Is The Canadian Art Market Ready For Its Close-Up?

“The major anticipation over this spring’s auctions of high-end Canadian fine art is less about the sale of a specific work (or three) and more about whether the market will continue to show the unprecedented buoyancy it’s had in the last nine or 10 years. Over the next seven days, the three major auction houses — Vancouver’s Heffel Fine Arts tonight, Toronto-based Sotheby’s (in association with Ritchie’s) on Monday and Joyner Waddington’s of Toronto next Tuesday and Wednesday — are putting almost 1,000 lots, worth a total estimated at CAN$12.5 to CAN$16-million, under the hammer… In a sense, this spring’s auctions will be a test of the maturity of the market.”