Heritage Auctions

Margaret Barrett, a California native who graduated from UCLA with a B.A. degree in Art History, joined Heritage Auctions in 2011 after working as an Entertainment Memorabilia Specialist at various auction houses for a number of years.  She served as a Specialist at Butterfield & Butterfield in Los Angeles, as an Assistant Vice President & Head of the Popular Arts Department at Christie’s in New York, as a consultant to Julien’s Auctions in Los Angeles, and as the Director of Entertainment Memorabilia at Bonhams & Butterfields in Los Angeles. Notable collections that she has worked on include The Estate of John Wayne, The Estate of Marilyn Monroe, The Estate of Bette Davis, The Estate of Jimmy Stewart, The Estate of Jennifer Jones, The Estate of Raymond Burr, The Ramrod Shurtliff Collection of Grateful Dead Memorabilia, The Private World of Truman Capote, The Estate of Steve McQueen, and The Herb  Bridges “Gone with the Wind” Auction  for which she was awarded a key to the city by the mayor of Jonesboro, Georgia --  hometown of “Gone with the Wind” author, Margaret Mitchell.

Michael has worked in the numismatic field for more than 35 years and is well known as the Founder and President of Advance Coin & Stamp Co., of Beverly Hills. He actively deals in rare coins and precious metals and has worked with various state and federal authorities on their de-accession of materials. He counts a deep generalist knowledge in a wide variety of categories in his expertise. Michael has been a lecturer to various trade and community groups, and has been the recipient of a number of Educational Awards sponsored by the ANA. Michael has served the Beverly Hills community as a past Treasurer of the Beverly Hills Rotary Club.  He is a contributing editor to THE GUIDE BOOK TO UNITED STATES COINS since 1987 and is a Life Member of the ANA, as well as, a member of PNG.

Carolyn brings more than a decade of experience in both live and online auctions to her position at Heritage Auction Galleries Beverly Hills, as well as an extensive background in appraising and vetting Furniture and Decorative Arts, Fine Art, Collectibles, Musical Instruments and Entertainment Memorabilia. Prior to joining Heritage, Carolyn served as Director in the Sunset Estate Department at Bonhams & Butterfields, also serving as Generalist and Auctioneer,  where she established a proven track record in working with large consignments and institutions in Hollywood and Southern California.  During that 10 year span Carolyn also provided auction services to numerous charities including Stars for a Cause, The LOOC foundation, Wheels for Humanity, The Beverly Hills Bar Association Barristers, The Chrysalis Foundation, Project Angel Food among the many.

David S. Michaels has been active in the field of classical numismatics for more than 24 years.  A specialist in Roman Imperial coinage, he has an extensive background in Greek, Byzantine, Dark Age, and Medieval coins as well. He is also well known as an author and lecturer. Michaels was born in Los Angeles, California in 1957. An early viewing of the movie “Cleopatra” when he was seven years old kindled a lifelong fascination with the ancient world.  While touring Italy in the mid 1980s, he purchased a battered Roman bronze coin, launching a new hobby and career path.  An interview with the renowned numismatist and author David R. Sear in 1988 convinced him that ancient coins could be more than a sideline. Two years later, he made numismatics his full time vocation. Michaels’ profile in the world of ancient coins rose steadily. In 1998, he became sales director of Classical Numismatic Group. Two years later, he joined Freeman & Sear, where he remained until 2010. Michaels has published several articles on aspects of ancient coinage and has given talks on the subject across the country.

After studying at Clark University in Massachusetts and Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey, Frank joined the auction staff at New York-based Acker Merrall & Condit in 1998. In 2003 he joined Bonhams & Butterfield as Director of Fine & Rare Wines, becoming International Director in November of 2006 and taking on a revised role focused on making the Wine department there a global entity, paying particular attention to markets in the US and Hong Kong, where, in April of 2008, he held the first wine sale in more than 17 years. Over the course of the following year and a half Frank was in Hong Kong on a monthly basis, working not only on wine auction, but also spending a good deal of time working with the government in Hong Kong to develop appropriate policy around the business. His experience in the industry is across all phases of the business, from business development, to marketing, to sales, consignments and customer service, with a decidedly hands on approach. As early as 2000, Who What Where magazine published a feature story spotlighting Frank, his rise in the world of fine wines and his success orchestrating auctions. It said, in part: "Martell has rapidly established himself as a superstar in the world of wine... his future seems extremely bright." He has since been featured on CBS News, MSNBC, CNN, and CNBC's "Squawk Box" as an expert in the field and was cast in a primary role in John Cleese's documentary, "Wine for the confused."

Deborah Epstein Solon holds a B.A. from Vassar College and a Ph.D. in Art History from the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York. For nine years she was an independent curator, working with museums across the country. Her exhibitions, all accompanied by major catalogues, include: East Coast West Coast and Beyond: Colin Campbell Cooper, American Impressionist (Hudson Hills Press, 2006); Alson Skinner Clark, American Impressionist (Hudson Hills Press, 2005); In and Out of California: Travels of American Impressionists (Laguna Art Museum and Hudson Hills Press, 2002); Colonies of American Impressionism: Cos Cob, Old Lyme, Shinnecock, and Laguna Beach ( Laguna Art Museum, 1999).

Previously, Dr. Solon spent five years as the Director of Research for Karges Fine Art, a renowned Los Angeles gallery specializing in American Impressionist painting. Her publications in conjunction with Karges Fine Art include: Ross Dickinson: The Early Works (1993); Birds, Boughs and Blossoms: Jessie Arms Botke (1995); Cornelis Botke: A Painter and Etcher Revisited (1996); Clyde Scott: Paintings from the Robert and Rea Westenhaver Collection (1999). She has lectured extensively on American Impressionism, and was a co-producer of the documentary Art Colonies in America: The American Impressionists, which was the “Silver Screen Award” winner at the U.S. International Film and Video Festival in 2004.

Between 2005 and 2011, Dr. Solon was a professor of art history at Saddleback College, The Laguna College of Art and Design, Santa Ana College, and California State University, Fullerton. She is currently the West Coast Director of American Paintings at Heritage Auctions, Beverly Hills.