How to Celebrate a 175th Anniversary?

The Best of Canadian & International Fine Art, First Nations Art and Inuit Art: Entrusted to Canada’s Oldest Auction Company

Waddington’s is proud to present its major fall auction series, featuring Canadian and International Fine Art, First Nations Art, and Inuit Art. All three represent carefully curated, best-in-class examples of their respective genres. Bidding is available online November 7–20, 2025.

“As Waddington’s celebrates our 175th anniversary, we’re proud to share the important collections entrusted to us with our audiences around the world.” — Duncan McLean, President.

CANADIAN & INTERNATIONAL FINE ART

This auction includes important works by Group of Seven artists Lawren Harris, A.J. Casson, J.E.H. MacDonald, and A.Y. Jackson, a rare Jock Macdonald abstract, early Kazuo Nakamura paintings, Louis-Philippe Hébert’s major sculpture ‘Algonquins’, as well as striking works by Sorel Etrog and Walter Yarwood.

International highlights include two rare sketches by Sir Edward John Poynter for Maison Dieu’s stained-glass windows in Dover, Alexander Calder’s ‘Red Serpent’, and works by David Diao, Jules Olitski, and Gene Davis.

Lot 316 – Lawren Stewart Harris
HOUSES IN WINTER, ca. 1920
Estimate: $150,000—250,000
‘Houses in Winter’ is an atmospheric and sensitive painting, evoking the cold quiet of winter in Toronto. Capturing the muted stillness and tranquility of dusk, it is a fine example of Harris’ practice of sketching outdoors, translating his observations of the environment directly onto a wooden panel. Likely painted around 1920 in the rapidly expanded neighbourhoods of Toronto’s west end, this sketch comes from Harris’ broad catalogue of urban scenes, a subject of fascination for the artist in the years around the formation of the Group of Seven. Read more.

Lot 308 – Sir Edward John Poynter, PRA, RWS (1826-1919), British
SKETCH OF LIGHT 1, THE EMBARKATION OF EDWARD THE III AT DOVER, 1873
Estimate: $100,000—200,000
The stained glass windows situated in the historic Maison Dieu in Dover, England, represent the pinnacle of Victorian and Pre-Raphaelite craftsmanship. An integral part of the community since 1203, Maison Dieu served many purposes throughout its eight centuries of existence. The highly detailed windows that highlight major historical moments in Dover’s history were commissioned on the death of Maison Dieu’s then-owner, William Kingsford, the pioneering historian who penned the first colonial history of Canada. Waddington’s is honoured to offer two of the original life-size sketches depicting The Embarkation of Edward III at Dover. Read more.

Lot 324 – Alexander Calder (1898-1976), American
RED SERPENT, 1965
Estimate: $80,000—100,000
‘Red Serpent’ is a prime example of Calder’s gouaches. Working on a large sheet of wove paper, Calder uses a minimalist colour palette: black ink pools on white paper divided by a red serpentine form above a few yellow and orange suns. This impressive work conveys a strong and joyful presence made by one of the most distinctive artists of his time. Read more.

INUIT ART

This auction features artworks from an important pioneering Toronto collection, in addition to selections from the private collections of Narwhal Gallery (London, England) founder and author Ken Mantel, and former Northwest Territories Arts and Crafts Development Officer David Sutherland. Highlights include notable works by Judas Ullulaq, Parr, Akeeaktashuk, Niviaxie, Oviloo Tunnillie, Joe Talirunili, John Tiktak, Kenojuak Ashevak, Pauta Saila, Davie Atchealak, Nuna Parr, Manasie Akpaliapik, Tudlik, Floyd Kuptana, John Hoover, Luke Anguhadluq, and more.

Lot 38 – Davie Atchealak (1947- 2006), Iqaluit (Frobisher Bay)
DRUM DANCE, 1989
Estimate $50,000—70,000
Few sculptors have been able to capture fluidity of posture or richness of anatomical detail with the confidence and ease of Atchealak. One of the great sculptors from southern Baffin Island, he is renowned, particularly for his expertly engineered dancing bears, and exuberant, muscular shamans. Atchealak’s daring and expert use of cantilever is on display in ‘Drum Dance’, a sculpture among his most ambitious works, which notably fuses the two subjects for which he is most renowned. Read more.

Lot 18 – Joe Talirunili (1893- 1976), Puvirnituq (Povungnituk)
HUNTER WITH TUMPLINE, 1960s
Estimate $8,000—12,000
‘Hunter with Tumpline’ is one of 45 works from an important pioneering collection of Inuit art. Distinguished by its diversity and uniformly high quality, the collection was built over 50 years, sourced from leading dealers and private collectors of the period, as well as directly from artists during excursions to the north, including Qamani’tuaq (Baker Lake), and Arviat.

Lot 9 – Judas Ullulaq (1937-1999), Uqsuqtuuq (Gjoa Haven)
REARING BEAR WITH CATCH, ca. 1980s
Estimate $5,000—7,000
The emotional disposition of Ullulaq’s characters: human, animal, or spirit, are sometimes ambiguous, but are never restrained in their expression. Uniquely mobile in its potential orientation, ‘Rearing Bear with Catch’ embodies the energy in Ullulaq’s subjects. The work can be configured two ways, clambering on all fours, or reared up on two legs.

FIRST NATIONS ART

This auction features significant works by Beau Dick, Jimmy John, John Cross, Norval Morrisseau, Alex Janvier, Eddy Cobiness, Allen Sapp, and Benjamin Chee Chee, as well as notable paintings, graphics, and sculpture by Daphne Odjig, Chief Henry Speck Sr., Robert Charles Davidson, William (Bill) Reid, Jacob Ezra Thomas, Randy Stiglitz, Jane Ash Poitras, and others.

Lot 201 – Norval Morrisseau, CM, RCA (1932-2007), Anishinaabe (Ojibwe)
SPIRITUAL COMMUNICATION, ca. 1975
Estimate $20,000—30,000
Morrisseau’s paintings often contain images depicting the transfer of supernatural power. The spiritual nature of his figures’ interactions is signaled in ‘Spiritual Communication’ through the central figure’s ritual attire, the irregular form of the beings’ bodies, and in the overlapping integrated lines which define them–a convention present in imagery found in the scrolls of the Midewiwin, or Ojibwe Grand Medicine society. Read more.

Lot 204 – Alex Janvier, CM, AOE, RCA, LLD (1935-2024), Denesuline
WILLOW POINT, ca. 1979
Estimate $15,000—25,000
Dating to an exceptionally strong period in Janvier’s career, ‘Willow Point’ optimizes the artist’s mature classic style. The visual language of the work evokes the more subtle abstraction of his early imagery, inviting interpretations that range from maps of memory, to evocations of spiritual or cosmological networks. Read more.

Lot 231 – John Cross (1867-1939), Haida
PAIR OF MODEL TOTEM POLES, ca. 1890
Estimate $15,000—25,000
John Cross (Neeslant) is considered one of the great, early names in argillite carving, This important pair of argillite model totem poles exhibit elegantly elongated forms, and Cross’ signature articulation of the fine details such as the nostrils. Remarkable for their near-identical proportion, scale and design, the closely matching pair of poles are exceptionally uncommon. Read more.

AUCTION DETAILS

Bid online now until November 20, 2025.
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Preview Information

Public previews available November 13-19.

Thursday, November 13 from 10 am to 5 pm
Friday, November 14 from 10 am to 5 pm
Saturday, November 15 from 12 pm to 4 pm
Sunday, November 16 from 12 pm to 4 pm
Monday, November 17 from 10 am to 7 pm
Tuesday, November 18 from 10 am to 5 pm
Wednesday, November 19 from 9 am to 12 pm