Lawren Harris, Jean Paul Riopelle paintings on display at Heffel Gallery before November auction
Two works by Group of Seven founder Lawren Harris and a major Riopelle abstract are previewing in Calgary this weekend before heading to auction in Toronto on November 18.
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Two oil-on-board paintings by Lawren Harris—the Group of Seven founder—and a major abstract work by Jean Paul Riopelle are on display at Heffel Gallery in Calgary this weekend as part of a four-city preview tour ahead of a November 18 auction in Toronto.
Harris's Mount Leah, Maligne Lake (1924) and Cathedral Mountain from the Opabin, Mountain Sketch XVII (1926) are both estimated to fetch between $250,000 and $350,000 each. The National Gallery of Canada describes Mount Leah, Maligne Lake as a "cool and cerebral painting" that "emphasizes the mystical within nature, its staying power and force." It was first shown at the Group of Seven's annual exhibition in Toronto in 1925.
Riopelle's Brumaire (1953), an oil on canvas, is valued between $1.5 and $2 million. According to Christie's, it is an "explosive abstract painting" that was part of the Montreal-born artist's debut American solo show in New York in 1954.
The preview also features Emily Carr's Alert Bay (with Welcome Figure) (1912), estimated at $1 to $1.5 million; E.J. Hughes's Mount Rundle, valued between $100,000 and $150,000; and Maurice Cullen's Bow River, Banff, worth $20,000 to $30,000. Two large-scale mixed-media works by Alberta-born William Kurelek round out the display: I Knew How the Clouds Arise (1969) and Weiner Roast on My Father's Farm (1974).
Harris was born in Brantford, Ontario, in 1885 and co-founded the Group of Seven. He took his first sketching trip to the Canadian Rockies in 1924 with fellow Group of Seven member A.Y. Jackson, beginning his mountain series.
The preview runs through October 4 at Heffel Gallery, 220 Manning Road NE, Unit 1080. Admission is free. Heffel, founded in 1978, operates galleries in Calgary, Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver.
The details
When is the auction?
The auction takes place on November 18 in Toronto.
Where can I see the preview?
Heffel Gallery in Calgary, located at 220 Manning Road NE, Unit 1080, is showing the works through October 4. Admission is free.
Which Lawren Harris paintings are on display?
Mount Leah, Maligne Lake (1924) and Cathedral Mountain from the Opabin, Mountain Sketch XVII (1926) are both featured. Each is estimated to sell for between $250,000 and $350,000.
What is the highlight work by Jean Paul Riopelle?
Brumaire (1953), an oil on canvas, is valued between $1.5 and $2 million and is described as an explosive abstract painting from the Montreal-born artist's 1954 American debut.
