98% of the lots sold fetch more than $15 million.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Auction house Christie’s first-ever art sale in India fetched over 15 million dollars, doubling pre-sale expectations, with an astounding 98 percent sale of the 83 lots up for grabs.
The renowned London-based art and jewelry seller held the event at the lavish Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai, auctioning off both classical and modern art pieces.
“This evening in Mumbai, Christie’s first auction in India totaled INR 96,59,37,500 (USD$15,455,000), doubling pre-sale expectations and selling 98% by lot,” said Christie’s Chief Executive Officer, Steven Murphy, on the company’s website shortly after the auction concluded.
“This auction marks an historic moment for Christie’s, building on a 20-year history in India, and a decade of global market leadership in Modern Indian Art through sales in New York and London.”
The centerpiece of the auction was an oil painting by artist Vasudeo Gaitonde, which fetched an enormous sum of just over 237 million rupees from an anonymous US buyer. That amount is equivalent to $3.8 million.
Initial reports expected the most sought-after piece to be a painting by the late Tyeb Mehta, entitled “Mahishasur,” which was expected to land somewhere in the range of 75-95 million rupees. It ended up being sold for just under 198 million rupees, or $3.165 million.
The third most lucrative piece, an untitled painting also by Tyeb Mehta, fetched just over 98.5 million rupees, equivalent to roughly $1.58 million.
Mehta had a history with Christie’s, as it was the very same auction house that sold a painting by him in 2005 that set a record by making him the first Indian artist to ever hit a $1 million sale for a single piece.
“Our inaugural sale reinforces Christie’s longstanding commitment to the artistic and cultural heritage of the Subcontinent, a commitment that has been part of our history since 1766 when James Christie offered ‘four fine India pictures painted on glass’ at auction,” said Christie’s, also via their website.
After observing that the sale of art at auctions in New York and London was seeing a growing Indian presence, Christie’s decided to bring an auction to India and see if sales would be similarly robust.
The results of this auction seem to prove that they’re on to something.
“This moment also marks a new chapter for the South Asian art market and for Christie’s own history,” said Christie’s, “[and] we look forward to this new chapter in our long narrative.”
The full list of pieces and the prices they sold for can be found here.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com