us at – info@designaddict.com