NEW HAMBURG, Canada – A painting by acclaimed Canadian folk artist Maud Lewis (1903-1980) titled Winter Sleigh Ride; an exquisite circa-1930 mixed media diorama by Adelard Brousseau of Quebec, titled Maple Sugar Time; and an acrylic on paper by Canadian Woodland artist Norval Morrisseau (1932-2007), titled Ancestral Visitors, are a few of the expected top lots in Miller & Miller Auctions’ online-only Canadiana & Folk Art auction on Saturday, October 8. All estimates quoted in this report are in Canadian dollars. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
The 346-lot auction, which will begin at 9 am Eastern time, features a fresh-to-the-market offering of Canadiana and folk art representing some of the oldest collections in the country. The backbone of the sale is provided by the collection of Jim Fleming, the former Canadian broadcaster and member of the House of Commons (1972-1984).
Fleming’s search for Canada’s best folk art began in the 1970s. Much of what he offers is fully documented, and his collection consists of world-class walking sticks and folk art carvings. Also offered will be Canadiana and folk art from Marty Osler, including outsider art, as well as items from the collection of Susan Murray, which includes the aforementioned Adelard Brousseau diorama.
There are 11 Maud Lewis paintings in the auction, with Winter Sleigh Ride an expected top earner. Estimated at $20,000-$25,000, the circa-1955 mixed media on beaverboard is a delightful and early Christmas season scene, similar to a later image used for a series of Canadian postage stamps.
Adelard Brousseau’s Maple Sugar Time is a wonderful rendition of a traditional Quebec rural scene, and carries an estimate of $18,000-$25,000. Brousseau created the diorama by meticulously carving the figures, the tools and animals in the scene, one by one. Brousseau was an accomplished artist, jeweler, stone carver and contractor.
Norval Morrisseau’s Ancestral Visitors, dating to 1998, is a pleasantly complicated piece that reflects the continuance of life in the body of one animal while showing a connection to other life and spirit forms. The work has an estimate of $12,000-$15,000. Also, a house paint on plywood Portrait of a Man by the American outsider artist Purvis Young (1943-2010), is estimated at $3,000-$4,000.
Beautifully-carved wooden walking sticks from the Jim Fleming collection will be led by a circa-1920s ladies’ example attributed to Willard MacKenzie of Nova Scotia. It has a compressed ball top and two well-carved painted bathers carrying what looks to be a basket below. Its estimate is $4,000-$6,000.
Another artisanal standout is a circa-1920 exuberantly decorated pine shelf in red, black and cream paint, with crosshatched carving, scalloping and painted decoration. It was created in Quebec and is estimated at $3,500-$5,000.
A circa-1900 painted sign for the Maple Leaf Grocery, originating from a Guelph, Ontario firm, with gold lettering against a textured smaltz black ground, has an estimate of $2,000-$3,500; while a circa-1885 documented folk art carved shelf made in Hamilton, Ontario and commemorating Canada’s famous oarsman, Ned Hanlan, with his name carved in a banner above an image of the rower, is estimated at $1,500-$2,000.
To consign a single piece, an estate or a collection, call Miller & Miller Auctions, Ltd., at 519-573-3710, or email info@millerandmillerauctions.com. To learn more about Miller & Miller Auctions, Ltd., please visit www.millerandmillerauctions.com.
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The current rate of exchange is dollar CA 1 = 74 cents.
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