Traffic Bridge artwork sells for $18.5K at auction

A piece of Saskatoon’s past has made history again.

Artwork created from a demolished section of the city’s old Traffic Bridge sold for $18,500 at a Saskatchewan Craft Council auction held Thursday at Holy Family Cathedral.

It’s the largest sale for a single artwork in the auction’s history.

Enthusiasm ripped through the room when bids for the piece rose above $15,000. In the end, Al and Joan Hiebert had the winning bid of $18,500.

“We actually didn’t think we were going to buy it,” Joan said. “I told my husband if it doesn’t go for too much I want it.”

The couple said they were prepared to spend thousands more for the piece, which they had a hand in creating.

“We actually worked on the glass,” Joan said. “It’s an important piece to us.”

The artwork is an interpretation of the bridge’s history with a glass river running down its centre, representing the position of the structure in Saskatoon. It also includes a port hole in tribute to the steamship Medicine Hat; the ship ran into the formerly named Victoria Bridge in the spring of 1908.

The #victoriabridge art piece in #yxe went for $18,500 largest amount ever at a #emmaauction event @SkCraftCouncil pic.twitter.com/ckpmvJCWAD

— JT Marshall (@jtmarshallCKOM) August 5, 2016

Metal, glass and wood artists worked together to create the Traffic Bridge artwork as part of the EMMA International Collaboration. One hundred artists from across the globe come together for the event every two years to create original works.

“That’s the great thing about EMMA, artists get materials from all kinds of places and just create something great,” said Carmen Milenkovic, executive director of the Saskatchewan Craft Council.

Still, Milenkovic said he was surprised by the unprecedented seven-figure total for the Traffic Bridge piece.

“I actually never thought it would go for that much, I only believed it would go for $5,000 or $10,000,” he said.

Saskatoon’s 109-year-old Traffic Bridge was closed completely in August 2010 due to public safety concerns as a result of deterioration of critical structural elements.

The first section of the bridge was demolished in January, the second in February. The third and final blast is expected to take place this winter.

The Hieberts said they hope to show the historic piece in Saskatoon art galleries if they have insurance guarantees.

“It weighs about 600 pounds, so I want it to stay intact,” Joan said.

Money raised from the auction will be split between the Saskatchewan Arts Council and EMMA International Collaboration.

The total amount raised is not yet known.

So many cool pieces of art at the #emmaauction with @SkCraftCouncil couple pieces already went for $600 @CKOMNews pic.twitter.com/miTmLYl7H1

— JT Marshall (@jtmarshallCKOM) August 5, 2016