Meet the Specialist

What do you do at Bonhams?

I am Head of Impressionist and Modern Art for the Americas.

Where are you from? And what inspired you to go into the art world? 

I’m from St Louis, Missouri, a city of superb art museums. I was particularly inspired by the wonderful collection at The St Louis Art Museum. My mother was a docent, and on the acquisition committee for a time, so I spent a lot of my childhood there. I would sketch works in the galleries – the Monet Water Lilies, a great Gauguin portrait… they were touchstone works for me as a kid. Also, every year, my family would go on a yearly driving vacation to visit museums across the States. As I got older, I found it was just in my bones to love looking at art.

What was your first job? 

I graduated from Wellesley College and a week later, I was working in shipping at Sotheby’s. I got a phone call and it’s a famous soul singer on the other end of the line, about shipping a table. So, I learned her code name that she used at various hotels through the years – I was just twenty-one years old. Another task was to ship some armour for a horse to a man in the south of France. 

 Name one of your triumphs? 

A work on paper by the German Expressionist Franz Marc came to Bonhams. We researched it painstakingly for nine months, and it  went on to sell in London for a world record sum. It’s these extra layers of expertise and care and attention that make Bonhams different for me. 

What has changed in the business since you first started? 

When the Whitney reopened a couple of years ago, they were suddenly featuring the women artists who helped define Abstract Expressionism. I thought: this is long overdue. For years, I’ve been recommending – and selling – Helen Frankenthalers to my clients. And Joan Mitchell. And Grace Hartigan. These artists have long deserved the attention they’re now getting, so I am really delighted to see museums shake-up their exhibitions. 

What is your strength as a specialist? 

I love working on collections that send me down a rabbit hole of research, such as when I worked on the Bill Blass collection, with its Old Master drawings, Russian bear sconces, red and white Grecian revival pottery and a 1932 Picasso oil of Marie-Therese. Though I spend most of my time speaking to collectors and building relationships with clients, making works even more compelling by understanding their provenance is a passion. 

Do you have a hidden talent? 

I am a singer and a constant harmonizer.  My best friend and I headed our a cappella group at Wellesley College and then she introduced me to her cousin, now my husband.  So I am an a capella bride!  We sing together still. 

Which work of art has changed your life? 

Randolph Roger’s marble figural sculpture, Nadia, of 1855.  It’s a very moving sculpture of a blind girl, who is seen listening for the sound of fire and lava as she tries to escape the Vesuvius eruption in Pompeii.  The fact that the artist could convey urgency, pathos and beauty in a block of stone was riveting to me as a child. I declared it my favourite and it still gives me shivers whenever I see it.  He carved the subject repeatedly and there are versions in a number of museums, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC. 

Molly Ott Ambler is based in New York and is Head of Impressionist & Modern Art for the Americas. She can be reached on molly.ott@bonhams.com