<Begin Segment 20>

LH: I said later I would talk a bit about my second career. I got involved in art and antiques because my grandfather and father held the third largest Japanese collection before the war, and helped start the Seattle Art Museum. I'm a major donor of the San Francisco Asian Art Museum through the collection of my, my grandparents and my parents.

TI: So let me ask you about that. So where, how did they get this collection?

LH: Well, through the silk company. They both were fanatics as collectors, and my father was actually also involved part-time in art and antiques, and in fact, Paul Horiuchi, the famous artist, used part of my father's collection to start a little antique shop in Seattle, I think about 1950, thereabouts. And had this antique shop, but spent most of his time painting in the back room.

TI: And so talk about, when you say the "second career," what type of...

LH: Well, I got involved into what I call Horiuchi-Cooke / Asian Art, a company I started. And when I retired, I was making a lot of money. And the annuity I get is pretty good anyway. I was extremely happy until, I mean, as far as profits are concerned, until after the bubble burst, 'til early '90s, 'til '95, even until 2000, I was still doing well.

TI: Because your clientele was Japanese?

LH: Yes, primarily.

TI: And they were paying top dollar?

LH: Oh, yeah. And I was able to get good things there, and the market here was very good for Japanese art and antiques. Now, it's relatively poor. Korean/Chinese Asian art is now selling well. I also take things, I go twice a year still to Japan. I like to go end of March, end of October, when it's cooler and nice, and matsutake season is in October, and get things authenticated in Japan for donation to the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. I've donated to other museums as well, but since '86, almost primarily to the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco.

<End Segment 20> - Copyright © 2007 Densho. All Rights Reserved.