A painting that celebrates the Republic Day was sold for £120,000, stated an official release. A packed saleroom witnessing intense bidding was the highlight of the sale that took the tally to £1.7m from 86 lot sale; almost 97 percent of the lots sold by value. Late Bhupen Khakhar’s (1934-2003) oil on canvas work, entitled ‘Republic Day’, was estimated at a conservative price of £30,000-40,000. It was keenly sought by several keen overseas buyers and managed to triple its top estimate (touching £120,000).
The top lot in the Indian and South Asian art sale was a turquoise & gold jar painted by Iran’s Farhad Moshiri. It fetched £150,000 against an estimated price of £40,000 to £60,000. Another Moshiri work went for £48,000. Incidentally, his ‘Eshgh’ (Love) was the first one from the Middle East to fetch over $1m at Bonhams auction in Dubai two years ago.
Equally impressive prices were recorded for MF Husain (£96,000 and £81,600) and Jehangir Sabavala (India) as well as by other artists, including Mahmoud Said (Egypt), Nasrollah Afjehel (Iran), Jamil Naqsh and Sadequain (both Pakistan).The head of Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern and South Asian Art at Bonhams, Mehreen Rizvi, was quoted as saying:
“To achieve this result with only 86 lots shows how strong the market is. We have been central to building this sector of the art market for a decade, so this is doubly pleasing.”Bonhams is among the leading international auctioneers of art and other collectibles. It has been known for its pioneering sales. The auction house was the first to hold auctions in Monaco in the 1980s. It now has annual sales all over the world, often coinciding with prestigious events, in the US, UK, Paris and Australia.
No comments:
Post a Comment