When a rare Winston Churchill painting of a B.C. lake was sold at a London auction for more than $70,000 over its estimated price, questions swirled about the identity of the secret buyer.
The piece, which depicts the crystal-blue waters of Emerald Lake, B.C., was painted by the late British prime minister during a summer vacation to Canada in 1929.
Churchill gave the painting to his long-time bodyguard, Sgt. Edmund Murray, whose children eventually inherited the piece. When the family decided to sell the painting, now tattered by age, they hoped it would go to a gallery back in Canada.
And that is precisely what happened.
CTV’s Alberta Bureau Chief Janet Dirks confirmed that Alberta-based gallery owner Ryan Green bought the painting.
Green, president of Master Gallery Ltd. in Calgary, stayed up until 3 a.m. the night of the auction to bid on the piece.
He bought the painting for $87,000. The initial estimated sale price was between $11,000 and $14,000.
The sale confirms suspicions by Sgt. Murray’s son, Bill Murray, that the painting would be headed back to its country of origin.
"I am pretty sure that it will go to Canada, although Sotheby's are very discreet when it comes to letting out information about the buyer, even to the seller," Murray told the Canadian Press last week.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Green has been president of the gallery for 18 years and studied art history in London. He also served as an instructor of art history at the University of Calgary Continuing Education.
Churchill painted the piece before becoming prime minister. Outside politics, Churchill was known for painting sweeping landscapes during trips to places such as Egypt, France and Israel.
