This year’s art auction hosted by Liz Isaac & Citadel Gallery Auctions will be held exclusively online, reflecting how the auction world has adapted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Antiques appraiser Liz Isaac says online auctions have become a mainstay during the global pandemic.

“It’s been great online. I never thought I would say that, being someone who enjoys dealing with the public and has been doing so for 50 years, ”adds Isaac.

“Most people like it, some people still have a little trouble figuring out how it works, but we’re happy to explain them, talk about them and give them instructions. “

This year’s artwork available for auction includes paintings by Miller Gore Brittain of Brittain’s daughter’s estate, Jennifer Ruth Brittain, works by Christopher Pratt, Alex Colville, Hughson Hawley and Ulysse Comtois, and sculptures by Libby Shackleton and Shaa Agjangajuk.

Watercolor of Saint John Simms Brush Factory by Hughson Hawley (1917) (Submitted)

Social media platforms like Facebook have helped Liz Isaac’s Appraisals and Citadel Gallery Auctions increase the number of their followers on their websites during the pandemic.

An example of the social media halo at work was when Isaac was researching female artist Linnie Watt (1874-1908). Isaac had an oil painting by the British artist at the gallery.

“Mario [Brideau] posted about the painting on the British Isles Facebook page and all of a sudden we have over 9,000 people visiting the site because of this artist, ”she said. “In the age of social media like Facebook, you can go much further. “

While Isaac is not sure what form the Citadel Gallery auctions will take in the future, she does believe that the live auctions will still be part of the auction. Many people have told him that they are missing the live auctions.

Liz Isaac & Citadel Gallery Auctions uses the HiBid.com auction site for its online auctions, which replaces the Saint John Trade and Convention Center. Isaac says bidders loved the way they could place bids on a Sunday afternoon from their living room or kitchen.

“It cost us about the same amount of money to host HiBid as it did to rent the Trade Center,” added Isaac, the gallery continuing to place bids for customers as it would at auctions. live.

Online auctions have also provided local art with a platform for greater international exposure and awareness.

“With social media we generate that interest all the time and hopefully make some of these international people aware that there was very, very good art coming from the Maritimes and Canada,” he said. she declared.

Anyone interested in knowing more about the auction, the works themselves and the deadline for submitting bids can consult the auction catalog.