From the Collection of Paul Duval

Bidding Opens  

Tuesday, January 21st at 10:00 am EST

Bidding Closes 

Tuesday, January 28th beginning at 2:00 pm EST

Previews (January 14th to 28th)

Weekdays: 9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Saturday, January 25th: 11:00 am to 5:00 pm

Paul Duval, a familiar and respected figure in Canadian art, championed Canadian artists for more than half a century. Mr. Duval advocated for and supported the Group of Seven, Quebec’s avant-garde Automatistes and brought attention to Vancouver’s Jack Shadbolt, Toronto’s Ronald York Wilson, female impressionist painter Helen McNicoll and realist Ken Danby.

An art editor for "Saturday Night" magazine, host of CBC Radio’s "The Lively Arts" and art critic for "The Telegram," he shared his vast knowledge of art with the public. Mr. Duval also produced numerous tomes on Canadian art which are still highly regarded to this day.

Born in 1922 in Toronto, Paul’s first ambition was to be a painter. As a young boy, he sketched farm houses in Hoggs Hollow, the late afternoon sun in High Park, Sunnyside at night, the enormous chimneys of the Don Valley Brickworks. When he was 8, he was one of two children chosen from his school to attend Arthur Lismer’s Saturday morning classes at the Art Gallery of Toronto (now Ontario). At 11, he started high school at Central Tech to study art. In his early teens, Paul left home and took refuge in the office of the Canadian Forum, which had reproduced some of his drawings. Eventually he changed his name from Droy to Duval. He soon found work designing booths for the Canadian National Exhibition and, later, for Eaton’s College Street store.

As a boy, Paul idolized Robert Louis Stevenson and wanted to be a writer like him. He continued to paint and exhibit his work into his 20s but writing became his living. His first writing job was as a book reviewer for the Globe and Mail. Then, in 1944, he was hired as the art editor for Saturday Night, a job he held for over 20 years. He used Saturday Night’s national platform to bring attention to artists from coast to coast. He also served as the art critic for the Toronto Telegram for 8 years.

Paul formed lifetime friendships with many of the artists he wrote about in countless exhibition catalogues, including the first for the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, and over 30 books on Canadian art. He organized exhibitions and was instrumental in building a number of important public and private collections. He put Canadian art on the map at a time when we did not see ourselves as having artistic originality and authenticity. He documented Canadian painting so that we would have a body of work that reflected our own internal and external landscapes.

From the late 1950s, Mr. Duval took up residence in the Studio Building in Toronto. The Studio Building was built in 1914 for members of the Group of Seven, a fitting residence for a man who so supported the artists and their achievements. He also was the co-founder of the Canadian Section of the International Association of Art Critics in 1957.

As many have said of Mr. Duval, including both friends and colleagues in the art community, he had the uncanny ability to make the art world accessible to all through his writing, providing a window into the flourishing world of Canadian art. As a gifted painter himself, his expertise was based upon a thorough and deep understanding of art. Recognized as one of Canada’s foremost art experts and critics, Mr. Duval prided himself on his art discoveries and sought to provide Canadians with some sense of a tradition of their own.

Cowley Abbott is delighted to offer this collection of paintings, prints and sculpture, as well as books from the personal collection of Paul Duval. These works and items surrounded Mr. Duval during his life in the Studio Building, a source of joy, inspiration and reference for the celebrated cultural figure.

Register to Bid

If you would like to participate in this sale please click the button below to register and create a collector profile.

Register to Bid

Already have an account? Sign-In

Sort Artwork

• Sort by Lot Number
• Sales Closing Soon
• Sort by Artist
• Sort by Price Ascending
• Sort by Price Descending

Search by Lot #

Enter a lot number to go directly to item details

Artists in this Sale