Charles Bronfman’s Claridge Collection Auction: Part VI: Fine Art

April 21, 2015

LOT 229

Lot 229

TONI ONLEY (1928 - 2004), A.R.C.A.

TONI ONLEY (1928 - 2004), A.R.C.A.
Lot 229 Details
TONI ONLEY (1928 - 2004), A.R.C.A.

TREES, PUNTA DI SORRENTO

WATERCOLOUR; SIGNED, DATED JUNE 1972 AND TITLED
11" x 14.5" — 27.9 x 36.8 cm.

Estimate $400-$600

Realised: $510
Price Includes Buyer's Premium ?

Lot Report

Provenance:

Purchased directly from the artist

Note:



TONI ONLEY (1928 - 2004), A.R.C.A.

Toni Onley is one of Canada’s most celebrated artists, best known for his landscapes of Canada’s West Coast.

Born in Douglas, Isle of Man, England, Norman Antony (Toni) Onley studied at the Douglas School of Fine Arts, his style of landscape painting influenced by British painters John Cotman and Peter DeWint. He immigrated to Canada with his young family in 1948, initially settling in Brantford, Ontario. Onley gained early recognition for his painting when he won an award in 1955 at the Western Ontario Annual show of artists under 27. Following the death of his wife in 1995, Onley moved his family to Penticton, British Columbia, where he worked as a surveyor, draftsman and commercial artist; he also taught evening and weekend art classes.

In 1957, Onley won a scholarship offered by the Institute Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where he studied mural painting and fresco and vinylite mediums. He was influenced there by his American abstract impressionist teacher, James Pinto, giving his style a new direction towards non-objective work. Onley returned to Canada in the late 1950‘s and held a series of well-received exhibitions. In 1961 he was one of seven artists chosen to represent Canada at the Paris biennial exhibition. His collage paintings won critical recognition: the Tate Gallery in London, England selected one of the works from his Polar series, Polar No. 1, in 1963. On a Royal Canadian Academy award Onley traveled to London, England where he studied etching and at that time reestablished his landscape roots with the Norwich School of Watercolor Painting.

Onley’s works are part of major international collections, which include the Tate Gallery and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England; the National Gallery of Canada; the Vancouver Art Gallery; and the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. In 1999, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada and was bestowed with an Honorary Doctor of Letters Degree from Okanagan University College.

Landscape revealed: The Art of Toni Onley, a documentary of Onley’s life and works was produced in 2004 by Fountain Productions. He was tragically killed that same year when the plane that he was piloting crashed.

Selected Corporate, Private and Public Collections

Agnes Etherington Art Center, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON
Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, BC
Bishop’s University, Lennoxville, QC

British Columbia Art Collection
Brock Hall Collection, University of British Columbia
C.I.L., Montreal, QC
Claridge Collection, Montreal, QC
Concordia University, Montreal, QC
Confederation Center, Charlottetown, PEI
Dr. Theodore Heinrich, Toronto, ON
Gordon Smith Gallery of Canadian Art, Vancouver, BC
J.G. McConnell, Montreal, QC
John David Eaton, Toronto, ON
Joseph Hirschhorn, New York, NY
Lodon Public Library and Art Museum, ON
Maltwood Art Museum and Gallery,
McMichael Canadian Art Collection

Memorial University, St. John’s, NFL
Montreal Museumf of Fine ARts, QC
Mr. & MRs. Percy Waxer, Toronto, ON
Mr. & Mrs. Sam Zacks, Toronto, ON
Musee d’art contemporain, Montreal, QC
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
National gallery of Canada, Ottawa, ON
Paul Arthur, Toronto, ON
Penticton Art Gallery, BC
Seattle Museum of Fine Arts, WA
Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC
The Library of Congress, Washington, DC
Tte Gallery, London, England
Vancouver Art Gallery, BC
Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England
Willistead Gallery, Windsor, ON
Winnipeg Art Gallery, MB
York University, Toronto, ON

Selected Solo and Group Exhibitions

2013 West Coast Landscapes: Select Paintings from the Artist’s Estate, Winchester Galleries Modern, Victoria, BC
2012 South Granville Fall Arts Preview 2012, Granville Fine Arts, BC
2011 Letters to Yukiko, Elliot Louis Gallery,
Collages, Evergreen Cultural Center, Coquitlam, BC
2010 Retrospective, Granville Fine Art, Vancouver, BC
2008 Selected Work, Winchester Galleries, Victoria, BC
2008 Love, Toni xox, Onley Eastwood Gallery
2004 Onley’s True North, Kamloops Art Gallery, BC
2006 Toni Onley: Flight Paths, Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, BC
2001 The Chaos of Love, Vancouver, BC
1991 The Oldman River Expedition Exhibition, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge, AB
1978 Toni Onley: A Retrospective Exhibition, Vancouver Art Gallery, BC
1972 Toni Onley: 10 Years of Painting, 1962-72, Bau-Xi Gallery, Vancouver, BC
1968 Toni Onley, a Partial Retrospective, Memorial University Art gallery, St. John’s, NFL; Owens Gallery, Mount Allison University, Sackville, NS; Confederation Center Art Gallery, Charlottetown, PEI

Selected Awards

1964 Canada Councile Senior Fellowship
1963 Sam & Ayola Zacks Award, RCA Annual
1962 Spring Purchase Award (MMFA)
1961, 1963 Canada Council Grant
1960 Jessie Dow Award at Montreal Spring Show

Selected Links

tonionley.com
Toni Onley videos
Landscape Revealed: Toni Onley

CONDITION DETAILS

For condition information please contact the specialist.

LOT 229
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About Condition Ratings

  • 5 Stars: Excellent - No discernable damage, flaws or imperfections
  • 4 Stars: Very Good - Minor flaws or imperfections visible only under close inspection using specialised instruments or black light
  • 3 Stars: Good - Minor flaws visible upon inspection under standard lighting
  • 2 Stars: Fair - Exhibits flaws or damage that may draw the eye under standard lighting
  • 1 Star: Poor - Flaws or damage immediately apparent under standard lighting (examples: missing components, rips, broken glass, damaged surfaces, etc.)

Note: Condition ratings and condition details are the subjective opinions of our specialists and should be used as a guide only. Waddington’s uses due care when preparing condition details, however, our staff are not professional restorers or conservators. Condition details and reports are not warranties and each lot is sold “as is” in accordance with the buyer’s terms and conditions of sale. In all cases the prospective purchaser is responsible for inspecting the property themselves prior to placing a bid.