TORONTO — Canvases by leading figures in the U.S. and Canada’s abstract art movements are expected to fetch seven figures apiece at a Toronto-based auction.
A major work by American abstract expressionist Robert Motherwell is set to command the Heffel Fine Art Auction House’s spring sale Wednesday.
Auctioneers expect Motherwell’s 1972 canvas “August Sea #5” will hammer down for between $2 million and $2.5 million.
Quebec abstractionist Jean-Paul Riopelle has six works on offer ahead of the centennial celebration of his birth next year.
Riopelle’s 1953 palette-knife with drip canvas, “Sans titre,” is estimated to garner between $1 million and $1.5 million.
Heffel projects the 79 works in its spring catalogue will net between $10 million and $15 million. All estimates include auction house fees on top of the hammer price.
Heffel’s digital showroom will be streamed from Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver as buyers place bids online, by phone or in absentia.
Other highlights from the sale include:
– Four works by the Group of Seven’s Lawren Harris, including a depiction of the Rocky Mountains, “Mountain Sketch,” which is estimated to fetch between $500,000 and $700,000.
– Canadian artist Alex Colville’s “Coastal Figure,” painted in 1951 shortly after his return from the Second World War, is estimated to sell for between $650,000 and $850,000.
– Quebec artist Rita Letendre, who died late last year, will be represented at the auction with “Reflet d’Eden,” which is estimated to go for between $100,000 and $150,000.
– “Saint Lucian Blue,” a monochromatic canvas from Trinidad-based contemporary artist Chris Ofili’s “The Blue Rider Series,” is expected to hammer down for between $350,000 and $450,000.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 31, 2022.
