Kenojuak Ashevak, "The Enchanted Owl," (red tail) 23/50, 1960
stonecut, 22" x 25" ($216,000 - Waddington's)
Caution was in the air at Canada’s leading art auctions, but good art still found buyers at the Waddington's, Consignor and Heffel sales in Toronto in November.
Group of Seven works, in particular, were under a discretionary microscope, with only fine examples achieving success. For instance, a Lawren Harris painting, Mountain Sketch XC, sold at Heffel for almost $1.4 million. But his Houses under Construction, a small panel of Toronto history, failed to sell at Waddington’s.
The fall season also saw passes on works by artists as notable as Andy Warhol, William Kurelek, Bill Reid and Norval Morrisseau.
A positive note for Inuit art came when Kenojuak Ashevak’s The Enchanted Owl (red tail) sold for $216,000 at Waddington's, the highest Canadian auction value for a handmade print.
Another noteworthy moment was Heffel’s sale of a 1925 painting by Frederick Banting, the discoverer of insulin, for more than $313,000, well over the estimate of $20,000 to $30,000.
Auction houses are rising to the challenges of a cautious market. Consignor is exhibiting new artists and taking steps into the contemporary market, while Heffel has changed its game by including important international art.
Meanwhile, there’s a new venture called First Arts for the sale of Indigenous art from the North. It is a partnership of four knowledgeable Inuit art specialists – Pat Feheley, Ingo Hessel, Mark London and Duncan McLean.
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Marion Nicoll, "Guaycurai - Red Rock, Black Rock," 1966
oil on canvas, 40" x 50" ($33,600 - Waddington's)
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Léon Bellefleur, "Mascarade," 1951
oil on canvas, 17" x 15" ($10,200 - Waddington's)
Waddington’s Canadian Fine Art
Regular followers know my admiration for the diversity of art works found and consigned by Waddington's senior specialist Linda Rodeck. Once again, the sales room was packed with Canadian fine art plus the important Inuit collections being offered the next day.
First on my list at Waddington's was a rare Marion Nicoll painting, Guaycurai - Red Rock, Black Rock, 1966, which had lived with an Ontario collector for a long time. How it landed there is a mystery, but the collector’s eye was adventurous. The painting sold for $33,600 and will head back West. Meanwhile, a small but brilliant Léon Bellefleur from 1951, Mascarade, was a gem. It sold for $10,200. Both sales were positive examples of rare works finding the right collector.
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Peter Clapham Sheppard, "Elizabeth Street, Toronto," circa 1930
oil on canvas, 30" x 36" ($204,000 - Waddington's)
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Ivan Kenneth Eyre, "Asessippi," circa 1981
oil on canvas, 56" x 56" ($192,000 - Waddington's)
On the other hand, fine pieces found little interest. Auctioneer Stephen Ranger had a tough night, opening almost every bid and working to close. On the successful side, Elizabeth Street, Toronto, by Peter Clapham Sheppard, had active bidders and sold for $204,000. Some criticized the painting but, in my opinion, it’s a wonderful piece. Ivan Eyre’s stunning Asessippi, circa 1981, was executed with a delicate brush and has great colour and light. It sold for $192,000.
Overall, Waddington’s said it was pleased with the results. But no doubt they are watchful going forward.
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Kenneth Lochhead, "Colour Rotation," 1964
acrylic on canvas, 80" x 67" ($54,280 - Consignor)
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Marc-Aurèle Fortin, "Ste. Rose paysage," 1939
oil on board, 21.5" x 23.5" ($70,800 - Consignor)
Consignor Canadian Fine Art
The Consignor team is gathering strength in Canada’s auction sector. With a renovated preview gallery, the company’s cross-country search for art is paying off.
Ken Lochhead’s Colour Rotation was a fabulous example of pure formalist painting at its peak. Created in 1964, after a workshop with Kenneth Noland at Emma Lake, Lochhead, like others from the Regina Five, was inspired. It was great to see it sell for $54,280. The same collection, from the TransCanada pipeline company in Calgary, offered Marc-Aurèle Fortin’s, Ste. Rose paysage. Bought astutely long before the current interest in his work, this excellent small painting sold for $70,800.
A.J. Casson, "Storm in the Cloche Hills," 1951
oil on board, 30" x 36" ($118,000 - Consignor)
On the Group of Seven front, Consignor’s president, Robert Cowley, had some examples. But it’s apparent how few fine rare paintings are showing up. A.J. Casson's Storm in the Cloche Hills was ‘it’ for me. Although dark and brooding, his approach to both design and the subject captured many people at the preview. The large work sold for $118,000. I had thought it might gather even more energy.
William Kurelek, "Threshing Outfit Being Brought Lunch," 1972
mixed media on board, 5" x 15.5" ($82,600 - Consignor)
Cowley had an uphill battle with the room. He worked hard for bids, but caution was in the air again. Great individual pieces were cherry picked, while more standard pieces sold low or were passed. One of the passes was an early Norval Morrisseau that, not long ago, would have generated huge interest. Kurelek also suffered somewhat, though a tiny, perfect painting,Threshing Outfit Being Brought Lunch, originally purchased for just $250, sold easily at $82,600.
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Robert Murray, "Burwash," no date
painted aluminum sculpture, 24" x 24" x 9" ($28,320 - Consignor)
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Bertram Brooker, "Delta Ice House," 1942
oil on canvas, 24" x 30" ($82,600 - Consignor)
I thought I might be able to buy a great piece by Robert Murray, Burwash, but the cherry pickers came to battle. Sadly, I lost out as it went over the estimate by $10,000, selling at $28,320.
The sale continued on that track, with surprising passes and lower sales buoyed by good surprises like Bertram Brooker’s Delta Ice House, a rare beauty that sold for $82,600. Consignor’s principals are full of positive ideas and young enough to stay the course.
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Jean Paul Riopelle, "Jouet," 1953
oil on canvas, 45" x 57.5" ($2,881,250 - Heffel)
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Karel Appel, "Untitled," 1956
oil on canvas, 50" x 30" ($289,250 - Heffel)
Heffel Fine Art Auction House
The third and final sale of a challenging season for others in the auction business managed to be a game changer, in my view, not only for Heffel, but also for collectors and the art business.
I have welcomed the inclusion of important international art in Heffel's post-war sale in the past and this preview was quite something. Seeing Canadian artists presented alongside major contemporaries from larger world markets reinforced my belief that great Canadian art is, for the most part, worth every dollar spent, and far too often undervalued.
At Heffel, a perfect pairing of an international work with one from Canada was Dutch artist Karel Appel’s Untitled, 1956, and Jean Paul Riopelle’s Jouet, 1953, both created in energetic paint. I was told a German collector had flown in to see the Appel and loved the Riopelle and other Canadian works that were new to him. The Riopelle, by the way, sold well at almost $2.9 million, and the Appel went for a solid $289,250.
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Michael James Aleck Snow, "Green Belt," 1963
oil on canvas (also catalogued as polymer on canvas), 26.5" x 45.5" ($169,250 - Heffel)
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Jean Paul Lemieux, "Les Citadens," 1973
oil on canvas, 49" x 108" ($1,081,250 - Heffel)
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Christopher Pratt, "House in August," 1969
oil on board, 17.5" x 24.5" ($253,250 - Heffel)
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Mary Frances Pratt, "Preserving Summer - Black Currant Jam," 1998
oil on canvas, 24" x 30" ($133,250 - Heffel)
There were many wonderful works. Michael Snow’s Green Belt, a fabulous example of his Walking Women series of the 1960s, sold for $169,250. Les Citadens, 1973, a stunning large painting by Jean Paul Lemieux, sold for just over $1 million. Christopher Pratt’s House in August, 1969, sold at $253,250, while Mary Pratt’s Preserving Summer - Black Currant Jam, 1998, reached $133,250. They are perfect Pratt paintings in every sense and, obviously, collectors thought so too.
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Fernando Botero, "Toro," 2002
oil on canvas, 58.5" x 48.5" ($811,250 - Heffell)
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Fernando Botero, "Femme Debout," 1982
oil on canvas, 60" x 35" ($811,250 - Heffel)
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Fernando Botero, "Seated Man," 2004
oil on canvas, 48" x 37.5" ($541,250 - Heffel)
Three major paintings by world-renowned Colombian artist Fernando Botero sold in a room full of Canadian collectors. They were likely seen as a deal.
Heffel's post-war sale topped total sales of $15 million. That tells a story, but some notable passes included Andy Warhol, William Kurelek and Bill Reid.
Heffel was handling at least two major estate collections and many pieces in the evening's historical selection were being sold to benefit a charitable foundation.
Frederick Grant Banting, "The Lab," 1925
oil on board, 9.8" x 13.6" ($313,250 - Heffel)
A painting by Frederick Banting was a quiet last-minute consignment. The scientist and physician who discovered insulin did some fine landscape paintings over the years. The Lab, 1925, a view of his workplace, is filled with delicate details. The tiny painting is not an aesthetic beauty, but is such a piece of history. Estimated at $20,000 to $30,000, it was chased all the way to $313,250. Heffel donated the entire buyer’s premium to Diabetes Canada, a great gesture.
Lawren Stewart Harris, "Mountain Sketch XC," circa 1926-1929
oil on board, 12" x 15" ($1,381,250 - Heffel)
Only one Lawren Harris caught my attention, Mountain Sketch XC. A true gem, it was given to his climbing and hiking partner, Ira Dilworth, in the mid-1920s, and remained with the family. It sold $150,000 over the estimate at almost $1.4 million.
In general, the excitement of the earlier post-war sale was absent. Nonetheless, Heffel developed a strong sale and a good buyer audience, winning bragging rights with total sales of $22 million.
I'll conclude with my usual reminder to readers: Go to auction previews and enjoy the education they provide as works may not be seen again publicly. ■
The major live 2018 fall art auctions in Toronto began with Waddington's Canadian Fine Art on Nov. 19. The preview included Inuit art work displayed for auction the following day. Consignor Canadian Fine Art held its auction Nov. 20, and the Heffel Fine Art Auction House held its Post-War and Contemporary Art auction in the afternoon of Nov. 21, with the Canadian, Impressionist and Modern Art sale following in the evening.
All prices include the buyer's premium. Images are courtesy of the respective auction houses.
