Lot #1: Howard P Doner Mixed Media On Wooden Board

A true mid-century futurist, Howard Philip Seiss Doner (1909-1985) patented ‘multi-functional furniture’ including the sofabed, among other functional lighting and art-integrated pieces for the home, even designing housing communities with built-in recycling services, long before it was part of everyday life. A born entrepreneur, 'HPD' founded several businesses, including his namesake, Doner Gallery in Whitby. With a background in merchandise display from Sears Roebuck in Chicago, he also owned a National Display Centre, designing and fabricating retail fixtures. Designing furniture was a passion, and he partnered with Sklar in the 1950s, personally earning the National Design Award in furniture design in both 1954 and 1956. In 1967 he was presented with the Ontario Design Award in furniture design. All the while, he consistently painted artwork, represented by peers in the furniture and design industry as well as galleries in Paris, San Francisco and Tel Aviv. His works have hung in numerous corporate and condominium collections, Ottawa’s Parliament Buildings, and countless homes, where they are still treasured, nearly a century later.