Suspected fraudulent Norval Morrisseau painting removed from Queen’s Park

TORONTO, Ont. -- Fraudulent works by prolific Indigenous artist Norval Morrisseau continue to be found, with the most recent suspected fake work removed from the Legislative Assembly of Ontario building in Toronto.

Det. Insp. Kevin Veillieux with the Ontario Provincial Police Criminal Investigation Branch confirmed that investigators became aware of the work, Salmon Life Giving Spawn, that was hanging inside the Ontario Legislature.

“That painting was on loan to the Legislature by an organization,” Veillieux said. “It was not theirs. The Legislature provided the painting to us. We had dealt with the owner of it previously, who was completely cooperative in providing the painting.”

The work is one of more than 1,000 paintings seized as part of Project Totton, a joint initiative between the OPP and the Thunder Bay Police Service.

The multi-year investigation was first launched in 2020 and has uncovered more than 1,000 fraudulent works attributed to Morrisseau by several art fraud rings. Investigators said it is one of the largest art fraud rings in the world.

As a result of the investigation, eight people were charged. Late last year, one of the accused, Gary Lamont, pleaded guilty to forgery and defrauding the public over $5,000.

Between 2002 and 2019, Lamont oversaw the production of hundreds of paintings that were falsely attributed to Morrisseau and then sold to private collectors and galleries.

Lamont was sentenced to five years in custody following his guilty plea.

The other seven individuals charged include: Benjamin Morrisseau, 53; David John Voss, 51; Diane Marie Champagne, 63; Linda Tkachyk, 59, all from Thunder Bay, as well as Jeffrey Cowan, 47, of Niagara-on-the-Lake; James White, 81, of Essa Township; and David Bremner, 75, of Locust Hill.

The charges against Tkachyk were withdrawn following the plea and sentencing of Lamont.

Due to the size of the art fraud rings, investigators believe there could be between 4,000 and 6,500 fraudulent Morrisseau paintings in existence.

“When we originally made the arrest, we discussed how wide spread we believed this was and the fact that the evidence suggested there were thousands of these out there,” Veillieux said. “In seizing 1,000, it’s very valid to believe there is in excess of 1,000 out there.”

While Veillieux could not provide specific details regarding the painting seized from the Ontario Legislature, he said it does have characteristics that lead investigators to believe it is related to one of the art fraud groups.

Morrisseau, also known as Copper Thunderbird, gained international attention through his founding of the Woodlands School of Canadian Native Art. Originally from Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek, Morrisseau’s work has been exhibited in galleries across Canada, the United States, and Europe.

In 1978 Morrisseau received the Order of Canada. He passed away in 2007.

During the sentencing hearing for Lamont, victim impact statements presented to the court detailed the significant damages the fraudulent works have had on the value of Morrisseau’s work and his legacy.

Veillieux said it is important for investigators to continue to identify fraudulent works and remove them from circulation to prevent further victimization and damage to Morrisseau’s legacy.

“It is for the family of Norval Morrisseau, it is for the estate, it is for the art holders and art community. The valuation has been severely disrupted throughout this process,” he said.

“A lot of people have put a lot into these paintings, and it means a lot to them. So to legitimize and be able to have people that have real paintings is extremely important. A painting like this could be sold or given multiple times in a lifetime and different people are then victimized.”

Veillieux added that there are no further charges pending at this time