Prices Remain Steady at New York Auctions

Sotheby’s and Christie’s held their annual Indian modern and contemporary art spring sales this week in the Big Apple with very few surprises—even with two works breaking the million dollar mark.

There were no great shakes at Sotheby’s Indian Art Wednesday morning session. Of the 89 lots up for bid, 27% went unsold, including three works by Krishen Khanna, three by F. N. Souza, two Akbar Padamsees’, two Jogen Chowdhurys’, a Raza and one M. F. Husain. Still, the 65 pieces that went down the hammer garnered a total take of $5,106,875USD*.

The big winner of the day was a Husain oil on canvas dated 1953, a seminal period when the artist was still discovering his language and style. Composed with the rhythmic, confident line that later became his trademark, the Untitled piece sold for $409,000. Not far behind was Souza’s Head of a Man, which finished at $313,000. Seven other paintings from members of the Progressive Artists Group finished in the quarter million dollar range, hardly eyebrow-raising after the past few years of escalating prices.

Rounding out the big numbers, Jagdish Swaminathan's iconic 1971 Untitled landscape featuring flat planes of saturated yellows and orange delineating and detailing a deeply spiritual reverence for the unrealized universe, sold over pre-estimated values at $229,000. An unsettling rare self-portrait and a comment on the inevitable decay of the human body by Rameshwar Broota finished at $169,000; Jehangir Sabavala’s oil and acrylic on canvas, The Bridge, for $163,000; and Anjlie Ela Menon’s Goat People for $121,000.

Other artists faring well were three oils from B. Phabha (selling in the range of $32,200 to $44,200), George Keyt ($32,200/$20,000), Shanti Dave ($25,000), Gulam Rasool Santosh ($51,400), Sakti Burman ($67,000), Manu Parekh ($49,000), Avinash Chandra ($63,400), A. R. Chugtai ($79,000), Ambadas ($46,600), and Arpana Caur ($49,000).

Thursday’s 10:00AM South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art auction at Christie's produced more of the same, although two resoundingly broke the seven-figure mark. M. F. Husain’s The Battle of Ganga and Jamuna, one of his most significant works to appear at auction, sold for a staggering $1,609,000. Ram Kumar’s oil on board, Vagabond, whose forlorn and isolated figures with strained postures are linked to the angular jagged shapes of the cityscape and buildings, sold for $1,161,000. Coming in at a distant third was a Tyeb Mehta work at a still respectable $657,000.

Works by other PAG masters in various mediums also sold well, as has been the trend the past half-decade. What is becoming the thing to watch in Indian art, however, are the prices being generated by those who are following in their footsteps. Younger artists such as T. V. Santhosh for example, whose oil on canvas diptych fetched $337,000, an Untitled for $85,000; Rameshwar Broota’s Traces of Man I, for $265,000; Atul Dodiya’s Untitled work of ironic juxtaposition for $217,000, his Red Loves Peas for $157,000.

And on down the line--Ganesh Pyne’s Untitled tempera on canvas work symbolizing his tranquil-obsession with death sold for $127,000; Jagannath Panda’s Untitled oil on canvas featuring a peacock being forced out of its natural habitat finished at $133,000, his Behind the Meeting Place II for $109,000; Chintan Upadhyay’s New Breed Hybrid for $75,400; a Jitish Kallat and a Jamini Roy each selling for $73,000.

At Christie’s, only 17 of the available 131 lots were passed, with a total final total take of $10,974,600.

The New York sales may have proven two things as we make it through the early part of 2008—art prices by the Indian masters are not coming down, while works by contemporary artists seem to be catching up . . . fast.

*All prices in US Dollars include the buyer's premium and are rounded to the nearest dollar.

Younger Artists Soar at Saffronart On-Line Auction

For those who have been following Indian contemporary art over the past few years, you can probably remember when the market was idling on the runway, waiting to take off. It wasn’t that long ago when Progressive Artist Group works shocked the market by garnering prices in the six-figure range; today, it no surprise when a Souza, Vaitonde, Mehta, or Raza sells for over a million dollars. On March 12 –13, Saffronart’s spring online auction may have shown that post-PAG artists may be the next group waiting in the wings for a similar surge upward in prices.

Works by Subodh Gupta, born in 1964, were an example of this surge, who along with Atul Dodiya, born in 1959, Shibu Natesan, 1966, T. V. Santhosh, 1968, Jagannath Panda, 1970, and Surendran Nair, born in 1956, are getting prices unimagined not very long ago.

Nair’s commentary on identity and sociopolitical change, his oil on canvas, Doctrine of the Forest: An Actor at Play (Cuckoonebulopolis) painted in 2007, was the big winner of the sale, selling for a shattering $558,969 USD*. Not far behind was an untitled oil on canvas painted by Subodh Gupta that took a final tally of $477,250. For good measure, his painting Let Me Make My Damn Art, estimated to sell in the $60,000 - $70,000 range, instead went down for a whopping $437,000. And his sculpture of stainless steel kitchenware entitled Feast for Hundred and Eight Gods 2 closed at $209,875. Panda’s Untitled acrylic and fabric on canvas, fell at a remarkable $353,625, estimated pre-sale at $65,790 - 78,950. Natesan’s hyper-realistic images in Each One Teach One, an oil on linen, doubled estimates and sold for $281,448.

Santhosh, too, is making his presence felt on the modern Indian art scene—two oils on canvas, an Untitled and Across An Unresolved Story II, containing thermographic, x-ray like imagery, sold for $232,875 each. Predictably, Atul Dodiya’s works did well, although he was a bit overshadowed his contemporaries. His piece Vansha Vriksha , a watercolor, acrylic and marble dust on paper sold for $208,150; his Bapu Breaking his Fast, an acrylic on canvas, for $104,650; his enamel paint and synthetic varnish on laminate titled Shri Jivan Chaya of Gandhi Nagar (with 17th Wife board Madhuben and 18th Wife Jayashriben) for $172,500.

Three other works, Death of a Snake Charmer by Bharti Kher (born in 1969), Baiju Parthan’s (1956) diptych of cryptic images called Source Code - Benedict, and Anju Dodiya’s Daphne, also broke the five-figure mark. Not far behind in the upper four-figures were works by G. R. Iranna, Chittrovanu Mazumdar, Rashid Rana, Jittish Kallat, N. S. Harsha, Sudhanshu Sutar, and Riyas Komu.

Every one of the 119 works in the two-day event was sold, with three quarters of them surpassing their estimated values. There were no PAG works in the catalogue for this, one of the first Indian art auctions of 2008. One that went very, very well without their contribution.

* (Prices inclusive of Buyers Premium)

Tamarind Celebrates Asian Contemporary Art Week

Tamarind Art proudly presents Creative Circuit: Indian Contemporaries, a museum-quality show of paintings and sculptures from the Charugundla collection featuring some of the most provocative artists in today’s Indian art scene. These works will showcase some of the contemporary artists who are currently setting the standards in the Indian art market, and a few whose names may not be well known but are poised to become so.

Featured artists include Samir Aich, Bikash Bhattacharjee, Jayashree Chakravarty, Avinash Chandra, Sarbari Roy Chowdhury, Sumana Chowdhury, Samit Das, Pratul Dash, Ganesh Haloi, Prabhakar Kolte, Mahjabin Majumdar, Kamal Mitra, Anil Sen, and Hema Upadhyay.

Opening reception will be 19 March 2008 from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pmRSVP - rsvp@tamarindart.com. The exhibition will run from 19 March – 5 April 2008.

About Asian Contemporary Art Week

Over 100 artists will present their works at 60 special events, including receptions, exhibition-viewings, screenings, artists’ conversations and walkthroughs at 46 leading galleries and museums across New York City. Since its inception in 2001, ACAW continues to respond to the rise in public interest and demand for knowledge about artists producing works both inside and outside of Asia.

Participants include an incredibly diverse and broad array of presenting venues, as well as an ever-expanding list of artists from almost every region of Asia. China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Iran, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, and for the first time, the Middle East: Lebanon, Palestine and Israel.

In its fifth year, ACAW launches a series of talks to highlight the week entitled Artists in Conversation. Nominated by a number of art experts from the region, over 75 leading and emerging artists submitted their portfolios from which 25 were selected by the ACAC to speak about their works and concepts at participating venues.

A Dynamic Perception @ Tamarind

Tamarind Art invites you to their exhibition, Dynamic Perception, showcasing five artists from India who are creating work that use figurative subject matter. Participating artists include Subha Basu, Ramesh Kandagiri, Abesh Mitra, Anjan Modak,& Kajal Shah.

Each artist approaches the use of the figure in their work in very different styles. From Abesh Mitra’s semi abstract heads to Anjan Modak’s pieces that lend a lot to their photographic source material. The paintings of Subha Basu owe a debt to the expressionist, Max Beckman, for his use of bold outlines and multiple perspectives. Ramesh Kandagiri’s paintings make use of a limited palette to which causes one to focus less on the colors used and more on his use of line and space.

About the Artists:

Subha Basu received his degree from The Indian College of Arts and Draftsmanship, Rabindra Bharati University. Since graduation he has participated in a number of group exhibitions including, ‘Antarmahal’ arranged by ‘Catalyst’ at Academy of Fine Arts, in 2004. He participated in a Group Show organized by ‘Catalyst’ at Birla Academy of Art and Culture in 2004. In 2006 he was in ‘Future Stroke’ at Gallery Kaniska in Kolkata. That year he was also in ‘Parampara’ at Birla Academy of Art and Culture in Kolkata, and the Group Show at Lalit Kala Academy, Rabindrabhavan New Delhi. In 2007 he was in two shows, ‘Searching” at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata and “Bhavna” at Metropolitan Art Salon.

Ramesh Kandagiri graduated with honors from Viswa Bharti Shantiniketan where he received his MFA in Painting. Over the years he participated in many group exhibitions all across India. He was the recipient of the Junior Fellowship from Human Resources Development, Department of Culture, and Government of India. He accomplished a project under the same fellowship from 1998 to 2000.

Abesh Bivore Mitra received his degree from the M.S. University Baroda in 1996. Since graduation he exhibited his work in many group and solo shows, in addition to participation in a number of workshops and residencies. Abesh Mitra’s collections can be viewed in his native India and around the world.

Anjan Modak received his degree from Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata in 2007. He is continuing his studies in fine arts. Although a student Modak has displayed his work in a number of exhibitions at Lalit Kala Academy in New Delhi in 1996 and 1998. He also has been a part of many university shows from 2003 to 2007. In 2007 he exhibited his work at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kolkata.

Kajal Shah received her degree from M. S. University, Baroda in 2000. Shah’s work has been featured in a number of group shows including “Unfolding Grace” at Lanxess ABS Gallery in Baroda and “Foot Prints” which traveled to Baroda, Bangalore, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. Most recently she was in “Obscure Objects of Desire” which was curated by Johny ML at Open Eyes Dream Gallery in Cochin. In 2004 Shah had her first solo at Contemporary Art Gallery in Ahmedabad.

For more information, please contact Tamarind Art Gallery at (212) 990 - 9000 ext. 105 or email info@tamarindart.com or visit our web site at http://www.tamarindart.com/

Gallery hours: Tuesday through Friday, 11:00 am to 6:00 pm; Saturday, noon to 6:00 pm

Osian’s Gets 2008 Off and Running

The new year got an early kick-start as far as prices go as Osian’s Mumbai presented their Indian Modern and Contemporary 100 Years of Art sale on Saturday, January 19. Total take for the first major auction event of the year was over just over $8,000,000 USD (converted from INR at the time of this writing) with several works garnering hefty prices Indian art collectors have come to expect in recent years.

Top draws were Perception XV by Jagdish Swaminathan and S. H. Raza's Encounter that both went down at a final bid of nearly $800,000. Case in point that Indian masterpieces continue to appreciate nicely is that the Swaminathan went up for sale at Sotheby’s in 2006 where it sold for half as much. Other masters of the Progressive Artists Group also fared well, as per the norm of late, as works by Tyeb Mehta, F N Souza, and M F Hussain also crossed the half million-dollar mark. Contemporary artists Pestonji Bomanji, K Khosla, P T Reddy, S G Vasudev, Sanat Chatterjee were among younger painters whose pieces also sold well on this day in Mumbai.

The Bengal school section likewise did well with artists such as Sanat Chatterjee, Ganesh Pyne, Bikash Bhatacharjee, Ganesh Haloi, Shyamala Dutta Ray and Jaya Ganguly all receiving solid prices for their selected works up for sale. And was a great day for Tagores' works, as both Abnindranath and Rabindranath Tagore paintings achieved new highs.

The 168 lots included important works from the Dr Suhridchandra Collection and Mukund and Neerja Lath Collections. And while the emphasis seems to remain on the economic aspect of Indian modern and contemporary art, perhaps the focus may be shifting to a more critical and knowledge-based review of art, paving the way for the growing global expansion of Indian talent and creativity. Spring auctions may prove this to be the case.

Tamarind Art's Metaphysical Spaces

Tamarind Art's upcoming exhibition called Metaphysical Spaces features works by six young and talented artists, all exploring the vast possibilities of abstraction. However, each artist approaches abstraction from a very personal level, thereby creating a style unparalleled and unique. Some of the works carry hints of landscape or still-life, and yet the main focus is on the forms, colors, lines, textures that make up the image rather than a direct reference to our natural world. While others use emotive colors, abstract shapes and surface texture to create visual metaphors for contemporary life.

Participating artists: Sumana Chowdhury, Dipankar Dasgupta, Krishna Priya Dasgupta, Touhidul Islam, Arunava Mondal and Viji Reddy.

Sumana Chowdhury graduated from Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan in 1993. She is an award-winning artist who has been participating regularly in numerous exhibitions since 1991 in Calcutta, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, and the United Kingdom. Some of here solo exhibits include, Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat, Bangalore in 1995, Time and Space Gallery, Bangalore in 1999, and Sumukha Gallery, Bangalore in 2006.

Dipankar Dasgupta graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Baroda. He has participated in a number of group and solo exhibitions including, Recent Works at Chitrakoot Art gallery in 1998. That same year he was also in Autumn Explosion at the Birla Academy in Kolkata, a group show at Sanskriti Art Gallery in Delhi. In 1999 and 2000 he showed his works at Jehangir Art Gallery in Mumbai. In 1997 he had a solo exhibition at Gallery 88 in Mumbai.

Krishnapriya Dasgupta is a self-taught artist from Kolkata. His works have been exhibited in numerous group and solo exhibition in India including, a group show at Gaganendra Pradarshani in Kolkata, at the Birla Academy of Arts and Culture, Kolkata in 2002, and at Cymroza Gallery in Mumbai in 2006.

Touhidul Islam graduated from Rabindra Bharati University in 2006. Islam’s paintings have been exhibited in several shows all over India including, The Birla Academy of Art and Culture in 2007, a group show at Gallery with a Difference in 2007, The Academy of Fine Arts in 2006, The West Bengal State Academy in 2005. Islam has also had a solo exhibition at Gallery Exposure in 2007.

Arunava Mondal is a young talented artist and has recently graduated from Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan. In recent past he has exhibited in several group shows including, Only Seven, 2004, Sprouts at Kaleidoscope, Vadodara in 2006, Pratiti at Birla Academy in Kolkata. He was also one of the participants of Eleven Talented Artists from Bengal in 2006.

Viji Reddy is an artist from the Indian Diaspora, based in Florida. She has exhibited her works mostly in India and had a solo show at Shrishti Art Gallery, Hyderabad in 2005. The same year she was also participated in a group show at Time and Space Art Gallery, Bangalore. Her works can be seen in many art collections around the world.

Opening reception will be 22 January 2008 from 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm. RSVP to rsvp@tamarindart.com. Metaphysical Spaces will run until February 9. 2008.

Maps, Metaphors and Mythologies extended an extra week

Tamarind Art is excited to announce that it’s successful show Maps, Metaphors and Mythologies will be held over for an extra week. According to Tamarind Art the public’s response to this exciting show has been overwhelming. This show has 4 artists 3 of whom are working with installations each in their own unique way

Anupam Chakraborty who in addition to his installation has also created a number of objects for the show out of cast paper. In his installation Crèche he creates a series of whimsically patterned mattresses arranged as a grid that are an extension of the absent toddlers. A hundred little mattresses, pristine, untousled to suggest a hundred tiny bodies relaxed in sleep

Sudhir Kumar Duppati made We – Our – Us, which according to the artist, “Explores the human conditions currently effecting the human existence not for the purpose of identifying the ‘WHO’, but to resolve the insecurities and dilemmas existing in the contemporary societies of the world, with a common understanding and attitude that reflects our desire to live but with a favorable atmosphere.”

Kausik Mukhopadhyay has created a whimsical piece completely out of found objects, titled Incomplete Tourist Map of New York City; this piece was created during a month he spent in New York City on an artist residency.

M. Sashidharan, the lone painter in the show has 3 paintings from his Incubator each of these pieces are metaphors for the unconscious, sites for breeding and nurturing all those repressed impulses and desires censored for the moment by social pressure.

If you have not visited this dynamic show you really should these four artists have created some amazing works of art. If you have seen this show than you will understand how exciting this show is and I recommend you come for a second or third viewing as you will discover new surprises in each piece upon additional viewings.