Episode 39 | Wade Ledbetter: A Picker's Life & Salt Glaze Pottery Lesson

Matt sits down with his father Wade Ledbetter, the legendary picker whose exploits have become House of Folk Art folklore. From walking to school with a .22 rifle to sleeping with shotguns in dangerous hotel rooms, Wade shares raw stories from the golden age of picking when there was no internet, no cell phones, and pickers ruled the auction house circuit.

The conversation covers Wade's transition from insurance salesman to full-time picker, the electric atmosphere at John Lambert's Mebane auction house, and the legendary finds that made other pickers rich while Wade and Matt struggled. Hear about the John Singer Sargent discovery, and the William Merritt Chase painting that sold for $750,000.

The episode concludes with an intensive salt glaze pottery lesson as Matt prepares Sully for Liberty Antique Festival. Learn to distinguish Timothy Boggs drips from contemporary pieces, understand why N. Fox is better than H. Fox, and discover how 1800s potters shared techniques and stamps. From canning jar forms to dramatic alkaline glazes, this is your crash course in Piedmont North Carolina pottery.
What you'll learn:

• The dangerous reality of 1990s picking trips and cheap hotel rooms
• How auction house time slots sold for $500 during the golden era
• The picking partnership dynamics and money-splitting rules
• Salt glaze vs alkaline glaze pottery identification tips
• Why signed pottery commands premium prices and which potters to seek
• The collaborative nature of 19th-century pottery production

Follow @houseoffolkart and get ready for Liberty – but don't buy junk or Matt will hit it with a baseball bat.

Chapters:
00:00 | Wade Ledbetter introduction and school rifle stories
00:31 | Early Picking Days – insurance sales to antique partnerships
02:58 | Dangerous Hotel Stories – shotguns, strangers, and picking safety
07:45 | The Golden Auction Era – Mebane's electric atmosphere and picker competition
11:07 | Pottery Cycles – why Thomas Richie now costs $200 instead of $1,200
13:54 | The "Sconion" Mystery – Brigg's auction chant vocabulary
16:00 | Picking Partnership Rules – money splitting and gas tank protocols
19:39 | Benny Carter Encounter – meeting the artist before he became famous
21:38 | Real Picker Philosophy – why you must sell the best to survive
26:27 | Mickey's Magic – Confederate soldier images and $12,000 sugar chests
29:27 | The John Singer Sargent Story – Wade's million-dollar discovery expectations
31:01 | William Merritt Chase Revelation – $750,000 hammer at Mebane auction
33:39 | Sex and Pottery – Wade's controversial pottery wheel advice
34:17 | Salt Glaze Masterclass Begins – preparing Sully for Liberty shopping
35:08 | Timothy Boggs Identification – dramatic drips and canning jar forms
39:00 | Piedmont vs Alkaline Glaze – brown salt glaze vs green western NC pottery
42:28 | Signature Hierarchy – why N. Fox beats H. Fox and potter collaboration secrets