News Release

Three Paintings Top the Million Dollar Mark
at Heffel's $21.8 Million Spring Auction

For immediate release:
Vancouver, B.C. - May 26, 2010

On Wednesday night, Heffel Fine Art Auction House held the second highest yielding Canadian fine art auction in history. The auction, the first of Canada's major spring auctions featured 220 lots, three of which sold for more than a million dollars. The $21.8 million sales total is a firm indication that Canada's fine art market is thriving.

The highlight of the auction involved a spirited bidding war for a striking oil on canvas by Lawren Harris titled Bylot Island I. The rare and striking canvas ended up selling for $2.8 million (all lots include a 17 per cent buyers' premium). Nine Harris works were up for auction tonight - two surpassed the million dollar mark. In addition to Bylot Island I, Arctic Sketch IX, a 12 by 15 inch oil on board sold for $1,521,000. Other Harris' works included Winter, an oil on board, signed and dated 1914, which sold for $731,250; and Mountain Sketch LXX, an oil on board that sold for $497,250.

"We were very fortunate to have several quality Harris lots in our sale," says David Heffel, president of Heffel Fine Art Auction House. "Lawren Harris was once quoted for saying 'we lived in a continuous blaze of enthusiasm... Above all we loved this country and loved exploring and painting it...' Tonight's auction proves that we not only appreciate great Canadian artists like Harris, but we also value them."

Tonight's sales result of $21.8 million was well past the $12-$15-million presale estimate. The Canadian Post-War & Contemporary Art session, which commenced at 4 p.m. PST, had sales totalling $4.7 million. The second session of Fine Canadian Art began at 7 p.m. PST and had a sales total of $17.1 million. The final session was held before a crowd of more than 400 people at the Vancouver Convention Centre.

Tonight's auction featured works from the estates of architect Arthur Erickson, Theodosia Dawes Bond Thornton and works from a Canadian philanthropist, who wishes to remain anonymous. Proceeds from the philanthropist will be donated to charity.

Of the 13 new records set tonight, two were for Arthur Lismer works. The Sheep's Nose, Bon Echo, an oil on canvas surpassed both its previous record of $350,000 and estimate of $700,000 to $900,000, selling for $1.1 million to a major Canadian museum. Well - That's That, a charcoal and pastel on paper, sold for a record $17,550. In total, 11 Lismer lots sold for a combined value of more than $1.7 million.

Ten Emily Carr paintings were on the auction block as well as two small Klee Wyck pieces. Two standouts amongst the Carr works are Emily and Lizzie and Stumps, from the Clarke family of Clarke, Irwin & Company Limited, who published Carr's books. Emily and Lizzie, a 19 by 26 1/4 inch self-portrait of Carr and her sister, sold for $468,000. Stumps, a 20 by 27 inch, oil on canvas, circa 1936, is a mature period Carr canvas and sold for $555,750.

Other Carr pieces included Landscape and Sky, an oil on canvas, which sold for $280,800; Young Arbutus, an oil on paper on board, that had a hammer price of $468,000; and West Coast Forest - Metchosin, an oil on paper on board, which sold for $222,300.

"Tonight's auction was one of our finest collections of artwork to date, featuring a number of Group of Seven canvases and exceptional Carr works," says Robert Heffel, principal, Heffel Fine Art Auction House. "This $21.8 million sale is an historic night for our business and a record night for Canadian Art."

Highpoints in the first session included the sale of a Bill Reid sculpture entitled Killer Whale (Chief of the Undersea World) that sold for $702,000. This sculpture attracted numerous bids before it exceeded the previous Reid record of $414,500, which was also set by Heffel in 2002. Another first session new record was Jean McEwen's Rouge sur rouge. This 1962 stunning red abstract oil on canvas surpassed its conservative estimate $60,000 to $80,000, selling for an impressive $117,000.

Another strong price was witnessed with, the sale of Jean Paul Lemieux's Ti-Gus. This oil on canvas - which was also featured on the cover of the Canadian Post-War & Contemporary Art catalogue - sold for a record $672,500.

A 60 by 44 3/4 inch Gordon Smith acrylic on canvas also made fine art history selling for a record $128,700. Cypress Creek is an outstanding canvas that represents a highly significant time in Smith's oeuvre. The forest works of the late 1980s and early 1990s are seen as important for his explorations of looseness of form, expressive brushwork and a rich deep colour palette.

In the two sessions, 43 paintings exceeded the $100,000 mark and 13 records were set. The average price per lot sold was $111,500.

The complete list of new Canadian fine art records follows below. High resolution images of the top paintings in the auction can be sent on request.

Information on the pieces and artists can also be found at www.heffel.com.

New Records set in Heffel's May 26, 2010 Fine Art Auction

These are the 13 new records set at today's Heffel Post-War & Contemporary Art and Fine Canadian Art auction. All prices include the 17 per cent buyers' premium added to the hammer price.

	Claude Tousignant Lot 2 Double 36 (Mars Phthalocyanine) Previous record: $15,000 hammer New record: $49,725		Gordon Appelbe Smith Lot 10 Cypress Creek Previous record: $27,500 hammer (Heffel record) New record: $128,700
	Jean Albert McEwen Lot 11 Rouge sur rouge Previous record: $95,000 hammer New record: $117,000		Jean Paul Lemieux Lot 19 Ti-Gus Previous record: $400,000 hammer New record: $672,750
	Chris Cran Lot 22 Self-Portrait with the Combat Nymphos of Saigon New record: $43,875		William Ronald (Bill) Reid Lot 34 Killer Whale (Chief of the Undersea World) Previous record: $360,000 hammer (Heffel record) Record for a Canadian sculpture: $360,000 New record: $702,000
	Fernand Toupin Lot 45 Île sous le vent Previous record: $6,500 hammer (Heffel record) New record: $16,380		Eldon Grier Lot 73 Street Scene, Montreal Previous record: $500 hammer (Heffel record) New record: $1,404
	Walter Joseph (W.J.) Phillips Lot 101 Mamalilicoola, BC Previous record for a print: $20,000 hammer (Heffel record) New record: $40,950		Arthur Lismer Lot 107 Well - That's That Previous record for a drawing: $8,300 hammer New record: $17,550
	Paul Rand Lot 110 Rest Previous record: $13,000 hammer New record: $46,800		Albert Henry Robinson Lot 123 St-Urbain Previous record: $290,000 hammer (Heffel record) New record: $614,250
	Arthur Lismer Lot 153 The Sheep's Nose, Bon Echo Previous record: $350,000 hammer New record: $1,111,500

For more information contact:
Ross Sullivan / Julia Smith
Peak Communicators (for Heffel Fine Art Auction House)
cell: (604) 802 7139 (on site during auction)
office: (604) 689 5559
email: rsullivan@peakco.com / jsmith@peakco.com

Heffel Fine Art Auction House - Canada's National Fine Art Auction House