Canadian Group of Seven's Lawren Harris Ready to Shine in Heffel's First-Ever International Live Auction

• Three major paintings by Lawren Harris, whose work is currently on view at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles in a show co-curated by actor Steve Martin
• Rare painting by Tom Thomson believed to be the final work he produced before his mysterious death
• Post-War & Contemporary masterworks by internationally acclaimed artists, including Jean Paul Riopelle, Roy Lichtenstein, Alex Colville and Barbara Hepworth

TORONTO, Oct. 21, 2015 /CNW/ - Heffel Fine Art Auction House, the Canadian leader in art at auction, is pleased to present its fall 2015 collection, including an outstanding selection of highly sought-after masterpieces. The 156 lots will be offered at a two-session live auction taking place on November 26, 2015, at Toronto's Park Hyatt and are expected to achieve between $10 million and $15 million (all prices are in Canadian dollars and according to conservative estimates).

Group of Seven painter, Lawren Harris will unquestionably hold the auction spotlight with three masterworks in the fall sale, including two major canvases. Heffel has facilitated 14 of the 24 works by Harris sold for more than $1 million, including the artist record with the sale of The Old Stump, Lake Superior in 2009 at $3.5 million.

Harris is currently at the forefront of the global art world with a much-celebrated retrospective at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, California, co-curated by actor and art lover Steve Martin. The Idea of North: The Paintings of Lawren Harris has received significant media attention, including features in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times.

"This is new and exciting territory for us," says David Heffel, President of Heffel Fine Art Auction House. "It's gratifying to see the increased international interest in Canadian art, and we feel lucky to be part of this historical moment for Lawren Harris and so many others. We are eager to see this important exhibition catalyze the global appreciation for Harris and for Canadian art as a whole."

While works by Canadian-born artists are increasingly admired and purchased around the world, so too are Canadian buyers appreciative of and eager for a broad range of contemporary artwork. This year, for the first time in its history, Heffel welcomes international consignments, expanding the Post-War & Contemporary Art catalogue to include important masters such as Roy Lichtenstein and Barbara Hepworth. Internationally acclaimed Canadian-born artists, such as Jean Paul Riopelle and Alex Colville, will also feature prominently in this year's live auction.

A fixture of the country's fine art scene, Heffel's fall auction will again delight Canadian art enthusiasts with extensive offerings of important historical works. The Fine Canadian Art session will feature all of the original and later members of the Group of Seven, as well as Emily Carr and Tom Thomson.

Heffel's Fine Canadian Art highlights:

• Lawren Harris's stunning Winter Landscape canvas is the Fine Canadian Art cover lot and the leader of the fall auction by estimate. The rare work shows the artist's constant engagement with the Canadian landscape (est. $1,200,000 – 1,600,000).
• Harris's Mountain and Glacier depicts a commanding idealized landscape. This is the first time Heffel has offered a Harris Rocky Mountain canvas at auction (est. $1,000,000 – 1,500,000).
• Winter in the Ward, painted by Harris circa 1920, depicts a now demolished Toronto working-class neighbourhood known as "The Ward" (est. $500,000 – 700,000). The work is comparable to Houses on Gerrard Street, sold by Heffel in 2014 for $1.12 million.
• Tom Thomson's After the Storm is especially impressive as it is believed to be the last work he painted before his untimely and mysterious death in 1917 (est. $500,000 – 700,000).
• A rarity in the sale is a nocturne canvas of the Quebec landscape by James Wilson Morrice titled Landscape, Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré. This superb painting once belonged to Napoléon Filteau and will resonate with enthusiasts of classic Canadian art (est. $800,000 – 1,200,000).

Heffel's Post-War & Contemporary Art highlights:

• Displaying both the directness and mystery characteristic of his strongest compositions, Alex Colville's Harbour encourages the viewer to look beyond the detailed image rendered in his Pointillist technique (est. $500,000 – 700,000).
• Two works by American Pop Art icon Roy Lichtenstein are led by Modern Room. The artist had an affinity for interior images, often choosing furniture advertisements as a primary source of inspiration (est. $60,000 – 80,000).
• Montreal-born School of Paris artist Jean Paul Riopelle shines in this sale with three abstracts, led by the commanding Sans titre from the 1950s, his most sought-after decade (est. $500,000 – 700,000).
• On the heels of an acclaimed retrospective at the Tate Britain in London, England, British artist Barbara Hepworth features with a spectacular sculpture, Three Forms (Three Horizontal Curves). Proceeds will benefit the Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation (est. $200,000 – 300,000).
• Quebec masters are also well represented, including a major work by Paul-Émile Borduas, Libellules égarées (est. $200,000 – 300,000), and a striking Guido Molinari canvas, Mutation rythmique rouge-orange, one of two works directly from the estate of the artist ($100,000 – 150,000).

The fall 2015 live auction marks an important milestone for Heffel, as the company celebrates two decades of conducting live auctions. When brothers David Heffel and Robert Heffel instigated the live auction platform in 1995, they quickly realized a one-million-dollar sale. Now, 20 years later, Heffel has sold 46 individual works for more than $1 million, approaching half a billion dollars in total art sales.

Heffel was the first and remains the only auction house in Canada to produce separate detailed catalogues for each of its two sessions: Post-War & Contemporary Art and Fine Canadian Art.

Heffel's Fall 2015 Live Auction Schedule
To give interested buyers from across Canada an opportunity to view these works, the collection is being previewed in three cities leading up to the live auction:

• Vancouver: Saturday, October 31 to Tuesday, November 3, 11 a.m. – 6 p.m., Heffel Gallery Vancouver, 2247 Granville Street
• Montreal: Thursday, November 12 to Saturday, November 14, 11 a.m. – 6 p.m., Galerie Heffel Montreal, 1840 Sherbrooke Street West
• Toronto: Saturday, November 21 to Wednesday, November 25, 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Thursday, November 26, 10 a.m. – noon, University of Toronto Art Centre (UTAC), 1 King's College Circle

The two-part live auction will take place on Thursday, November 26 at the Park Hyatt Toronto, 4 Avenue Road.

• 4 p.m. EST—Post-War & Contemporary Art
• 7 p.m. EST—Fine Canadian Art

For details on the previews and live auction, and to access the online catalogues, please visit www.heffel.com.

About Heffel
Heffel has sold more Canadian art than any other auctioneer worldwide, approaching half a billion dollars in art sales since 1978. With offices in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa and Calgary, Heffel has the most experienced team of fine art specialists in Canada and provides superior client service to both sellers and buyers internationally.

SOURCE Heffel Fine Art Auction House

Image with caption: "Heffel's fall live auction includes three masterpieces by Group of Seven painter, Lawren Harris, currently in the global art spotlight. Harris's stunning Winter Landscape leads the sale by estimate (est. $1,200,000 - 1,600,000). (CNW Group/Heffel Fine Art Auction House)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151021_C7329_PHOTO_EN_525530.jpg

Media Contact: For additional information, to schedule an interview or media viewing, or for high-resolution images, please contact: Rebecca Rykiss, 416-961-6505 / 647-338-6707, [email protected]