India on top: Akbar Padamsee, Gaitonde and Anish Kapoor rule auctions in South Asia

Prized works by the new and old sold for record sums last year despite a slowdown in the art market. A look at some of the bestsellers.

No matter how bad the market is, when a good piece comes into the market, art collectors can’t resist splurging on it. This also applies to the work of Indian artists. Although the art market across the world plateaued last year, including South Asia, it didn’t stop new auction records being created, according to the London-based ArtTactic’s maiden report on the South Asian art market.

In modern art, no major price records were created, except by Akbar Padamsee’s ‘Greek Landscape’, according to the report. The pre-modern auction was dominated by Raja Ravi Varma with his ‘Radha In the Moonlight’ (sold by Pundole’s). It attracted the highest bid of $2,953,000 last year.


Original oil paintings by Raja Ravi Varma of the maharaja Nalwadi Krishnaraja when he was a kid, which are displayed at the Mysore Palace. (Image: BCCL)



The report predicts “positive to neutral market performance in the South Asia modern and contemporary art market in 2017”. Meanwhile, when it comes to market confidence on artists, Tyeb Mehta enjoys the top position with 85 per cent market confidence. Bhupen Khakhar, Nasreen Moamedi, FN Souza and SH Raza follow close behind. Despite the frenzy around VS Gaitonde’s works, the artist’s name figures last in ArtTactic’s top 10 list.


F N Souza's Portrait Of An Indian Family 1947. (Image: BCCL)