NEW HAMBURG, Canada – A pair of paintings by the Canadian folk artist Maud Lewis (1901-1970) blasted through their pre-sale estimates to finish at a combined $501,500 (about $390,000), and a group of letters written by Lewis to a fellow artist and confidante hit $82,600 in an online Canadiana & Decorative Arts auction held May 14 by Miller & Miller Auctions, Ltd. All sums given in this story are in Canadian dollars.