Heritage Auctions Magazine Presents: Passions With... Ursula Andress
by Mike McLeod
People are enthralled with everything James Bond.
Do you have any collectibles from Dr. No?
I mostly gave away what I had.
Which movie that you've made is your favorite?
I have no favorite. I don't go to my movies. I didn't see Dr. No for a year, but I liked it when I saw it. It was a fun movie. I don't like the Bond movies now. I hate special effects. Everything is done in special effects. I like the real movies — on islands, an adventure story with some action, but not action every second.
How did you get started in collecting?
I have always collected. I wanted to be a decorator. I wanted to interior design homes and do everything myself.
What do you collect?
Everything that's beautiful. Collecting is my joy. It gives me great satisfaction. When I go to a country, I go to flea markets, antique stores. I am always looking for something. It's easy to walk into an antique store, and even if you have $20,000 to buy an item, you still try to get a good price. I collect furniture, rugs, paintings, frames. If I don't have room for an item, I put it in warehouses. I'm waiting to have a big castle or country home to put all of my collection in.
Where do you find items for your collection?
My home is the world. I live a little in Spain, the U.S., Italy and Switzerland, and I collect from all over the world — Shanghai, in the Andes, Kuala Lumpur, Hungary, Romania. I go to antique and flea markets in the old quarters of the cities. Pottery, paintings, china, English furniture, rosewood, Empire furniture.
Do you have a favorite piece in your collection?
Everything is a piece of me, a moment of my life. Once, a big pair of Venetian lions was stolen from me. They were life-size, polychrome gold leaf on wood from 16th century Spain. I got them back. I worked on it for six months. I tracked them [the thieves] down and found them. Don't take anything from me because I'll track it down. Collecting is my passion.
Dr. No (United Artists, R-1972).
Italian 2 - Folio (39" X 55").
Sold: Heritage Auctions, March 2007, $776.
This story originally appeared in Southeastern Antiquing and Collecting Magazine (www.antiquingmagazine.com) and is reprinted on the Heritage Auctions Magazine with permission.
Heritage Auctions Magazine Summer/Fall 2009 Copyright ©2009 by Heritage Auctions, Inc.
