Bengaluru hosting event to get more youngsters interested in art

BENGALURU: Bengaluru is the third-largest market for art collectors after Delhi and Mumbai. Although it has a small pool of serious collectors, it does not, yet, have a culture that encourages youngsters to walk into galleries and auctions, identify and pick up artefacts.

An event titled ‘A Conversation on Collecting’, to be organised by Chennai-based Ashvita’s in the city on Friday, hopes to start a dialogue on navigating the collectibles market.

Ashvin E Rajagopalan, its founder, said it is important to document and build an organised market for collectibles, which is currently opaque. Bengaluru, he said, has a diverse group of collectors. “Unlike Mumbai and Delhi, which invests heavily in art and paintings, Bengaluru is more influenced by global trends and popular culture. So, collectors here prefer getting quirky articles like graphic novels, automobiles, stamps and film posters,” he said.


Rajagopalan will moderate a panel discussion during the event on Friday, where he will speak with city-based collectors Arun Prasad, who has over 17,000 rare Indian comics, and Pradeep Kambathalli, an artist and a collector of vintage matchboxes. The discussion will focus on their individual passions, along with insights on how amateur collectors can determine the worth and monetary value of a collectible.

Prasad said while it is important to keep an eye on the market and money, a collector must first have the passion to keep looking out for artefacts that would add to the collection. “According to me, to build an enviable collection, one must be ready to travel to different places, rummage through markets and network with collectors to find things that make one happy. Trading is secondary.”

Friday’s event is a precursor to an online auction of 30 modern and contemporary art pieces by Ashvita’s scheduled for November 28 and 29. This will include works by artists like SH Raza and Subodh Gupta, collectible photographs and limited edition lithographs.

Leena Chethan, owner of Tangerine Art Space, said the city has the potential to create a new generation of collectors from its well-heeled IT crowd.

“Mumbai has an inherent culture of art appreciation, while Delhi has many art galleries and people who are knowledgeable about the market,” she said. “For Bengaluru to get there, the city must organise events that pique the interest of galleries and collectors by getting them under one roof,” Chethan said.