Name: Emma Hawkins Age: 39 Owner: Hawkins & Hawkins Antique Curiosities & Taxidermy Follow Emma on Twitter: @emmahawkins4
Read Emma's First Live Chat Read Emma's Second Live Chat
Emma featured in Series 1 of Four Rooms.
Emma was always destined to work in the antiques world. Her own father has been in the business for over 30 years and was the Head of the AADA (Antique and Art Dealers Association.)
"I did get the bug when I was young," she recalls. "As a child I was always interested in antiques and I very much enjoyed being with my father when he worked, it was an important part of learning of the Antique world."
It's no surprise to learn she ended up specialising in taxidermy because, as a child, she first became interested in the area.
"My father gave me some interesting examples of taxidermy when I was younger and that inspired me to collect down the line," she explains. Keen to follow in her father's footsteps, she did an apprenticeship in Silver and Jewellery, before going on to set up her own business at the age of 21 in Notting Hill, dealing in curiosities and taxidermy.
Over 10 years later she has a concession at Dover Street Market in London, and deals to private clients around the world, finding unusual objects and furniture to decorate their homes. She is also the youngest member of the BADA, and is the Scottish representative for the association.
Now very much established in her own right, the entrepreneurial dealer, who counts AA Gill as one of her clients, thinks this Channel 4 series marks a new direction for her.
She has certainly had enough practice trying to ascertain the right value of an object. Laughing, she reveals that in her spare time at home, both she and her dad enjoy nothing better than watching TV antique shows and holding a competition to try and guess the correct price!
"He often tests me on getting the price right," she chuckles. "I don't always get them right as he tends to, but I have my moments."
Items bought by Emma:
Episode 1: Francis Bacon Mutilated Canvas Episode 1: Norman Foster Prototype Table Episode 3: Dinosaur Egg Episode 4: Erotic Prints by Pierre Molinier Episode 4: Giant Stuffed Turtle Episode 5: Gerry Cottle's Miniature Circus
