TORONTO — First Arts Premiers has announced its March Inuit and First Nations Art sale for Thursday, March 21, featuring many of the most respected names in native and tribal art in Canada. The catalog is now available for review and bidding at LiveAuctioneers.
Kenojuak Ashevak (1927-2013) was an illustrator of Inuit origin, born in an igloo on Baffin Island. Her works have been collected for decades and remain in high demand today. Spirit Owl (CA$4,000-CA$6,000 or $2,955-$4,430) is a circa-1963 colored pencil on paper measuring 20 by 20.75in. With 13 works in the sale, she is well represented across the 79 total lots. Spectacular Ravens is a 2003 stonecut print numbered 5 from a run of 50. Measuring 25.25 by 32in, it is estimated at CA$1,500-CA$2,500 ($1,110-$1,845).
The Haida tribal community is from the archipelago off the coast of British Columbia. Bill Reid (1920-1998) is a well-known Haida craftsman who reconnected with his tribal past in his twenties. This grizzly bear brooch or pendant by Reid is from the early 1950s. Made from silver and measuring just 1.88in in diameter, it was a commission by Isaac Hans as a gift to his daughter, Gladys (Jiixa) Vandal, a Haida weaver. It descends from the family with an estimate of CA$7,000-CA$10,000 ($5,170-$7,385).
Beau Dick (1955-2017) was a member of the British Columbian Kwakwaka’wakw tribe. His ‘wild man mask’, named Bookwoos, dates to 1984 and is composed of yellow cedar wood, acrylic paint, and synthetic hair. Its estimate is CA$6,000-CA$9,000 ($4,430-$6,650).
Drum Dancing Bear is a stone sculpture from Inuit artist Padlaya Qiatsuk (b. 1965-). Standing an impressive 18in in height, the sculpture is from a private Australian collection and is estimated at CA$3,500-CA$5,000 ($2,585-$3,695).
No First Nation auction is complete without some totem representation. Kwakwaka’wakw tribal member Jimmy Seaweed built this 20in totem pole model at some point in the 1960s. It features an eagle over a bear holding a seal, and its painting suggests a Gilford Island origin. It is estimated at CA$1,200-CA$1,800 ($885-$1,330).
