Six highly coveted Maud Lewis paintings have racked up a collective sale of over CA$200,000 in an online auction, called "Canadian & International Art," run by the Jones House, starting from Nov. 30 until last Sunday, Dec. 3.
NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA - CIRCA 1960: Maud Lewis in front of house taken ca. 1960, the photo is currently housed in the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in Halifax.
History of the Auctioned Maud Lewis Artworks
The individual sales ranged from CA$18,000 to CA$58,000, with the highest sale price belonging to Lewis' "Horses Plowing Field in Fall" piece. According to the Jones website, this painting, along with "Oxen Pulling Red Cart in Fall" and "Two Oxen," were all created somewhere in the '40s and had been housed in a private New York collection for decades until the sale was made.
Lewis' artworks sold in the auction were dated later in the 1960s, one of which was "Winter School Yard" priced the lowest at $18,000. During this period of Lewis' life, she would occasionally utilize a permanent marker for the finer details in her works due to her health deteriorating to a point of lessened mobility, at the time.
The "Two Oxen" painting which is part of a remarkable discovery of a set of early paintings by Nova Scotia artist Maud Lewis (1903-1970), dated late 1940s.
The other two works dated in the 60s were "Winter Covered Bridge" and "Horse Buggy Crossing Stream." The latter of the two, together with the "Winter School Yard," was directly acquired from Lewis herself by a New Brunswick family in Canada. The former, on the other hand, while also sourced directly from Lewis, was part of a different private collection owned by a family that had connections to Digby County and Nova Scotia.
In a statement to CTV News, Sarah Jones, co-founder of the auction house, shared that it initiated its own research regarding the information behind the Lewis pieces, employing the help of Nova Scotia-based art authenticator Alan Deacon's expertise.
Reportedly, Deacon, a renowned expert on Lewis' works, can accurately determine whether an artwork is fake or not. Regarding the paintings sold by the Jones House, Deacon ensured that all of them were genuine.
Canada's Renowned Folk Artist, Maud Lewis
Lewis was born in 1903 in a small town called Yarmouth in Nova Scotia, before moving to Digby County in the 1930s. Lewis' climb to fame occurred not until the '50s, and up til the '60s, she had a consistent painting career. However, around the latter years of her life, her debilitating arthritis worsened hence her reliance on markers.
A number of her works are currently available for viewing in the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in a town called Halifax. Lewis's life is an inspirational tale of artistry and resilience, which is why her narrative was adapted into numerous books, documentaries, and even a 2016 biopic entitled "Maudie," starring Sally Hawkins as Maud Lewis and Ethan Hawke as Lewis' husband, Everett.
The Jones Auction focused more on showcasing Lewis' earlier works, with the co-founder saying, "It's so important to have early works because it shows her exploration of her ideas and her development as an artist."
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