Patrick graduated from OCADU in 2005 and has 15 years of experience working in fine art galleries and auction houses. Joining the Cowley Abbott team in 2019, Patrick has enthusiastically continued developing his knowledge of historical, modern and contemporary Canadian art.
Patrick, you are immersed in art in all
aspects of your life, as you are an artist yourself! This is of great benefit
to Cowley Abbott and wonderful to have an artist on staff. Can you tell us a
bit about your art practice and inspiration?
It has definitely been useful to draw on a
familiarity with painting materials and processes. I often find myself looking
very closely at paintings and thinking about the process the artist went
through. It is such an immense privilege to be surrounded by incredible works
by so many different artists each day. My own paintings are a mix of different
influences, sort of a dialogue between geometric structures and more painterly
forms. It’s abstract, but I see it as a “content-based abstraction”.
As an alumnus of the Ontario College of
Art and Design, you walked the halls that many celebrated Canadian artists also
frequented. Can you share what your studies at OCAD were focused on and how
that experience informed your decision to work in the art world?
The history associated with OCAD is pretty
fascinating. It’s so rewarding to look at art and also learn about the lives of
artists, local histories and the wider social and cultural contexts. While I
was at OCAD, the focus was very much on studio practice, and it was a great
time to experiment with different mediums and connect with peers and teachers.
Any long-term creative pursuit is going to have ups and downs, but painting
seems to have a way of constantly pulling me back. So I feel very fortunate to
be working in a field where I’m very much engaged with art of the past and
present.
Patrick Staheli can be
reached directly by e-mail at patrick@cowleyabbott.ca. Stay tuned for
the next installment of “Introducing the Cowley Abbott Team” in a week!
Lot 147: Ronald York Wilson, Prehistoric Enigma mixed media on paper, 8.75 x 9 ins Estimate: $400-600
Accessible Art Picks in the February Online Auctions
Cowley Abbott’s February online auctions are divided into three categories: Canada & Abroad, Three Dimensions, Works on Paper & Prints. I am going to highlight some of my (more affordable) picks and provide a bit of background information as to why I chose them.
Lot 14: W.E. Atkinson, Shades of Evening oil on canvas, 20 x 16 ins Estimate: $1,500-2,000
In my previous blog post, I mentioned how I like auctions because they expose you to a wide range of art, making you consider some artworks you wouldn’t have otherwise sought out. For example, I am generally drawn to abstract art because I studied it in school and it is modern and often colourful. If I were to look to buy art at a gallery I would probably seek out a modern art exhibition. That being said, the artworks that strike me the most in this month’s sales would be considered quite traditional: George Reid’s Sketch for “Spring” and William Edwin Atkinson Shades of Evening. They are both soft and romantic, with a very impressionistic quality. This goes to show that auctions can open your eyes to new things – they provide the opportunity to surprise yourself!
Lot 58: Manly MacDonald, Baker House Close, Edinburgh etching, 10.25 x 8 ins Estimate $250-350
Etchings are a beautiful type of printmaking that require an impressive and painstaking technique. The image is first etched by hand into a copper plate, then submerged in acid, then run through a printing press. The process requires an incredible attention to detail with essentially no margin for error, and as a result I feel that etchings deserve more attention than they often receive. Manly MacDonald’s etching Baker House Close, Edinburgh is a charming and delicate depiction of a Scottish street scene, and it has an estimate of only $250-350.
Lot 104: Marion Post Wolcott Jitterbugging on a Saturday Night in Juke Joint near Clarksdale, MI, 1939 gelatin print, 10 x 8.75 ins Estimate: $1,000-1,500
Marion Post Wolcott was a notable American photographer, best known for documenting poverty and deprivation in the United States during the Great Depression. Her photographs are in the collections of large museums such as the Smithsonian and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is exciting to see one of Wolcott’s historical photographs from 1939 offered in the February Works on Paper & Prints auction: lot 104, Jitterbugging on a Saturday Night in Juke Joint near Clarksdale, MI, 1939.
Lot 153: Harold Town, Stretch Blue on Grey serigraph, 40 x 28.5 ins Estimate: $300-400
Harold Town’s Stretch Blue on Grey is a fantastic print. The stretched-out blue bands are fun and would add the perfect pop of not-too-bright colour to a room. It was made in 1971, so it bears that 60s/70s mod aesthetic, yet it could also pass as contemporary. With an estimate of only $300-400, it is really a great opportunity!
Lot 168: Ivan Eyre, Echo etching, 10 x 13 ins Estimate: $300-400
Echo by Ivan Eyre is another example of the intricate etching technique, as well as an example of the accessibility of the artist’s prints in comparison to his oil paintings. Eyre is a contemporary artist whose work is in demand at the gallery level and auction level. Eyre’s acrylic painting Amber Pass was in Cowley Abbott’s June 2021 live auction, with an estimate of $80,000-120,000, and the work sold way above the estimate for $228,000. The artist’s prints, such as Echo, with an estimate of $300-400, are evidently a much more accessible way to own one of his works. Bonus: it is nicely framed!
Lot 76: Catherine Widgery, Businessman with Attaché Case painted aluminum Estimate: $1,500-2,000 Lot 81: Catherine Widgery, Woman with Baby Carriage painted aluminum Estimate: $1,500-2,000
Two aluminum maquettes for Catherine Widgery’s art installation “City People” are being offered in the Three Dimensions sale. Located on Front Street across from Toronto’s Union Station since 1989, “City People” consists of various pedestrian figures made of painted aluminum – some are stationary and mounted on the wall, while many are mounted on pedestals. Businessman with Attaché Case and Woman with Baby Carriage are a fun opportunity to own a piece of Widgery’s process in creating the famous art installation.
Lot 14: W.E. Atkinson, Shades of Evening oil on canvas, 20 x 16 ins Estimate: $1,500-2,000
Dans mon blog précédent, j’ai mentionné à quel point j’aime les ventes aux enchères, car elles nous exposent à un large éventail d’art, nous faisant envisager certaines œuvres d’art que nous n’aurions pas recherchées autrement. Par exemple, je suis généralement attirée par l’art abstrait parce que je l’ai étudié à l’université et parce qu’il est moderne et souvent coloré. Si je cherchais à acheter de l’art dans une galerie, je chercherais probablement une exposition d’art moderne. Cela étant dit, les œuvres qui me frappent le plus dans les ventes de ce mois-ci seraient considérées comme assez traditionnelles : Sketch for « Spring »de George Reid et Shades of Evening de William Edwin Atkinson. Ils sont à la fois doux et romantiques, avec une qualité très impressionniste. Cela démontre que les enchères peuvent nous ouvrir les yeux à de nouvelles choses – elles nous donnent l’occasion d’être surpris !
Lot 58: Manly MacDonald, Baker House Close, Edinburgh etching, 10.25 x 8 ins Estimate $250-350
Les eaux-fortes sont un beau type de gravure qui requièrent une technique impressionnante et minutieuse. L’image est d’abord gravée à la main dans une plaque de cuivre, puis immergée dans de l’acide, ensuite passée dans une presse à imprimer. Le processus nécessite une attention au détail pointue et ne permet aucune marge d’erreur, ce qui me mène à penser que les eaux-fortes méritent plus d’attention qu’elles n’en reçoivent habituellement. L’œuvre de Manly MacDonald, Baker House Close, Edinburgh est une représentation charmante et délicate d’une scène de rue écossaise, avec une estimation de seulement 250 à 350 $.
Lot 104: Marion Post Wolcott Jitterbugging on a Saturday Night in Juke Joint near Clarksdale, MI, 1939 gelatin print, 10 x 8.75 ins Estimate: $1,000-1,500
Marion Post Wolcott était une photographe américaine de renom, surtout connue pour avoir documenté la pauvreté et les privations aux États-Unis pendant la Grande Dépression. Ses photographies font partie des collections de musées tels que le Smithsonian et le Metropolitan Museum of Art. Il est excitant de voir l’une des photographies historiques de Wolcott de 1939 proposée dans la vente aux enchères d’oeuvres sur papier et gravures : lot 104, Jitterbugging on a Saturday Night in Juke Joint near Clarksdale, MI, 1939.
Lot 153: Harold Town, Stretch Blue on Grey serigraph, 40 x 28.5 ins Estimate: $300-400
Stretch Blue on Grey de Harold Town est une œuvre d’art fantastique. Les bandes bleues allongées sont amusantes et ajouteraient la touche parfaite de couleur à une pièce. Ayant été complétée en 1971, elle porte l’esthétique « mod » des années 60/70, mais elle pourrait aussi passer pour une œuvre contemporaine. Avec une estimation de seulement 300-400 $, c’est vraiment une belle opportunité !
Lot 168: Ivan Eyre, Echo etching, 10 x 13 ins Estimate: $300-400
Echo par Ivan Eyre est un autre exemple de la technique d’eau-forte, ainsi qu’un exemple de l’accessibilité des gravures de l’artiste comparativement à ses peintures à l’huile. Eyre est un artiste contemporain dont le travail est en demande au niveau des galeries et des enchères. La peinture d’acrylique d’Eyre, Amber Pass, figurait dans la vente aux enchères en salle de Cowley Abbott en juin 2021, avec une estimation de 80 000 à 120 000 $, et l’œuvre s’est vendue bien au-dessus de l’estimation, pour 228 000 $. Les tirages de l’artiste, comme Echo, estimé entre 300 et 400 $, sont évidemment un moyen beaucoup plus accessible de posséder une de ses œuvres. Bonus : c’est joliment cadré !
Lot 76: Catherine Widgery, Businessman with Attaché Case painted aluminum Estimate: $1,500-2,000 Lot 81: Catherine Widgery, Woman with Baby Carriage painted aluminum Estimate: $1,500-2,000
Deux maquettes en aluminium pour l’installation artistique « City People » de Catherine Widgery sont proposées dans la vente Trois Dimensions. Situé sur la rue Front en face de la gare Union à Toronto depuis 1989, « City People » est composé de diverses figures de piétons en aluminium peint – certaines sont fixées au mur, tandis que d’autres sont montées sur des piédestaux. Businessman with Attaché Case et Woman with Baby Carriage présentent des occasions amusantes de posséder un morceau du processus de Widgery dans la création de la célèbre installation artistique.
Je vous invite à parcourir les trois sessions d’enchères de février. N’hésitez pas à nous contacter pour toute information complémentaire à info@cowleyabbott.ca. Les enchères se terminent le 1er mars 2022.
In the spirit of Valentine’s
Day, Cowley Abbott profiles a selection of some of our favourite artist
couples. These artists shared a personal chemistry which helped form the
background of their lifelong artistic pursuits.
Painter Rita Letendre met
Kosso Eloul while travelling in Italy in 1962. The couple married two years
later, moving between Los Angeles and New York before settling together in
Toronto in 1969. The two shared many fundamental artistic ideas, and their
respective predilection for geometric abstraction both contrasts and
compliments the other in interesting ways.
When Paterson Ewen met
Françoise Sullivan in 1949, their relationship formed the basis of a fruitful
creative exchange. Sullivan was a member of the influential group Les
Automatistes, and introduced Ewen to an entirely new milieu. Ewen’s
artistic development was deeply impacted by the Quebec group’s experimental
abstraction.
Paterson Ewen, Untitled Price Realized: $20,400Joan Mitchell and Jean Paul Riopelle in Chicago, about 1957 Photo Credit: Anonymous Photographer; Yseult Riopelle Archives https://ago.ca/events/joan-mitchell-and-jean-paul-riopelle-creativity-and-collaboration
Over the course of a
24-year relationship, Joan Mitchell and Jean Paul Riopelle lived and painted
together. The two influential painters sustained a rich exchange of creative
ideas, sharing their deep commitment to their art. As documented in the Art
Gallery of Ontario’s 2018 exhibition Mitchell/Riopelle: Nothing in Moderation,
similar formal and intellectual concerns become clear when viewing the work
of both artists side by side.
Jean Paul Riopelle, Sans titre (circa 1959) Price Realized: $504,000Josef and Anni Albers Photo Credit: The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation, https://albersfoundation.org/artists/biographies/
Among the most notable
artist couples of the 20th century are Josef and Anni Albers. The two met in
1922 during the heyday of the Bauhaus art and design school in Weimar, Germany.
In 1925, they married in Berlin. Following the closure of the school in 1933,
the couple fled Nazi rule and resumed their careers at the Black Mountain
College in North Carolina. The Albers’ extraordinary union fueled
one another’s creativity,
each developing into leading figures of twentieth-century modernism. Josef and
Anni Albers were married for 51 years.
Josef Albers, I-S f (Danilowitz 195) Price Realized: $10,320
Romantic partnerships can
form the basis of a dynamic, fruitful exchange of ideas, artistic concerns and
formal practices. Cowley Abbott invites you to watch for the works of these art
power-couples, along with many more, featured in our upcoming auctions.
Peter
is our western Canada representative, offering services related to private sales of
fine Canadian artwork. Prior
to establishing Ohler’s Fine Art in 2018, Peter’s career began in 1980 at
Masters Gallery in Calgary. His role in the Canadian art world has
certainly evolved since then, having handled many, many works of art and
carving a distinctive role for himself within the industry. In 2022, Ohler’s Fine Art was acquired by Cowley
Abbott with Peter joining the firm as the company’s Western Canada
Representative, continuing his work in private sales while pursuing artwork for
inclusion in Cowley Abbott’s live and online auctions. Peter continues to
advise clients who wish to buy or sell art, providing expert evaluation and
advisory services through this new venture with Cowley Abbott. Peter recently came to Toronto for a brief visit and we were
able to pick his brain on a few things!
Peter,
you are a new member of the Cowley Abbott team and we are delighted to have you
join the ranks! You reside in Calgary, your hometown, and act as our western
Canada representative – a very exciting development for the firm as we begin to
represent the country from coast to coast! Can you share a bit about your role
at the auction house and what services you are providing for western Canada?
So
far, I’ve done lots of shipping for you. You seem to be landing some great
pieces for your upcoming auctions. It makes sense that your western clients
would want to send their fine art east where the market seems to be stronger.
This is not a surprising development but a big change for me as I have spent
most of my career sourcing things in the east to sell to clients out west.
While I will continue my work as a private dealer, I will also assist Cowley Abbott any way I can. Primarily working to secure consignments for your exciting online or live sales. I happen to know where a lot of great art is hanging.
It
is evident that you enjoy handling works by artists that involve research
and mining for information. In that vein, do you have a favourite artist,
period or movement? Perhaps there is an artwork or artist that has had a major
influence on you?
I’m old school so the Group of Seven is still where it’s at for
me. The first Canadian art book I read was Russell Harper’s Painting in Canada.
The stories of the early group members canoeing and painting in northern
Ontario were captivating. Of the group JEH MacDonald has always been my
favorite. Man could he paint. If I only end up with one picture at the end of
all this, I would like to own a great MacDonald Algoma oil sketch. I’ve had a
couple recently but of course I sold them.
If you wish to discuss acquiring or selling an artwork
privately contact Peter at peter@cowleyabbott.cato discuss how we
can provide this fast, confidential and stress-free service. We will also buy
artworks if you would like a quick sale.
