Is India all set for an art revolution?

China has tightened its stronghold on the global art market. Chinese auction houses in less than five years have emerged to be among the most influential ones in the world, flaunting their might in the domain of fine art, jewelry and antiques. In this context, an insightful article by writer Ajay Seth (Is India ready for an art revolution?; The Hindu Businessline) makes the following observations:

• According to The European Fine Art Foundation (TEFAF), China recently toppled the US, which ruled the global art scene for centuries. China's share in the world art market rose from 23 per cent in 2010 to 30 per cent last year, with Hong Kong emerging as the new global hub of art transactions.
• The US has been pushed to second position with a 29 per cent market share, while the UK and France, with 22 per cent and a distant 6 per cent are third and fourth place contenders, respectively. At the global auction market in 2011, China emerged on the top by garnering over 40 per cent of fine art auction sales revenue, followed by the US (over 23 per cent), the UK (19.4 per cent), France (4.5 per cent), Germany (1.8 per cent) and others.
• What should India learn? The fact that a collector will have greater affinity towards artifacts from his own land and culture is largely contributing to more and more Chinese supporting their native artists. The Indian art industry should follow the lead by rediscovering and supporting homespun talent.
• India's share of the global art market — at approximately Rs 700 crore — is still less than 1 per cent of a global art market which is currently worth 43 billion euros. However, the Indian artscape is evolving; a recently organised India Art Summit 2012 was a huge crowd-puller, with participation from 90 per cent of the roughly 90 Indian and international galleries, and with each selling between one and four works of art.
• The legends — F.N. Souza, S.H. Raza, the late M.F. Husain and Jehangir Sabavala — are gradually finding a place in every art connoisseur's hearth. Economic prosperity has spawned a new breed of art collectors who are willing to pay a premium for prized pieces.