Sold for: $79,250

PROVENANCE
Canadian Art, Joyner Fine Art, May 16, 1989, lot 100G
Private Collection, Ontario

Frederick Varley spent seven years after the First World War working in Toronto (with the exception of a summer in Bobcaygeon in the summer of 1923), mostly painting portraits, but also landscapes. He participated in Group of Seven exhibitions and taught at the Ontario College of Art, where he was appointed a full-time teacher in fall of 1925. The Don Valley was a natural park area within easy reach of Toronto, and Varley painted a number of works there, such as this oil with its striking moody sky. Pale cumulus formations billow on the horizon, while dark grey storm clouds loom overhead, interspersed with glimpses of turquoise and blue sky. Varley expertly handles the weather effects, such as the descent of a rain shower, and his colour palette is rich and varied. His brushwork is fluid and assured – broad strokes give the impression of flowing water, and Varley varies his paint-strokes to delineate vegetation and the rhythmic direction of the rolling land. Autumn in the Don Valley is a fine Group of Seven period work; through its open vista, the eye flows freely to the iconic solitary tree and up into the exciting, turbulent sky.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars