Click the profile button in the top-right corner of the website.
Click on Create Account below the Login button.
Select either Create Account or Continue with Google.
Complete the relevant fields. Those marked with a red asterisk are required.
Click Create Account at the bottom of the form (in red).
Alternatively, select Continue with Google.
Agree to the terms and conditions by clicking Continue.
Your account will be created simultaneously with Cowley Abbott and Auction Mobility (bidding platform). You should receive an ‘account successfully created’ confirmation.
If using the first method Create Account, you should receive a confirmation email with a link to log in to the Cowley Abbott website using the same email address and password you entered on the form.
If using the second method, Continue with Google, you will receive a confirmation email with a password to log in to Auction Mobility (the bidding platform), as sign-in with Google is not available.
These credentials are valid for both the Cowley Abbott and Auction Mobility websites.
Read our step-by-step guide to what to expect when bidding in an online auction.
If you are logged in and your credit card and address details are complete on the bidding platform (Auction Mobility), you will be able to place a bid.
Bidding opens at the start time. Lots are viewable and a countdown is shown beforehand.
From our website, you can select any item from an auction and select the Bid Now button.
After selecting the Bid Now button, you will be automatically taken to our bidding platform hosted by Auction Mobility.
If you are the winning bidder, an automatic deposit of 10% of the hammer price will be charged to the credit card listed in your Auction Mobility profile. A member of our team will then contact you to organize the final payment and the collection or shipment of your artwork.
How to place a maximum bid?
Once the auction opens, you will be able to place a maximum bid.
Click Place Bid to view the dropdown menu of Bidding Increments. For further information, consult our How to Buy section.
Select the maximum bid you wish to set.
The green check mark indicates the selected maximum bid. This will instruct the bidding platform to place bids on your behalf until your maximum bid is reached or until you win the lot at a lower hammer price.
You can edit your maximum bid by clicking on Edit Bid.
It is best to update your password from Cowley Abbott’s website as that will update your Auction Mobility Password simultaneously.
Login to Cowley Abbott and click on the user/person silhouette in the upper right corner. The dropdown menu has an option to change password or reset your password using a One Time Passcode (OTP).
To change your password you need to enter your current password and the new password (twice).
To reset your password, click the button to receive a one time passcode which will be sent to the email address associated with the account.
Then simply enter the passcode you receive on the Verify OTP screen and you will be automatically redirected to enter your new password (twice).
The collection of Fred & Beverly Schaeffer is among the best-known private assemblages of artwork in Canada. Meticulously collected and beloved by the family for over sixty years, the paintings and sculpture are rare and important examples by our country’s most celebrated historical artists, featuring masterpieces by Paul Kane, Cornelius Krieghoff, J.W. Morrice, each of the ten members of the Group of Seven, Clarence Gagnon, David Milne, and many, many others. The collection has been featured in major national and international exhibitions, as well as illustrated in textbooks. The artworks are highly coveted for their museum-quality and rarity within the auction market.
Clarence Gagnon, The Ice Harvest, Quebec, 1935 Price Realized: $984,000
Cowley Abbott was privileged to be awarded the collection on consignment from the Schaeffers during the summer of 2022, and our team immediately began work on a plan to effectively offer the 159 works of art across three live auction seasons, from Fall 2022 through the Fall 2023 season. The collection was divided across the three catalogue sales, and our firm employed leading Canadian art academics to tell the story of these incredible artworks, the great majority of which were appearing at auction for the first time.
Helen McNicoll, The Chintz Sofa, c. 1912 Price Realized: $888,000
Cowley Abbott designed an extensive eighteen-month program of collector events, promotional materials, and media outreach that excited the Canadian auction and culture industries. With a strong focus upon the artwork itself, the Schaeffer series of sales was a celebration of Canadian art, our country’s history, and the collectors themselves, Fred and Beverly having selflessly shared their works of art to appear in books and exhibitions around the globe that focused upon the very best of Canada’s art. The sales captured the attention and excitement of the public and, importantly, collectors of rare Canadian artwork.
Frederic Varley, Sun and Wind, Georgian Bay, 1916 or 1920 Price Realized: $984,000
A.Y. Jackson, Tadenac, November Price Realized: $936,000
When the final gavel fell during the evening of December 6th, 2023, the Collection of Fred and Beverly Schaeffer had grossed over $36 million, an auction record for the sale of a private collection of Canadian art. 95% of the artwork successfully found buyers, with three-quarters of those works exceeding the high-end of pre-sale expectations. Twenty-nine artist records were smashed across the three sales, the Schaeffer sales injecting renewed interest and enthusiasm for a variety of historical Canadian art at auction.
Robert Clow Todd, Corbeau at Montmorency Falls, 1845 Price Realized: $744,000
Cowley Abbott is privileged to have handled these artworks and is thrilled to find them new homes. One of the most enjoyable aspects of our live auctions is allowing the public to experience these masterful artworks for a brief period before they pass into new hands. Several of the works were offered for the first time, and many for the last time, during this generation. We are grateful to our wonderful consignors, collectors, and the Canadian art community for its continued support and participation throughout a momentous and record-breaking period for Cowley Abbott.
Leading to Wednesday’s Fall Live Auction, Rob Cowley returned to BNN Bloomberg to chat with The Open’s Paul Bagnell, discussing the current art auction market in Canada. Click above to watch the segment.
