Our team of specialists has a combined 100 years of experience. We handle everything from a single item to an entire estate, with sophistication, integrity and personal attention.
Colin Stair
Colin Stair is Founder and President of STAIR. A fourth-generation furniture specialist, Colin worked for Sotheby’s in New York and England. He settled in New York and ran Sotheby’s Restoration before opening STAIR in 2001. An innovator and creative business strategist, Colin was an early proponent of online auction technology and has successfully balanced the expectations of a modern marketplace with the charm of a traditional auction house. Colin is very involved in the Hudson community, serving on several boards and committees including the Downtown Revitalization Initiative and the County Economic Development Committee. Colin supports many local arts, cultural and educational groups and hosts numerous fundraising events annually.
Muffie Cunningham
Muffie is the Director of Decorative Arts at STAIR. After graduating from Drew University, Muffie trained with Christie’s in London. She spent the next 18 years with Sotheby’s New York as a Vice President and Department Head of Continental Furniture, leaving in early 2003 for a private dealership in Connecticut. While at Sotheby’s, she brought in and worked collaboratively on collections including: The Arne Schlesch Collection, NY; The Duke and Duchess of Windsor; Jacqueline K. Onassis; Andy Warhol; Ambassador Pamela Harriman; Greta Garbo; and The Estate of Gianni Versace, Miami and Milan. Muffie has also been a specialist on the Antiques Roadshow and worked in the antique retail field in Manhattan with the renowned Doris Leslie Blau and the dynamic Amy Perlin. She has been a specialist at STAIR since 2011.
Paige Wentworth
Paige joined STAIR in March of 2015 after spending 20 years at Sotheby’s in various roles ranging from first-year intern to Senior Vice President, Head of Operations. As the Director of Strategy and Operations at STAIR, Paige collaborates with the President and specialists to establish goals related to growth and profitability and develops strategies to achieve those goals. She is responsible for resource management across all functions, business and auction operations, client service and consignment management. Paige is a graduate of Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio and completed the Christie’s course as a post-graduate at the Art Institute in London. While at Sotheby’s, Paige led many significant business projects during her tenure including the implementation of a global logistics department, including overseeing the implementation of a new shipping system to support the new function, and the replacement of Sotheby’s global inventory management system.
Lisa Thomas
Lisa is Director of the Fine Arts Department at STAIR. She joined STAIR in 2013 and holds a BA in Art History from Columbia and a degree in French from the Sorbonne. She began her career at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC where she was the Executive Assistant to the chief curator of the Department of Paintings and Sculpture. She then joined Christie’s, where she would become an Associate Vice President and a Senior Specialist in charge of Contemporary Prints and Multiples, and was also responsible for the appraisal and sales of 20th century European, American and Historical American prints. She has lectured on American and Contemporary Prints and the Contemporary Print market and has been a specialist on Antiques Roadshow.
Lauren Anderson
Lauren is Director of Exposition Sales at STAIR, having joined the company in 2017. She received a Master’s in the History of Decorative Arts from Parsons and The Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York. She spent nine years as a Specialist at Christie’s, with a focus in silver, porcelain, glass, and Asian works of art, followed by two years as Associate Director of Museum Services. During her tenure at Christie’s, Lauren worked on sales including: The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Taylor and the Alchemy of Design; The Diana Dollar Knowles Collection; and A Palladian Villa by Michael S. Smith. As a member of Museum Services, she worked closely with institutions such as: The Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Indianapolis Museum of Art; and The Birmingham Museum of Art, Alabama.