Spring & Summer 2023 IN REVIEW
As we reflect on the highlights and memorable moments that have shaped the first half of the year in the Canadian art market, we hope this finds you enjoying the summer sunshine with your family and friends. We are delighted to bring you a recap of an exhilarating auction season at Heffel, filled with exceptional artworks, spirited bidding and significant milestones.
Heffel’s marquee spring auction took place on May 25 in Toronto, and saw recordbreaking sales that underscored the vitality of the art market in Canada. Following wellattended previews across the country in Calgary, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto, we presented the curated collection to a global audience, live from our brand new Yorkville auction room, highlighted by fresh-to-themarket masterpieces by Emily Carr, Alex Colville, Lawren Harris and E.J. Hughes, among many others. It was truly an unforgettable sale; the auction room buzzed with excitement and enthusiasm as it overflowed with passionate bidders who, along with participants on the phone and through Heffel’s Digital Saleroom, propelled the sale to success. As esteemed works found their homes, new benchmarks were set, signifying the unwavering appetite for Canadian and international masterworks. The sale resulted in an industryhigh success rate of 95%.
Alex Colville’s June Noon led the auction, after surpassing the $ 2 million mark amidst intense bidding. This commanding painting, consigned from the renowned Langen Collection in Europe, where it resided for more than 50 years, thoughtfully portrays the artist and his wife, Rhoda. Produced in 1963, the important work first garnered attention when it was exhibited at the 1966 Venice Biennale, and has been highly sought after and widely exhibited ever since. Emily Carr’s striking Sitka Totem Pole, E.J. Hughes’s exceptional Abandoned Village, Rivers Inlet, BC and Lawren Harris’s Northern Image each exceeded $ 1 million, and Andy Warhol’s Bald Eagle set a global auction record for the iconic screenprint.
Online Auction Milestones and Updates
Our online auctions have exceeded expectations this year, driven by our user-friendly platform, a diverse selection of works and
significant global participation, benefiting both consignors and collectors. Our monthly sales over the last few months have featured specialty sessions across a number of important focuses and categories, including our recordbreaking Asian Art sale; Pop Art Prints & International Graphics, featuring some of the biggest names in the international art market; 100 Years of Riopelle, celebrating the artist’s centenary; and Pioneering Women of Canadian Art, to name just a few. As we look ahead at our summer and fall seasons, we are excited to continue breaking the mold in the online auction sector, and bring fresh and exciting sales to our growing audience of budding and seasoned collectors.
The Heffel team is deeply grateful to our consignors for the trust and confidence placed in our expertise, and we are honoured to have played a part in connecting so many
extraordinary works with their new owners. The outstanding results achieved in our recent online and live sales reflect the impressive artworks on offer, the passion of collectors across the world, and the vibrant and incredibly strong auction market. We look forward to sharing more incredible works with you over the next few months.
Fafard & Friends: A Selling Exhibition
This July, we are very pleased to present a fantastic touring exhibition of works by late artist
and our friend Joe Fafard. On now at Heffel Calgary’s impressive new exhibition and storage space on Manning Road, it includes lifetime works as well as recent posthumous castings from Julienne Atelier, Fafard’s foundry. A wide-ranging showcase of both sculpture and prints, the exhibition features some of the artist’s final artworks, including Selfie, the Picasso etching suite, and Picasso on a Chair. The exhibition catalogue contains an essay by Fafard scholar Terrence Heath, a remembrance of the artist by David Heffel, and a statement by Phil Tremblay, Manager and Director of Operations at Julienne Atelier. The show will tour to Heffel Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto following its first run at Heffel Calgary, from July 12 to 21, 2023.
Exceptional Exhibitions
The Heffel Foundation is proud to support a number of very exciting exhibitions throughout the remainder of 2023, taking place at renowned institutions across Canada.
Heffel is thrilled to be a Supporting Sponsor for the groundbreaking Art Gallery of Ontario exhibition Cassatt – McNicoll: Impressionists Between Worlds. The phenomenal show, featuring the work of American Impressionist painter Mary Cassatt alongside masterpieces by Canada’s Helen McNicoll, a number of
On now at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection is Tom Thomson: North Star, a show we are very proud to sponsor. The touring exhibition is truly a must-see; it examines Thomson’s legacy as Canada’s pre-eminent modern painter through his incredibly rare and important canvases and sketches. The works will be on view at the McMichael until January 2024 before the show travels to the Audain Art Museum and the Art Gallery of Alberta.
We will also be providing support for two very exciting exhibitions opening this fall, namely Unexpected: The Life and Art of Sophie Pemberton, Canadian Artist at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria (September 2023 – January 2024) and Françoise Sullivan “I let rhythms flow” at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (November 2023 – February 2024).
Remembering Dorothy Knowles (1927 – 2023)
With the passing of Dorothy Knowles, Canada lost its premier painter of light. Knowles dedicated her life to expressing the ephemeral subtlety of prairie light and the expansive
grandeur of western Canada. The modernity of her approach transcended the locales of her subject matter and brought her international acclaim. In oil and acrylic, whether with dexterous impasto or subtle washes of colour, her paintings convey both immensity and intimacy. The same can be said of her watercolours, a medium which she mastered and which was at the heart of her practice. As was true of her husband, William Perehudoff, she was greatly influenced by the famous Emma Lake Workshops in north-central Saskatchewan. Attended by art-world luminaries such as Clement Greenberg and Kenneth Noland, these annual events vitally connected the couple with the cutting edge of global modernism. Knowles’s contribution to painting in Canada is vast and irreplaceable.
In September of 2022, it was Heffel’s honour to present Qualities of Light, an enthusiastically received exhibition chronicling nearly 60 years of Knowles’s exceptional career. We
are equally proud to be presenting Looking West, an intimate selection of Knowles’s depictions of Alberta and British Columbia, taking place at Heffel Vancouver from September 9 to 23.
Knowles’s life and work will also be celebrated this fall at the Kenderdine Gallery at the University of Saskatchewan with Dorothy Knowles: By the Water, opening September 15.
Centennial Celebrations:
Jean Paul RiopelleThis year marks 100 years since the birth of Jean Paul Riopelle, one of Canada’s most important artists, beloved around the world. In celebration of the centenary, the international art world is coming together to commemorate Riopelle’s legacy with a number of major
invit A tion to C on S ign
We are now accepting artworks for our fall auctions, including:
Post-War & Contemporary Art
Canadian, Impressionist & Modern Art
International Graphics & Pop Art Prints
Asian Art and more
Heffel auctions are inclusive of international works of art
shows and events scheduled throughout 2023 and beyond. The attention being awarded to Riopelle is unprecedented for any artist in Canadian history and will showcase his remarkable talent and artistic journey through a variety of experiences, and to different audiences.
For many years, Heffel has been dedicated to supporting and promoting Riopelle’s legacy within the context of Canadian art and the broader global market, through funding for publications, exhibitions, events and other initiatives. This year, we are excited and proud to provide support for a major retrospective of Riopelle’s work organized by the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa. Riopelle: Crossroads in Time will open in October 2023 and will include works sourced from private collections around the world as well as the museum’s own outstanding permanent collection.
We are thrilled to share that Heffel is building and curating a special private sale and auction event celebrating Riopelle’s centenary this fall, featuring works of all mediums and periods. Please contact our specialists if you are interested in consigning to this exciting sale.
Keep your eyes peeled for other very exciting announcements from our team as we keep the Riopelle celebrations going. We can’t wait to share these updates with you!
Looking Ahead
As we dive into a full slate of exciting auctions throughout the remainder of the year, Heffel is currently seeking consignments for the fall 2023 auction season, inclusive of international works of art. The deadline to consign to our marquee fall auction of Canadian, Impressionist & Modern Art and Post-War & Contemporary Art is August 25, 2023.
Thank you all so very much for your continued support this year. We wish you a wonderful summer with your friends and family, and look forward to seeing you again and making new memories with important artworks this fall.