Heffel auction tomorrow

After a weirdly up-and-down auction season for (ahem) "important Canadian art" (in May, up at Joyner's, where lots of estimates were beaten; and a little down at Sotheby's, where several "important" pieces failed to sell) Heffel Brothers puts its offerings on the block in Vancouver tomorrow.

If there's a market bellwether to be found this season, it's got to be Emily Carr's ca. 1935/36 oil-on-canvas "Wind in the Tree Tops," which Heffel pegs at a high estimate of $1.2 mln. If it meets or exceeds that, it'll be a new record for the BC painter's work -- as good an indicator of market health (or lack thereof) as to be found ...