FLASH-BANG: Peter Doig is in

Peter Doig has just confirmed by telephone from his home in Trinidad that he will be donating a work for auction at The Autists. Further details on the exact nature of the piece will be forthcoming once confirmed.

The Scottish-born painter has deep roots in Canada, having spent a significant portion of his childhood in Toronto, as well as several years in Montreal during his twenties. Many of his most celebrated and coveted works were inspired by, and painted at, his parents’ Ontario farm during the ’80s and ’90s.

Peter often starts from found or personal photographs, though not to recreate their content so much as to anchor the work. His paintings explore the grand theme of man’s relationship with his environment, with the Canadian landscape featuring prominently.

Peter is a genuine living legend within the international art world. His works hang at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Berkeley Art Museum in California and both the Tate and Saatchi galleries in London.

Important Peter Doig paintings have, of late, been fetching in excess of US$10 million at auction.

Peter studied art in England at the Wimbledon School of Art, St. Martin’s School of Art and the Chelsea School of art. He is also an alumnus of Jarvis Collegiate Institute in Toronto.

There are volumes to be read and seen about the man, and because he maintains no website of his own, rather than posting a series of links here, we recommend Googling Peter Doig and sitting back for a long and fascinating journey.

All of us at The Autists are delirious at this game-changing development. We welcome Peter Doig and thank him for his generous pledge to The Autists.

Wow, what a way to end a week of fantastic news.