Parallel Facets

New York City’s TamarindArt Gallery is very excited to announce their first scheduled shows of 2007. The first—Parallel Facets—begins February 21st, with an opening reception on that date at 6:00PM.

Parallel Facets will mark the first time the gallery will feature paintings and sculptures in a single show. Works by two very renowned artists, Samir Aich and Niranjan Pradhan, will be exhibited; both have been in the contemporary Indian art scene for over three decades and each has mastered his medium over the years. Both are well recognized in India and abroad.

A product of the Government College of Art and Craft, Calcutta, Samir Aich uses unusual surfaces and media to express his creative impulses. His abstract canvases are bold and expressive, combining dark colored backgrounds with organic overtones with powerful lines and emphatic dots. These superbly blended elements produce a spectacular visual experience.

Born in 1940 in Sunderbans, Niranjan Pradhan moved to Calcutta and was admitted to the Government College of Art and Craft at the age of 18 where he earned a diploma in painting in 1964 and in sculpture in 1967. The bucolic life of his youth in direct contrast to the urbanization that is Calcutta provides the basis of his work. His abstract forms are very much modern; some reflect the sharp-angled rigidity of cubism, others are reminiscent of the sinuous curves and hollow voids produced by famed English sculptor Henry Moore.

Parallel Facets will run through March 17 at the gallery located at 142 East 39th Street, New York.

Details are also being finalized for TamarindArt’s first anniversary celebration. The exhibition coming in March is expected to offer up some exceptional Indian contemporary art with some surprises along the way. Keep an eye out for details coming soon.


Call 212-990-9000 or visit the website at http://tamarindart.com/index.asp for more information on these shows specifically or regarding Indian contemporary art in general.

Sculpture Buzz in the Indian art scene

Till a few months ago nobody spoke to or spoke of contemporary Indian sculptures. The buzz word in Indian art today is "sculpture".

In India, young and senior sculptors are excited and eagerly waiting to see what direction this new found interest will take during the upcoming auction in March in NYC.

Galleries are already starting to exhibit contemporary Indian sculptures; it is refreshing to see three dimensional art making its appearance in the Indian art scene.

Christies - DUBAI

Prices for Indian contemporary art are picking up where they left off last year, as Christie’s held the first major sale of the year, February 1, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. If the results are indicative of things to come, 2007 could be another rosy year indeed for collectors of this genre.

The sale began with works by artists from the Middle East, until the 61 lots of Indian modern and contemporary art were offered up to buyers approximately halfway through. Generally, the wait was worth it, as the anticipation eased among art market watchers as most of the pieces sold at or above their pre-sale estimates.

Two Jamini Roy watercolors started this portion of the auction, and, as they did in 2006, performed quite well, selling for $24,000 and $26,400 USD* respectively, doubling expectations. Works followed by the senior artists, and likewise, continued the recent sales trend. S. H. Raza’s Lumiere d’Ete fell for $204,000, M. F. Husain’s Untitled (Peasant Woman) for $144,000, an untitled Akbar Padamsee oil on canvas for $168,000, and an untitled Ram Kumar for $329,600.

The highest closing bid was for a Husain, whose popularity seems not to have waned—his Untitled (Woman and Horses) went for $441,600, his Untitled (Saraswati) for $180,000; also selling above their estimates were Raza’s Rajput House for $307,200, an untitled Jagdish Swaminathan for $240,000, Rameshwar Broota’s That Common Story for $156,000 and an F. N. Souza landscape for $114,000. Another Souza fell within the estimate range and sold for $144,000. (One of his paintings was passed, as were two works by Ram Kumar, a K. H. Ara, and an Anjolie Ela Menon).

In what may be a development to keep one’s eyes on this year, is the market for Indian artists of the “second tier”, many whose works on this day surpassed expectations. B. Prabha’s 2 Girls commanded a respectable $66,000, an untitled painting for $60,000, her Fishergirl $45,600. Others to watch may include Avinash Chandra, whose two untitled watercolors sold for double their estimates, Velu Vishwanadhan, whose untitled casein on canvas went for $26,400—triple the estimate, Ganesh Pyne’s tempera on canvas The Gate, which sold for $72,000, and an untitled self-portrait by Anju Dodiya for $33,600. Also “hot” right now—if the results of Christie’ Dubai hold true—are works by Jayashree Chakravarty and Justin Ponmany.

The 193 lots up for bid (including the Middle East works) brought in a final tally of $9,417,560.

Will the selling power of Indian contemporary art sustain itself in the coming months? Time will tell as spring auctions at Christie’s New York (March 21st), Sotheby’s New York (March 22nd), and Bonham‘s London (May 21st) will soon bloom forth.
-Sri

Christies in Dubai fetched $441,000 for MF Husain

MF Husain the most celebrated artist of India presently living in Dubai fetched $441,600 for Woman with Horses. This is the second international art auction of Christies at Dubai. This clearly shows the appetite for the magnificient HORSES of MF Husain which he depicts them in the most eletrifying action. The largest horses painting titled lightning which is NYC may come up as exhibit very soon -so stand by. My hats off to Husain.
Sri

Christies in Dubai fetched $441,000 for MF Husain

MF Husain the most celebrated artist of India presently living in Dubai fetched $441,600 for Woman with Horses. This is the second international art auction of Christies at Dubai. This clearly shows the appetite for the magnificient HORSES of MF Husain which he depicts them in the most eletrifying action. The largest horses painting titled lightning which is NYC may come up as exhibit very soon -so stand by. My hats off to Husain.
Sri