The Discreet Collector

June 2002

Over the past decade, Feheley Fine Arts has featured several exhibitions of Inuit art from significant private collections, including those of the Klamer Family, Jack Butler and Sheila Butler, and Terry Ryan. However, sometimes collectors prefer to remain anonymous. This exhibition gives us the opportunity to feature treasures which have recently come to us from such 'discreet' collectors. As well, it provides an insight into the world of the private collector through the eyes of one man who has dedicated much of his life to assembling a superb group of works. The Discreet Collector features a release of works from the private collection of M.F. ("Budd") Feheley, a collector with a great eye.

Much of Budd Feheley's enthusiasm for collecting reflects the experience of others and can, to some degree, speak for those who prefer to remain anonymous. When asked if he has always been a collector at heart, Budd answers emphatically, "Yes, I still am! You just see something and think, my god, I'd love to own that - have it for a while." In response to the common refrain that Inuit art today has become derivative or is not available on the secondary market, Budd asserts, "Oh, it's still around, but you've got to be very selective. They're still here. There are pieces being sold today that I wouldn't mind having!"

Each collector's story is unique. An art collection begins with a single object that says to you: "take me home". The selection is a pure reflection of an individual collector or, if assembled by two or more people it often resonates between the personalities, increasing the complexity almost like voices in an Inuit throat song. For collectors, the joy is in the searching, the finding and the sheltering of special objects selected by hand from amongst all others.

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