Barbara Blades-Lines has been involved in appraising Colonial to Contemporary furniture, silver, glass, ceramics, maps, and paintings as well as promoting emerging artists, public art and art education. A native Houstonian, Barbara graduated from the University of Texas and completed postgraduate studies with Christie’s Education in London. Pursuing a career as an independent appraiser, Barbara founded Blades Appraisal Services, in 1994 in Houston, Texas. After moving to Bermuda in 1996, she continued her practice there until 2012, when she returned to Houston and joined MKG Art Management's appraisal department.
Barbara has appraised collections for the Masterworks Museum of Bermuda Art, Marriott Bermuda, the Bank of Butterfield, Norton Rose Fulbright, Peter Paul Petroleum, the University of Houston and she has worked closely with the Bermuda National Gallery’s collections of furniture, European paintings, and the Bacardi Biennial. Barbara served as a board member for the Bermuda National Gallery, chaired the acquisitions committee, part of the strategic team and board member for the Kaleidoscope Art Foundation and a director and chair of the Houston Art Foundation.
Barbara’s appraisal projects have included services for clients in Bermuda and all over the United States, primarily in Texas but also California, Massachusetts, Kentucky, New Mexico, Maine, Seattle and New York. Select public institutions that have received our appraisals include, the White House and the Smithsonian, Washington D.C.; Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Contemporary Art Museum, the Menil Collection, Houston, Texas; Blanton Museum of Art, Austin, Texas; McNay Museum of Art, San Antonio; The Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Kentucky; The Philadelphia Art Museum, Pennsylvania; Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, Indiana; Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart Australia.
