It had been hanging in a barn for 90 years 50-dollar painting turns out to be a sensational find
Art dealer Allen Treibitz had not expected this: a painting purchased for 50 dollars at a flea market turns out to be a sensational find after investigations. The painting could be worth up to 200,000 dollars.
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- Art dealer Allen Treibitz has bought a painting by the famous Canadian painter Emily Carr for 50 US dollars at a flea market in the Hamptons, New York.
- The work entitled "Masset, Q.C.I." dates from 1912 and shows a totem pole with a grizzly bear.
- The painting, which has been hanging in a barn for 90 years, is now to be auctioned in Toronto, with experts estimating its value at 100,000 to 200,000 dollars.
An inconspicuous barn sale in the Hamptons turns out to be a stroke of luck for experienced art dealer Allen Treibitz: he discovers a painting among all kinds of objects that arouses his interest. It shows a totem pole with a grizzly bear and bears the signature of Canadian artist Emily Carr.
Although Treibitz is not familiar with Carr's work, he recognizes that he is looking at something special. "It stood out from everything else in the barn," the 61-year-old recalls to the Canadian broadcaster "CBC".
Treibitz struck and paid 50 dollars for the mysterious work of art. After checking with the Canadian auction house "Heffel" in Vancouver, the sensation: the painting is said to be worth between 100,000 and 200,000 dollars. Research revealed that it was the painting "Masset, Q.C.I.", which Carr created in 1912. The painting shows a memorial pole from the village of Masset on the Haida Gwaii Islands.
Work of art hung in a barn for 90 years
The history of the painting is almost as fascinating as the discovery in the barn. It probably came into the possession of Carr's friend Nell Cozier and her husband in the 1930s, who received it as a gift. The couple later moved from Victoria to the Hamptons. Since then, the painting has hung unnoticed in the barn.
According to Heffel, the painting is still in its original frame and on its original canvas. After a thorough cleaning, it will now be auctioned in Toronto on November 20. It will be exhibited in several Canadian cities beforehand.
Treibitz hopes that the rediscovered artwork will find a worthy place with a collector of Carr's works or in a museum.
