International media takes note of the rising stature of Indian art

“When Christie’s first offered modern and contemporary Indian art as a single sale category in London in 1995, it took in just £390,482, or $613,837 (at the exchange rate then). Last year, the category took in about $45.3 million in London, NY and Hong Kong. Contemporary Indian artists are beginning to gain a foothold in East Asia as a result of increasing exposure at art fairs, biennials and exhibitions.”

This was the observation made by Hillary Brenhouse of The New York Times. Many international publications took note of the rising stature of contemporary Indian art. The NYT proclaimed that Asian interest in Indian art is gradually picking up.

Depicting the broader picture, an extensive BBC News report by Sanjoy Majumder mentioned: “Indian art draws on a rich tradition, which goes back thousands of years and what we’re now seeing, is its commercial and artistic evolution. A whole new generation of artists and art lovers are definitely driving Indian art and pushing its boundaries. The country's growing economy has also thrown up new buyers. This in turn has led to a mushrooming of art galleries.”

Gareth Harris of The Financial Times noted of the Charles Saatchi show of Indian art at his Chelsea space in 2010. Giving an enhanced sense of the Indian art market, renowned publication Economist noted, “The prices of paintings by known artists such as the late F.N. Souza and M.F. Husain have fallen over the past year.

“Prices of works by younger contemporary artists have also slumped, which has brought a sense of reality to the art market. The prices were driven up less by collectors than by investors, most of them rich Indians living abroad. This type of investor vanished from the market once the financial crisis struck last autumn. However, collectors began to return, bidding cautiously at auctions in London and India,” it pointed out.