Tag: Beaver Hall

  • Artist & Auction Records Smashed at Major Spring Auction

    An Unprecedented 94% Sell-Through Rate and Numerous Auction Records Achieved at the Spring Live Auction of Important Canadian Art

    Cowley Abbott Continues to Realize Exceptional Results for Canadian Artworks with Hundreds of Bidders Competing via Telephone, Online and Absentee at Auction

    The Cowley Abbott Spring Live Auction of Important Canadian Art on June 9th was brilliantly executed and exceeded expectations. A phenomenal 94% sell-through rate was achieved, several auction records were smashed and 65% of the artworks sold surpassed the high-end of the estimate. The historical, post-war and contemporary art offerings by illustrious Canadian artists attracted a high level of engagement from collectors. The live auction invited hundreds of bidders and thousands of bids via absentee, telephone and online and was executed flawlessly from start to finish. 

    Our firm has continued to adapt, evolve and grow with the changing climate of the auction industry during the global Covid-19 pandemic. Our combination of innovative and industry leading technology, combined with professional customer service and a sincere passion for art has ensured that we remain engaged with the Canadian art community through every possible avenue.

    Ivan Eyre, Amber Pass
    Price Realized: $288,000

    The monumental cover lot, Amber Pass by Ivan Eyre, made its auction debut during the evening sale, surpassing the pre-sale estimate after much spirited bidding to realize $228,000. This canvas is a prime example of Eyre’s large-scale landscapes and was met with avid interest from the moment of the publication of the catalogue. Acquired directly from the collection of the artist, this captivating painting is a fantastic addition for an astute art collector. 

    Kim Dorland, Green Tree Blue Tree
    Price Realized: $66,000 (Auction Record)

    Cowley Abbott was pleased to be entrusted with two works by the accomplished Alberta-born contemporary artist, Kim Dorland. Green Tree Blue Tree, a commanding oil, acrylic and spray paint on wood panel painting, which was included in the 2013 McMichael Canadian Art Collection exhibition, You are Here: Kim Dorland and the Return to Painting, soared to a new auction record of $66,000.  Untitled, another painting by Dorland that explores Canada’s long-established tradition of landscape painting also found a new home selling for $18,000. Records were further smashed by another Canadian contemporary artist, John Hartman, as The Old Port and Mount Royal exceeded pre-sale expectations to sell for $24,000. 

    Franklin Carmichael, Orillia (1915)
    Price Realized: $144,000

    The auction house was delighted to offer an early painting by Franklin Carmichael, Orillia (1915), for the first time at auction. The impressionistic winter scene originally belonged to the family of the artist and was passed down to the current Ontario private collection. This charming painting was completed prior to the formation of the Group of Seven and, as anticipated, feverish bidding ensued when the lot opened for bidding, eventually hammering down at $144,000. 

    A rare and early canvas by celebrated artist A.Y. Jackson, which was extensively exhibited and belonged to the painter’s brother, garnered ample attention in the weeks leading to the auction to extend to $90,000 in the evening auction. October Morning, Épisy was painted “en plein-air” by Jackson in 1909, and the composition showcases his mastery of light at the age of 27, more than a decade before the Group of Seven would be formed. This canvas was complemented by four other exquisite oil sketches by Jackson offered in the auction, which were all admired and achieved success.

    Homer Watson, The Old Mill
    Price Realized: $38,400

    Historical Canadian art demanded attention at this auction, as fierce bidding was ignited between telephone and online bidders for a nostalgic landscape painting by Homer Watson. This detailed 30 x 40-inch canvas commanded a final value of $38,400. A distinctive and self-assured work by David Milne executed in watercolour circa 1913 was a favourite amongst clients, achieving $33,600. The beautiful Portrait of Louise by Cornelius Krieghoff, an intimate and tender portrait of the artist’s wife, found a new home at $18,000, while the first lot in the auction by the distinguished J.W. Beatty, Farm Machinery, possibly executed while the artist was an official war artist in France of 1918, sold for $11,400. Further interest for historical artworks was displayed with a vibrant oil by Arthur Lismer, Fisherman’s Gear, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia achieving $24,000, while fellow Group member, the renowned Lawren Harris, drew attention with the offer of an important drawing executed in 1930 while on a trip with A.Y. Jackson. Arctic Tent, Pangnirtung, Baffin Island is one of a number of preparatory sketches produced by the artist while on this trip, with only three oil sketches of an Inuit tent within a landscape later painted. This rare work on paper sold for $20,400. 

    Further records were shattered at the evening auction, with appreciation shown for Prudence Heward of The Beaver Hall Group. A leading figure painter in the 1920s and 1930s, Heward’s Mrs. Decco (1940) was extensively exhibited in the 1940s and was originally acquired from the estate of the artist. This powerful portrait attracted attention from collectors from the instant the catalogue was produced and ascended to $90,000, setting a new auction record for the artist. 

    Maud Lewis, Flowers in Red Pot
    Price Realized: $48,000 (Auction Record)

    Cowley Abbott was pleased to be entrusted with numerous works by accomplished Canadian female artists, of which many experienced vigorous bidding during the June 9th auction. Notably, four paintings by Maud Lewis were met with enthusiasm, with competitive bidding taking place between absentee, telephone and online bidders. White Kitten in a Tea Cup, a rare and witty work by the beloved Maritime artist reached $38,400, quickly followed by At the Train Station selling for $44,440 and Surprised Deer for $28,800. The surprise of the evening was Flowers in Red Pot, painted around 1967, one of a small number of flower pot paintings executed by Maud Lewis, which broke the auction record for the artist by selling for $48,000. The results accomplished by Maud Lewis were remarkable, with the price realized of three of these works being the highest price ever paid at auction for a work by Maudie.  

    Molly Lamb Bobak Cafeteria, a rare and intimate portrayal of the activities at home during the Second World War, sold for $7,200. An additional popular work by Bobak, Flowers 4, hammered down at $10,200. Pegi Nicol MacLeod, another artist from Eastern Canada, received ample attention in the lead up to the auction. Bunks, a striking watercolour completed while an official war artist during the Second World War fetched $7,200, while the energetic and ebullient Centennial Parade (Fredericton) attained $18,000.

    Two paintings by Toronto favourite Doris McCarthy were sought after: Barachois sold for $9,600 and The Pines at the Keyhole for $4,800. Quebec female artists Marcella Maltais and Lise Gervais were represented in the auction. Rébellion by Maltais, an accomplished 1957 abstract oil on canvas reached $18,000 and the enigmatic La Voie d’Enfer (1959) by Gervais ascended to $31,200, to the delight of collectors. A diminutive abstract by Rita Letendre found a new home at $11,400 and Marian Mildred Dale Scott rounded out the offerings with a circa 1966 experimental geometric abstraction selling for $7,200. 

    Jack Bush, Untitled (circa 1958)
    Price Realized: 27,600

    The Spring Live Auction witnessed solid prices for a wide range of post-war works of art, including the art of Jack Bush: Girl with Red Hair blasted through the pre-sale estimate to reach $48,000; The Red Square, originally in the collection of the artist, sold for $10,800; and House on the Highway completed in 1947 sold for $7,800. Perhaps the most interesting work by the artist included in the June 9th auction was Untitled (circa 1958), which hammered down at $27,600. This brightly coloured gouache made its debut at auction with Cowley Abbott and was painted during a key period when Bush was breaking away from figurative painting to embrace abstraction. What is particularly notable about this work is the fact that it was a gift from Jack Bush to fellow Painters Eleven member, William Ronald. As recounted by his widow, Helen Ronald, the two artists met up one day in 1958 so that Bush could show Ronald the new direction he was taking in his painting. During this encounter, Bush presented the colourful gouache on paper to his friend as a gift. Ronald was so impressed and touched by the artwork that he held onto it for the remainder of his life.

    A key highlight in the auction were two exceptional paintings by William Kurelek. One painting was originally owned by the estate of the artist, Haystacks and Ducks (Ukrainian Series). This was one of the final paintings completed by the artist, a rare discovery, which sold for $55,200. In the 1973 The Grouse Mountain Sky Ride, Kurelek depicts the summer activities of the popular Vancouver ski destination, Grouse Mountain Resort. This mixed media on board was  favoured amongst collectors, selling for $60,000. 

    Doug Morton, Two with Grey (1965)
    Price Realized: $26,400 (Auction Record)

    A variety of post-war offerings also drew competitive bidding during the spring catalogue sale, breaking auction records. Midsummer Dawn, Percé by the Scottish-born Canadian artist Charles Comfort was completed in 1977 on one of his trips to Quebec. This outstanding depiction of an iconic landmark soared through an auction record previously set by Cowley Abbott for the artist, to achieve $43,200. Doug Morton, of Regina Five fame, was represented in the sale by Two with Grey (1965). The vivid colours which energize the pictorial space of this masterful work caught the attention of many, setting an auction record for the artist at $26,400. 

    Multiple distinctive sculptures by Sorel Etrog were featured in the auction, a significant sculptor known for his dynamic and elegant creations. Cowley Abbott was thrilled to be entrusted with six phenomenal works by the artist: the sophisticated and stoic sculpture of Manon, standing at just under five feet was met with lively bidding to $102,000. Steady interest from collectors was apparent for four diminutive bronze works by Etrog, including Solo Study for $22,800, La Mer Study for $9,600, Study for Madonna Bust for $9,000 and Magic Barrel for $6,600. The expressive Homage to Dr. Martin Luther King, with its contained emotion and marked reverence for the revolutionary figure attained $33,600. 

    We extend our thanks to the collectors, clients, bidders and buyers who helped to ensure that our Spring Live Auction of Important Canadian Art was a triumph. We look forward to continuing to provide the highest level of engagement and service to collectors in the industry and are currently accepting consignments for our forthcoming live and online auctions. If you feel our firm can be of service, we would be pleased to provide a complimentary and confidential consultation. Please contact our specialists at 1-866-931-8415 or mail@cowleyabbott.ca.

  • Records Smashed and Prosperity Achieved for Exceptional Artworks at Fall Auction of Important Canadian Art

    The December 3rd Auction Telecast
    An Image of the December 3rd Auction Telecast

    Cowley Abbott, A Leader in the Canadian Auction Industry, Continues to Realize Strong Results for Canadian Historical, Post-War and Contemporary Art at Auction

    The Cowley Abbott Fall Auction of Important Canadian Art on December 3rd was a resounding success, attaining excellent results and connecting collectors with superior artworks by renowned Canadian artists representing the country from coast to coast. In several instances, collectors participating over the telephone and online drove bidding to record levels, leading to the unprecedented values reached for select works by celebrated Canadian historical, post-war and contemporary artists.

    Jack Bush, Column on Browns (1965)
Price Realized: $870,000 (Auction Record)
    Jack Bush, Column on Browns (1965)
    Price Realized: $870,000 (Auction Record)

    A monumental masterwork by Jack Bush, Column on Browns, made its auction debut, soaring to a new world auction record of $870,000, after spirited bidding took place over multiple platforms. This captivating canvas was featured in major international exhibitions, including “Colorists 1950-1965” at the San Francisco Museum of Art and the Sao Paulo IX Biennial in 1967. The commanding work from Bush’s golden period of the mid-1960s was met with much admiration and excitement from the moment of the publication of the catalogue and is a remarkable addition to any discerning art collection. 

    Jack Bush, Summer Gone (1976)
Price Realized: $90,000
    Jack Bush, Summer Gone (1976)
    Price Realized: $90,000

    The auction house was delighted to be entrusted with another seminal work by Jack Bush, Summer Gone, the first triangle-shaped canvas executed by the artist as part of a series of shaped canvases in August 1976. The shape of Summer Gone is an irregular triangle with different lengths on all three sides, allowing Bush freedom from the restrictions of the traditional picture plane. Bush only created four triangle paintings, with this rare canvas selling for $90,000. 

    Emily Carr, Forest Glade (Dark Glade)
Price Realized: $216,000
    Emily Carr, Forest Glade (Dark Glade)
    Price Realized: $216,000

    Cowley Abbott was again delighted to offer numerous works by accomplished Canadian female artists, many of which garnered energetic bidding during the Fall Auction, notably Emily Carr’s Forest Glade (Dark Glade), reaching $216,000. This painting radiates with compositional energy, eloquently capturing Carr’s deep connection to the wild, untamed beauty of the forest. Rita Letendre, an electric and dazzling painter, demanded attention with three works by the celebrated artist selling well overestimate. Untitled reached $28,000 and Manotik sold for $20,400 – airbrushed compositions of forceful chevrons and diagonal bands of exploding colours, both from the most celebrated period of Letendre’s artistic oeuvre.  Dorothy Knowles, a beloved Saskatchewan painter, saw reward with the enigmatic canvases, The Noon Sun ($7,000) and Bright Weeds ($26,400). 

    Tom Hodgson
Non Objective, Bluish
Price Realized: $60,000
(Auction Record)
    Tom Hodgson
    Non Objective, Bluish
    Price Realized: $60,000
    (Auction Record)

    Further records were smashed in the December 3rd evening auction, with appreciation shown for Painter’s Eleven’s artist, Tom Hodgson. An energized, abstract masterpiece, Non Objective (Bluish), found a new home selling for $60,000, an auction record for the multitalented painter and athlete. Fellow member of the Painter’s Eleven abstract artist’s collective, Ray Mead, was much sought after in the lead-up to the auction, with Untitled, a 1959 painting fetching $15,600. 

    Attention for historical Canadian art was strong, as Surf, Barbados, B.W.I by J.E.H. MacDonald commanded a final value of $21,600 and a dynamic, yet diminutive oil on board by J.W. Morrice, Coast, Brittany, sold for $45,600. Rain on the River (Morning on the River) by David Milne, a favourite artist amongst collectors, achieved $40,800. Ungava Bay by A.Y. Jackson, a sketch for a canvas in the collection of Hart House, hammered down at $48,000, representing the artist’s vision and connection to the Arctic landscape. Another success in the historical realm was Martello Tower, Montreal by Ethel Seath, selling for $24,000. 

    Cowley Abbott was entrusted with a painting by the esteemed artist and physician, Sir Frederick Grant Banting. 2021 marks the centenary of the discovery of insulin by Banting, a momentous discovery that changed the lives of millions of people and for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1923. Island, French River, Ontario, suffused with colour, light and shadow, sold for $31,200, a brilliant result for this historical Canadian figure.

    Alex Janvier, Shoreline Existence
Price Realized: $31,200 (Auction Record)
    Alex Janvier, Shoreline Existence
    Price Realized: $31,200 (Auction Record)

    A founding member of the Professional Native Indian Artists, established in 1973, Dene and Anishinaabe (Salteaux) artist Alex Janvier of Cold Lake, Alberta, was an integral component of the auction. Shoreline Existence, a striking acrylic on canvas, set a new auction record at $31,200 after competitive bidding. 

    Three automatic works by Jock Macdonald executed in 1947 well exceeded their pre-sale estimates with vigorous telephone bidding the night of the auction. Untitled (Two Creatures) sold for $6,600, Prehistoric World for $10,200 and New Fruit for $7,800. 

    Jean Paul Riopelle, Dieppes (1965)
Price Realized: $130,500
    Jean Paul Riopelle, Dieppes (1965)
    Price Realized: $130,500

    A prominent member of the Automatistes, Jean Paul Riopelle’s Dieppes (1966) sold for $130,500, while his small but mighty painting, Sans titre, 1970, had collectors clambering, achieving a final selling price of $52,800. The works of Ted Harrison were again met with avid interest – Yukon Priest selling for $19,200 and The Walk finding a buyer at $10,200.

    The impressive results of the Fall Auction of Important Canadian Art are due to the active participation of both new and old bidders alike, as well as the unwavering support of the Canadian art community. We extend our sincere gratitude to the clients, bidders and buyers who helped to ensure that our Fall Live Auction was a triumph. 

    A.Y. Jackson, Ungava Bay
Price Realized: $48,000
    A.Y. Jackson, Ungava Bay
    Price Realized: $48,000

    The new year begins with an exciting season of online auctions, offering a wide range of artwork for all levels of collectors. The team at Cowley Abbott is already hard at work preparing the tremendous offerings to be presented in the Spring Live Auction of Important Canadian Art and we greatly look forward to sharing the catalogue in the coming months. Cowley Abbott is currently accepting consignments for its upcoming auctions and if you feel our firm can be of service, we would be pleased to provide a complimentary and confidential consultation. Please contact our specialists at 1-866-931-8415 or mail@cowleyabbott.ca

  • September Live Auction Achieves Strong Results for Canadian Historical, Post-War and Contemporary Artwork

    Rare & Exceptional Work Spanning More Than A Century of Canadian Art Draws Competition From In-Person, Telephone & Online Bidders

    The September 24th Cowley Abbott Fine Art Live Auction of Important Canadian and International Art held in the elegant Aria Ballroom of The Four Seasons Hotel in Yorkville was a resounding success. Exceptional artworks by Canada’s pre-eminent historical, post-war and contemporary artists achieved strong results for consignors, while collectors were connected with artworks of rarity and quality. 

    Frederick Banting, Cobalt (1932)
    Price Realized: $44,840

    Cowley Abbott was pleased to be entrusted with three significant works by the esteemed artist and physician, Sir Frederick Grant Banting. 2021 marks the centenary of the discovery of insulin by Banting, a momentous discovery that changed the lives of millions of people and for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1923. “Cobalt (1932)”, a striking canvas displaying Banting’s keen sense of colour, light and shadow sold for $44,840.  Two other paintings by the artist, including “Seville, Spain, 1933”, broke through its pre-sale estimate achieving $20,060, while “Birches, French River, 1930”, a quintessential work by the artist sold for $18,880. Brilliant results for this deserving historical Canadian icon. 

    Cornelius Krieghoff, Skinner’s Cave and Owl’s Head Mountain, Lake Memphremagog
    Price Realized: $47,200

    The September live auction witnessed solid prices for a wide range of historical Canadian works of art, including the work of: A.Y. Jackson (“St. Tites des Caps” fetching $21,240 and “Sugar Shanty, L’Islet” selling for $24,780); Marc-Aurèle Fortin (“La Seine à Paris” selling for $8,850); David Milne (“Fox Hill on a Rainy Day, Boston Corners”, a rare watercolour executed in 1920 fetched $82,600) and Robert Pilot (“Autumn Landscape” selling for $17,700). Among the strong selection of historical Canadian artworks included in the sale were works entrusted from the collection of Senator E. Leo Kolber, including a rare canvas by Cornelius Krieghoff, “Skinner’s Cave and Owl’s Head Mountain, Lake Memphremagog”. The rugged grandeur, tightly observed detail and sublime drama of this painting injects the work with a high romanticism that only Cornelius Kreighoff could accomplish. This fresh to auction painting garnered much attention from collectors during our bustling previews, fetching $47,200. “The Fruit Shop, Ottawa” by Kathleen Moir Morris, another important work from the collection of Senator Kolber, sold for $73,337.

    A key highlight in the auction were two exceptional watercolours by the celebrated Canadian artist, James Wilson Morrice. “Study for ‘The Pond, West Indies’” and “Study for ‘Village Street, West Indies’” are exemplary watercolours that showcase the artist’s technique and ability, acting as preparatory studies for the paintings in the collection of the Montreal Museum of Arts, which are among the best examples in the artist’s oeuvre. These special works made their debut at auction, finding new homes for over $22,000, respectively. 

    Norval Morrisseau, Untitled (Moose Pair)
    Price Realized: $35,400

    From the moment of publication of the auction online, interest and excitement surrounded three paintings by the renowned Indigenous artist, Norval Morrisseau. These fresh to auction works, all acquired directly from the artist, illustrate the artist’s powerful and unique style, drawn from Anishnaabe cultural traditions. Two striking paintings depicting Harriet Kakegamic, the artist’s wife, each sold for $25,960 after much spirited bidding, while the enigmatic and endearing “Untitled (Moose Pair)” soared to $35,400. 

    Doris McCarthy, Iceberg and Floes
    Price Realized: $47,200

    Cowley Abbott was delighted to offer numerous works by accomplished Canadian female artists, many of which garnered lively bidding during the September auction, notably, Molly Lamb Bobak’s energetic,“The Bike Race”. This work drew strong attention during the live auction preview season and it did not take long for competitive bidding to push the work well beyond the pre-sale expectation of $5,000-7,000, hammering down for $17,700. “Summer Landscape” by Nora Collyer followed suit, selling for $18,800; the electric canvas, “Abstraction”, by Rita Letendre fetched $25,960; the respected and loved Doris McCarthy had two works included in the sale – “Iceberg & Floes”, from her sought after Arctic series, which sold for $47,200, and an early work, “Two Boats at Barachois” selling for $9,440; while Maud Lewis achieved another remarkable result with “Three Black Cats” reaching $18,800. 

    Multiple key sculptures were featured in the September 24th catalogue auction, including two important bronzes by Sorel Etrog: “Petachon” sold for $8,260 and “Untitled” for $23,600. A dynamic steel sculpture by Walter Yarwood of Painter’s Eleven sold for $4,484. A beautifully carved 20th Century Chest, a popular object with collectors, soared to $14,160 after spirited bidding between the telephone and the room. 

    Guido Molinari, Tri-sériel rouge (1967)
    Price Realized: $82,600

    A variety of Post-War and Contemporary offerings captivated visitors attending the Cowley Abbott gallery during previews prior to the September evening sale. Guido Molinari’s “Tri-Sériel Rouge”, a late addition to the sale, garnered avid attention fetching $82,600 over the telephone; Jean McEwen’s enigmatic “Tableaux sans paroles #3” sold for $59,000; “Snow Play” by Ted Harrison, a favourite amongst collectors, climbed to $14,160; a painterly landscape by Gordon Smith sold for $23,600; Paterson Ewen’s “Untitled” fetched $14,160 and a quintessential work by Kazuo Nakamura sold for $28,320. 

    The Atlantic magic realists exceeded expectations with Tom Forrestall’s shaped canvas, “Orchard” selling for a final price of $9,440 and Christopher Pratt’s “1887 Orange 13 Cent Stamp” hammering down for $12,980 after competitive bidding. 

    We extend our thanks to the clients, bidders and buyers who helped to ensure that our September 24th Live auction was a triumph. We are already preparing a very exciting catalogue for the December Live Auction and look forward to sharing it with you. The fall auction season continues with The Canadian Landscape Online Auction running from October 20th-27th, followed by the November Auction of Canadian and International Art from November 10th-24th, taking place concurrently with the December Live Auction. 

    Cowley Abbott is currently accepting consignments for its upcoming auctions and if you feel our firm can be of service, we would be pleased to provide a complimentary and confidential consultation. Please contact our specialists at 1-866-931-8415 or mail@cowleyabbott.ca

  • Cowley Abbott Auction a Celebration of Canadian Female Painters

    Cowley Abbott’s Live Auction of Important Canadian and International Art, taking place on September 24th at the Royal Ontario Museum, includes numerous works by celebrated Canadian female artists. Women artists have had a monumental impact on Canadian art throughout the decades. These accomplished artists have enriched the practice of visual art with their unique voices and distinctive artistic styles, developing an important facet within the Canadian art world. The breadth and talent of these female artists, and their significance in the past, present and future, is essential to the captivating story of Canadian art-making and collecting.

    Rita Letendre, Abstraction (1974)
    Rita Letendre, Abstraction (1974)

    The critically acclaimed Rita Letendre, a prominent abstract artist, born of Abenaki and Quebecois heritage, has had a significant artistic career of various stylistic periods, spanning decades and various geographic placements. Letendre’s career in painting was cemented in Montreal in the 1950s when she became associated with two prominent abstract groups in Quebec, Les Automatistes and Les Plasticiens. Letendre was often the sole female artist within the shows for these groups, and eventually developed away from their approach to painting, finding it too restrictive. 

    Letendre’s large canvases of the 1970s explore her fascination with depicting speed and vibration. The use of airbrushed paint creates a dimension of depth in “Abstraction” (lot 48), while the dramatic shift in palette occurs when the black ‘arrow’, framed by two vivid neon green and bright pink stripes, constrained by turquoise and azure bands, slices through the surface of the work. The sharp lines of bright colour all converge to a single point at the tip of the black ‘arrow’ in these works, magnifying and concentrating the energy. Like the birth of a supernova, light and energy burst forth from the image plane in “Abstraction”.

    Joyce Wieland, Conversation Piece (1960)

    Joyce Wieland studied design at Central Technical School in Toronto, before working as a graphic designer in the early 1950s and developing her practice in visual art. Wieland lived and worked with other artists in Toronto, eventually meeting the noted Canadian artist, Michael Snow, who she went on to marry. Wieland’s artistic career began to develop in 1960 when she held her first solo show after being included in a number of group shows. We recognize Wieland’s contribution to Canadian art for her experimentation with film, and her numerous paintings, assemblages, and mixed media works depicting themes of erotism and feminism.  

    Between 1959 and 1960, Wieland set up a proper studio space, purchased canvases and supplies and started executing larger scale works. Representing the first suggestion of her artistic future, the provocative works often featured phalluses, vaginas and hearts rendered in a humorous cartoon-like representation. Exploring this new lexicon, Wieland called these works her “sex poetry”. During a time where the female subjugation from her male contemporaries was celebrated, Wieland turned the tables and gazed at the male with the same liberty and lust automatically afforded to these male artists. “’Conversation Piece’ with a Short on Sailing” (lot 51) exemplifies this cheeky and boundary pushing question of gender politics. 

    Molly Lamb Bobak, The Bike Race

    A trailblazer for women in the arts in Canada, Molly Lamb Bobak was an official war artist, stationed in England during the Second World War. Bobak had initially enlisted as a draftswoman in the Canadian Women’s Army Corps (CWAC), documenting the day to day activities of her fellow corps members. Having exhibited at the Canadian Army Art exhibition in 1944, Bobak was awarded a prize for her work leading to her appointment as a war artist between 1945 and 1946. 

    Bobak often gravitated towards depictions of crowd scenes, as she was inspired by the celebratory victory parades of the Allied Forces at the end of the war. The communal gathering and subsequent energy created in a crowd fascinated the artist and this interest was further explored when Bobak returned to Canada to begin teaching at the University of New Brunswick. Frequenting pubs, sporting events, parades and student rallies, the campus environment offered Bobak ample inspiration and the opportunity to capture the essence of the crowd scene unfolding. “The Bike Race” (lot 2) is a charming work; the canvas captures the movement and frenzy of a bike race, as cyclists round a corner with exaggerated leaning bodies and dots of bright colour stipple the landscape.

    Dorothy Knowles, Reeds (1979)

    Dorothy Knowles grew up on a farm overlooking a Prairie valley in Saskatchewan and initially had no plans to become a painter, studying biology at the University of Saskatchewan. At the time of her graduation, a friend persuaded her to enroll in a six-week summer course given by the University of Saskatchewan at Emma Lake, where Knowles found a proclivity for art. Her participation in the Emma Lake Workshops in the late 1940s through to the 1960s greatly influenced and encouraged her interest in landscape painting. 

    In the 1960s Knowles discovered the importance of working directly from nature, while also employing the use of sketches and photographs to finish her work in the studio. Her paintings capture the richness of the Prairie landscape through exploration of colour and texture. In “Reeds” (lot 71), Knowles transmits the diverse natural environment of the landscape. Often associated with paintings of expansive flat fields of wheat, Knowles brings a fresh approach to capturing her native landscape, exploring an impressionistic view of a diverse marshy landscape.

    Nora Collyer, Summer Landscape

    In 1921 Nora Collyer joined fellow Art Association of Montreal graduates at their studio at 305 Beaver Hill Hall. This association of artists called themselves the Beaver Hall Group. The three-story house offered the artists inexpensive studio space and a large room on the ground floor, which served as their exhibition gallery. The Beaver Hall group of modernist painters had a distinctive style rooted in the life and culture of Montreal and Quebec. 

    Growing up in Montreal with English Protestant parents, Collyer was imbued with a strong sense of community and gravitated towards depicting village landscapes and tokens of rural communities. With a richly composed foreground and a distant village depicted by the shore, “Summer Landscape” (lot 68) is executed with bold colour and rhythmic form, expressing her love of the region. 

    Kathleen Morris, The Fruit Shop, Ottawa

    Kathleen Moir Morris studied under William Brymner and Maurice Cullen at the school of the Art Association of Montreal, and became a prominent member of the Beaver Hall Group in 1920. Working in oil, her subjects include landscape, genre, street and market scenes, as well as cabstands throughout Montreal and its environs. Morris was born with a physical disability, but refused to let it prevent her from painting outdoors in all seasons. After her father passed away in 1914, Morris moved to Ottawa with her mother a few years later, residing in a house on O’Connor Street from 1922 to 1929. The painter maintained an active presence in the Montreal art scene while living in Ottawa, continuing to participate in Beaver Hall exhibitions as well as those of the Canadian Group of Painters.

    Morris would have frequented the Byward Market, still a bustling and popular destination to this day. In “The Fruit Shop, Ottawa” (lot 17), she depicts the sun shining on a fruit stand, busy with market goers in stylish 1920s attire. The crates of produce are colourful and warmly lit, as is the teal awning framing the upper border of the composition. Morris chose a bright and modern palette, synonymous with her body of work and that of the Beaver Hall Group. She painted from sketches, in which she simplified the forms and applied colour in bold, thick patches, visible in the faceless figures and abstracted fruit and vegetables.

    Laura Muntz, The Handmaiden (1900)

    Laura Muntz, born in Warwickshire, England, and came to Canada as a child with her family to settle on a farm in the backwoods of the Muskoka District. She became a school teacher in Hamilton, Ontario, and in her spare hours took art classes. With money saved from her teaching job she studied for a short time at the South Kensington School of Art, England about 1887. She returned to Canada and spent the next seven years earning money for study in Paris at the Academie Colorossi. Muntz also travelled in Holland and Italy and at the end of seven years returned to Toronto and opened a studio. 

    Muntz was first exposed to the tenets of Impressionism while undertaking artistic training in Paris from 1891-1898. She then adopted the use of light and open, fluid brushwork in her own compositions. The rich tones of Muntz’s swift brushwork in “Girl with Blue Bowl” (lot 58) creates a sensation of gentleness and warmth, reflecting Muntz’s genuine interest in the aesthetic representation of children. Although sadly childless herself, Muntz lived a life surrounded by children. She was a schoolteacher upon moving to Canada, and later became the caregiver of her deceased sister’s eleven children. Muntz’s depiction of domestic scenes not only reveal a consistent study of her most treasured subjects, women and children, but illustrate the female experience of Canada in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

    Maud Lewis, Sandy Cove

    Maud was born in South Ohio, a community near Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. Born disfigured with sloped shoulders and her chin resting on her chest, Maud led a confined but happy home life after she quit school at 14. Physical deformity may have been her lot, but even more tragic was the loss of both her parents within two years. Thankfully, an aunt who lived in Digby took her in. There she would later answer a newspaper ad that would determine the course of her life. A man named Everett Lewis wanted a housekeeper for his cottage in Marshalltown. She married him in 1938 at the age of thirty-four and would never travel more than an hour’s drive from her birthplace. Maud gathered images from her happy childhood and limited excursions in a Model T with Everett to paint cheerful images on dust pans, scallop shells and even on her house. They would settle into a routine where Everett enjoyed peddling and haggling over the paintings Maud would love to paint. The happiness she painted first attracted neighbours, then tourists and eventually even international attention. It started with a Star Weekly newspaper article and then a 1965 CBC Telescope program featuring her unique works. Her notoriety began to bloom and orders came in so fast that the paint hardly had time to dry. 

    Maud Lewis, Three Black Cats

    The simplicity of Maud Lewis’ paintings, brushed initially with scrounged paint from local fishermen onto ubiquitous green boards and postcards, continue to evoke feelings of innocence, of child-like exuberance as enduring as the spring times she loved to paint. Her works, such as “Three Black Cats” (lot 61) and “Sandy Cove” (lot 62) continue to capture audiences intrigued by everyday scenes as diverse as three black cats, hard-working oxen, whimsical butterflies and harbour scenes. 

    Henrietta Mabel May, Farmstead, Eastern Townships

    Following studies at the Art Association of Montreal, Mabel May and fellow graduate, Emily Coonan, travelled to France to study. She and Coonan travelled widely in Europe, visiting galleries, museums and sketching, becoming a devote of the Impressionists. Upon her return to Montreal, and with her fellow AAM graduates, May helped establish the Beaver Hall Group in 1920, and in 1933 she became a founding member of the Canadian Group of Painters. 

    Embracing the francophone tradition of depicting inhabited landscapes, “Farmstead, Eastern Townships” (lot 65) showcases May’s ability to arrange colour to accentuate the weighty mass of the farm structures, while maintaining a sense of lightness in the warm colour palette. Bold strokes of red, ochre and chartreuse imbue the work with warmth, light and vibrancy, highlighting the beauty of the rural scene.

    Doris McCarthy, Iceberg & Floes (1998)

    Doris McCarthy – lot 8 and lot 87 images and cataloguing 

    Born in Calgary and raised in Toronto, Doris McCarthy is recognized as one of Canada’s foremost landscape painters. A teacher at both the Ontario College of Art and Central Technical School, McCarthy spent most of her life living and working in Scarborough, Ontario though she enjoyed many painting adventures across Canada and abroad. In some instances, McCarthy painted on site, and other times she took photographs to refer to later in her studio. 

    Doris McCarthy, Two Boats at Barachois (1934)

    Painting mainly in oils and watercolours, McCarthy developed a personal style that was consistently praised for its vitality, boldness and skillful explorations of hard-edged angles, form and colour. “Two Boats at Barachois” (lot 87) demonstrates this confidence and the aptitude of McCarthy’s brush. McCarthy is probably best-known for her Canadian landscapes and her depictions of Arctic icebergs. In 1972, the year of her retirement from teaching, Doris made her first of many trips to the Canadian Arctic. McCarthy was fascinated with the topography of this territory and the new painting opportunities it provided her. Her paintings of icebergs and the Arctic landscape, including “Iceberg & Floes” (lot 8), are considered to be among the artist’s best known and most celebrated works.