About Us
Barbara Blades-Lines, ASA, ARM, ISA-CAPP Founder and Director of Appraisals
Barbara Blades-Lines, ASA, ARM, ISA-CAPP, is the founder and Director of Appraisals of BLADES Appraisals & Art Resources, a Houston-based personal property appraisal and advisory firm. A generalist appraiser with more than thirty years of experience, she provides valuation and consulting services for fine art, antiques, decorative arts, artifacts, and historical property. Her assignments include insurance coverage, estate and tax reporting, charitable donation, damage claims, divorce matters, and litigation support, including expert witness testimony. She works with private, corporate, and institutional collections, including museum holdings and historically significant Texas property.
Barbara is a Senior Accredited Appraiser with the American Society of Appraisers (ASA) and holds the Appraisal Review & Management (ARM) credential for appraisal review and management. She is also a Certified Personal Property Appraiser with the International Society of Appraisers (ISA-CAPP). Her projects range from single high-value objects to collections exceeding 1,000 items, spanning the 15th through 21st centuries. She manages appraisal teams and coordinates subject-matter specialists, overseeing research, consistency, and report quality. Her reports conform to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) and address applicable IRS requirements for tax-related assignments.
Bill Pickard, ISA Member Operations Manager and Vice President of Service Delivery Firearms & Weapons Appraiser
Bill Pickard, ISA member, is Operations Manager and Firearms & Weapons Appraiser at BLADES Appraisals & Art Resources. He oversees project coordination, scheduling, data management, and client deliverables, helping manage large and complex appraisal assignments. His appraisal experience includes firearms, weapons, sporting items, coins, sports memorabilia, collectibles, automobiles, fine art collections, and residential contents. He assists with collection inspections, documentation, research, and preparation of appraisal reports for private collectors and institutional clients.
Bill has more than twenty years of experience collecting and brokering sporting property, bringing practical market knowledge to identification research and analysis of specialty items. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Emory University and has completed appraisal coursework through the International Society of Appraisers and the 15-hour Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) course.
Joanna Floyd, ISA-AM Senior Appraiser and Project Manager Director of Deaccessions
Joanna Floyd, ISA-AM, is a senior appraiser and project manager with BLADES Appraisals & Art Resources in Houston, Texas, and serves as Director of Deaccessions. A generalist appraiser, she has experience in European and American fine art, maps, books, decorative arts, antiquities, Native American material, and historical property. Her work includes insurance, estate, and charitable donation appraisals, as well as collection organization, downsizing, and deaccession planning for private clients and institutions.
Joanna has managed complex appraisal projects and large collection inventories involving property from the 15th through 21st centuries, including Texas historical artifacts. Her experience also includes valuation and documentation of large-scale and site-specific outdoor sculpture, with attention to condition, installation, and replacement considerations. She is an Accredited Member of the International Society of Appraisers and has pursued continuing education with Sotheby’s Institute of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Her appraisal work conforms to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
Katinka Ralton, ISA-AM, ASA Candidate Fine Art Appraiser European and Southwestern Art Specialist
Katinka Ralton, ISA-AM, ASA Candidate, is a senior appraiser with BLADES Appraisals & Art Resources in Houston, Texas, and Santa Fe, New Mexico. She specializes in 19th- and 20th-century European art and 19th- through 21st-century Southwestern art and artifacts. Born and raised in Europe, she established a gallery business twenty years ago, building her knowledge of fine and decorative arts, including European furniture. She brings an international perspective and familiarity with regional Texas and New Mexico artists and collectors.
Her gallery and secondary market experience informs her appraisal research, market analysis, and client advisory services. She is an Accredited Member of the International Society of Appraisers, an ASA candidate, and is working toward her Appraisal Review and Management designation. Her appraisal work conforms to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
Courtney Fish, AAA Member Associate Appraiser
Courtney Fish, AAA member, is an associate appraiser with BLADES Appraisals & Art Resources in Houston, Texas, working under the mentorship and supervision of Barbara Blades-Lines. She assists with collection inspections, cataloging, condition documentation, and market research for appraisal assignments involving fine art and residential contents. Her work contributes to the collection records and research used in the team’s appraisal reports.
Courtney holds a Master of Arts in Art Business from Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London and has professional experience in sales, collection management, advisory services, and corporate art consulting. Her background includes coordinating exhibitions, assisting with installations and commissions, and preparing documentation for collectors and institutions. She is a member of the Appraisers Association of America and is completing its Comprehensive Appraisal Studies Program. Her appraisal work follows the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
Abigale Rigamonti, AAA Member, ASA Candidate Associate Appraiser
Abigale Rigamonti, AAA member and ASA candidate, is an associate appraiser with BLADES Appraisals & Art Resources in Houston, Texas, with responsibilities in research and cataloging. She assists with market research, catalog documentation, and preparation of appraisal reports, including auction record analysis and collection inventories. Her work supports estate, insurance, and charitable donation assignments, with a developing focus on fine art, contemporary and regional Texas artists, and collectibles.
Abigale has professional gallery and auction experience and has completed internships with auction houses and appraisal departments, including trusts and estates services. She holds a Master of Fine Arts degree and is completing coursework through the Appraisers Association of America and the American Society of Appraisers as she works toward professional appraisal accreditation. Her work follows the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).