Image: Waddington's, Ontario
Waddington’s will present 67 lots in its ‘First Nations Art’ auction, with public previews at the auctioneer’s Toronto gallery from August 30 through September 1 and timed bidding scheduled to close on September 3 at 2 p.m. ET. The sale brings together works associated with artists including Norval Morrisseau, Daphne Odjig, Arthur Shilling, Jane Ash Poitras, Eddy Cobiness, Christian Morrisseau, Jason Henry Hunt and others.
The auction is part of Waddington’s programme of sales covering Canadian and Indigenous art. The company’s online departments include Inuit, First Nations and Métis Art alongside Canadian Fine Art, International Art, Discovery Art and other collecting categories. The Toronto preview will be held at 100 Broadview Avenue, Suite 200, where highlights from the auction will be available to view before bidding ends online.
Norval Morrisseau, identified in the catalogue as Anishinaabe (Ojibwe), is represented by several works, including ‘Untitled (Sacred Bear)’, ‘Untitled (Sacred Buffalo)’, dated circa 1964, ‘Thunderbird God’, circa 1966, ‘Owl with Power Lines’, circa 1966, and ‘The Art of Norval Morrisseau’, dated 1979. ‘Untitled (Sacred Bear)’ carries an estimate of C$10,000–15,000, while ‘Untitled (Sacred Buffalo)’ and ‘Thunderbird God’ are each estimated at C$5,000–7,000.
The catalogue also includes ‘Nestling’, a 1980 work by Daphne Odjig, estimated at C$3,000–4,000, and two paintings by Arthur Shilling: ‘Untitled (Portrait of the Artist’s Wife Millie)’, dated 1970, with an estimate of C$2,000–2,500, and ‘Untitled (Portrait)’, dated 1977, estimated at C$1,000–2,000. Jane Ash Poitras is represented by ‘Out of the Past’, dated 2004, estimated at C$1,000–1,500.
A group of works by Christian Morrisseau includes ‘Spiritual Grandfathers Protection’, dated 2007; ‘Nanabozho and the Wild Geese’, dated 2003; ‘Thunderbird Shaman’, dated 2003; ‘Woodland Artist Christian Morrisseau’, dated 2006; and ‘My Daughter Christie, The Spirit Sacrifice’. The catalogue also lists three 1979 works by Joseph Sánchez, including ‘Untitled (Three Faces with Nude)’, ‘Untitled (Three Faces)’ and ‘Untitled (The King)’, as well as three 1978–79 works by Eddy Cobiness: ‘Untitled (Deer)’, ‘Untitled (Sleeping Fox)’ and ‘Untitled (Transformation)’.
The sale’s broader description identifies a geographic span from the Northwest Coast to the Eastern Woodlands. Its listed artists additionally include Kent Monkman, Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun, Terry Starr, Jack James, Jacob Ezra Thomas and Carl Beam. Public viewing is scheduled for Sunday, August 30, from noon to 4 p.m.; Monday, August 31, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Tuesday, September 1, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with appointments also available. Bidding closes Thursday, September 3, beginning at 2 p.m. ET.
