Raza's 'La Terre', Souza's 1958 Untitled oil & other artworks that fared well at 2019 auctions
Raza's 'La Terre', an abstract landscape fetched Rs 21.6 crore at a Christie's sale.
By PTI |
Agencies
The list also featured modern masters like Syed Haider Raza, Francis Newton Souza, Bhupen Khakhar and Raja Ravi Verma.
NEW DELHI: Record sales by Indian artists pointed to the continuing steady interest in modern Indian art in an eventful 2019 that ended globally on a note of 'fruitful' controversy over a banana duct-taped to a wall in a Miami gallery -- and soon eaten by a visitor.
In the Indian art-scape, Vasudeo S Gaitonde was the undisputed star, bagging the top two spots for the most expensive Indian artworks sold in the year. While his 1982 Untitled oil-on-canvas fetched Rs 26.7 crore, another 1973 Untitled oil-on-canvas was picked up for Rs 25.2 crore at Mumbai-based auction house Saffronart sales.
A banana duct-taped to a wall in a Miami gallery was soon eaten by a visitor.
Two more of his Untitled works, one created in 1958 and another in 1963, were sold for Rs 9.5 crore each at the Saffronart and Astaguru sales, respectively, making it to the "Top 10 artworks of 2019" list brought out by Artery India, an art intelligence and sales advisory, and shared exclusively with .
The list also featured modern masters like Syed Haider Raza, Francis Newton Souza, Bhupen Khakhar and Raja Ravi Verma.
"This has been a promising year for Indian art, and sales reflect a steady global interest in and demand for modern masters, including V S Gaitonde, S H Raza and F N Souza, who were creating art during a transformational period in history," Dinesh Vazirani, Saffronart CEO and co-founder, told .
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Raza's 'La Terre', an abstract landscape, considered an important masterpiece from the artist's career, appeared on the auction market after in September 2019 after 16 years and fetched Rs 21.6 crore at a Christie's sale.
Raza's 'La Terre', an abstract landscape, considered an important masterpiece from the artist's career, appeared on the auction market after in September 2019 after 16 years and fetched Rs 21.6 crore at a Christie's sale.
Khakhar, who was a new entrant in this year's top 10 list, achieved a brand new record with his 'Two Men in Benares' that fetched Rs 22.39 crore at Sotheby's Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art auction in June 2019.
The 1982 work became the most expensive painting by Khakhar, leaving behind his 'De-luxe Tailors' (1972) that sold for Rs 9.71 crore at the Sotheby's auction of Howard Hodgkin's collection in 2017.
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The painting is also iconic in its historicity. Following its unveiling in Mumbai in 1986, Khakhar became the first Indian artist to freely disclose his sexual orientation through his work.
Souza's 1958 Untitled oil on board work showcasing two men groping a woman seemed like an uncannily appropriate representation of the current times.
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It sold for Rs 10.4 crore at a Sotheby's sale.
While no contemporary painter made it to the list of top 10 most expensive artworks by Indians, London-based contemporary sculptor Anish Kapoor was named the most successful Indian artist alive by Hurun India Art List brought out by the Hurun Research Institute, a luxury publishing group based in Shanghai in China.
Kapoor sold 102 lots that realised a total turnover of Rs 168.25 crore in 2018-19, with his highest selling artwork -- an untitled stainless steel sculpture, fetching Rs 9.31 crore at a Christie's auction in October 2018.
"The works of Anish Kapoor, contemporary sculptor, registered the highest demand in terms of value and lots in the auction houses during the period under review(April 2018 to March 2019)," the survey noted.
The year also saw visible interest in rare books and prints.
Bengali sculptor and printmaker Somnath Hore's 'Wounds', part of his paper pulp print series from his 1970s experiments, fetched Rs 9 lakh at Mumbai-based auction house Prinseps' rare books and prints sale.
Bengali sculptor and printmaker Somnath Hore's 'Wounds', part of his paper pulp print series from his 1970s experiments, fetched Rs 9 lakh at Mumbai-based auction house Prinseps' rare books and prints sale.
During the September sale that fetched a total of Rs 33.23 lakh, there was particular interest in the 1809 copy of Luis De Camoens' 'The Lusiad Or The Discovery Of India', which sold for Rs 2.04 lakh.
The three volumes of the Portuguese epic poem, printed for Lackington, Allen and Co. London describes Vasco Da Gama's journey to India and had previously been owned by art collector Edward Cheney (1803-1884) of Badger Hall, in England's Shropshire county.
Internationally, French painter Claude Monet's 1890 work 'Mueles' sold for a record breaking price of $110.7 million (Rs 789.15 crore) at Sotheby's 'Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Sale' in New York.
Regarded as the finest example from Monet's acclaimed 'Haystacks' series, the artwork not just set a new world auction record for any work by the painter, but also became the ninth most expensive work ever sold at an auction, as well as the first Impressionist work to cross the $100 million threshold.
The year for the art world ended in a pandemonium like situation with a banana duct-taped to a wall up for sale at a booth in the 2019 edition of Art Basel Miami.
Of the three editions of the artwork titled 'Comedian', created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan and presented by gallery Perrotin, two sold for $120,000 and one for $150,000.
Before being removed, the banana was eaten by a visitor at the fair who claimed the act was part of a performance.
From Rare Pokemon Cards To Empty Frames, Bizarre Pieces Of Artwork That Were Sold For Millions
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An artwork called ‘Comedian’ created by an Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, which was recently sold for a whopping $121,000 (approximately Rs. 86.07 lakhs), has become the talk of the town.
The artwork, to everyone’s surprise, was a mere banana held against the wall using a duct tape. The rather puzzling piece of art being sold for such a massive amount, left the netizens scratching their heads in amazement. Things took a rather dramatic turn when performance artist David Datuna ended up taking the banana off the wall and eating it while the artwork was on display at an international gallery, Perrotin, at Art Basel in Miami.
However, the banana-duct tape ensemble is not the only bizarre piece of artwork that has made a massive amount of money. Several ridiculous and weird pieces of artwork have been sold for millions of dollars in the last decade. Here are some of them.
An artwork called ‘Comedian’ created by an Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, which was recently sold for a whopping $121,000 (approximately Rs. 86.07 lakhs), has become the talk of the town. The artw..
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It is a popular saying that when you look at the world through rose-tinted glasses, you might end up missing out on some red flags. Gerhard Richter, a German visual artist, created a unique piece of artwork, which was essentially a mirror, painted in red.
In October 2012, Richter's Abstraktes Bild set an auction record price for a painting by a living artist at £21m ($34m, approximately Rs, 3.4 crores). This was exceeded in May 2013 when his 1968 piece Domplatz, Mailand (Cathedral square, Milan) sold for $37.1 million (£24.4 million, approximately Rs. 2.44 crores) in New York.
Seems like Richter wanted to paint the town red, after all!
It is a popular saying that when you look at the world through rose-tinted glasses, you might end up missing out on some red flags. Gerhard Richter, a German visual artist, created a unique piece of ..
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Pokemon is the global phenomenon that has taken the world by storm and back in the previous decade, several people were fond of collecting Pokemon cards and tazos. However, there was one sought-after, coveted card which was sold at an auction for $224,500 (approximately Rs. 1.59 crores) according to gaming news site, Kotaku.
What’s so special about the card, you ask? The card was special because it was handed out as a prize in the competitions in the year 1998. Only 39 of these cards were made, making them very rare.
Pokemon is the global phenomenon that has taken the world by storm and back in the previous decade, several people were fond of collecting Pokemon cards and tazos. However, there was one sought-after..
Read More
Being away from home for long durations can be quite a daunting feeling. To cure us of overpowering feelings of homesickness, British artist Tracey Emin came up with an artwork called ‘My Bed’ in 1998.
‘My Bed’, consisted of Emin’s bed full of soiled bedsheets stained with bodily secretions, condoms, knickers with menstrual blood stains and everyday objects like slippers. ‘My Bed’ was bought by Charles Saatchi for £150,000 (approximately Rs. 1.4 crore) and displayed as part of the first exhibition when the Saatchi Gallery opened its new premises at County Hall, London.
Being away from home for long durations can be quite a daunting feeling. To cure us of overpowering feelings of homesickness, British artist Tracey Emin came up with an artwork called ‘My Bed’ in 199..
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If you feel bizarre pieces of Modern Art were a rarity in the 20th Century, you’re wrong. In 1961, an Italian artist Piero Manzoni, created a piece of art that raised several eyebrows. Called, ‘Artist’s Shit’, the artwork by Manzoni consists of 90 tin cans filled with feces.
Each can weighs around 30 grams. The most bizarre and confusing fact about ‘Artist’s Shit’, is that a single tin of the ‘artwork’ was sold for €124,000 (approximately Rs. 97.57 lakhs) on Sotheby, one of the largest brokers of fine and decorative art on May 23, 2007.
Another can was sold in October 2008 for £97,250 (approximately Rs. 91.12 lakhs). Needless to say, the buyers spent a humongous amount on..err...a piece of crap.
If you feel bizarre pieces of Modern Art were a rarity in the 20th Century, you’re wrong. In 1961, an Italian artist Piero Manzoni, created a piece of art that raised several eyebrows. Called, ‘Artis..
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Venus de Milo is a popular ancient Greek statue located in Louvre Museum. Zhu Cheng, one of China’s most renowned sculptors, helped nine art students recreate Venus de Milo’s statue using excrement. It is placed in a transparent box at Henan Art Museum in Zhengzhou city, China, so that the spell of poop doesn’t drive everyone away.
The statue was purchased by a Swiss art collector for a staggering 300,000 yuan ($45,113 approximately Rs. 32.09 lakhs).
Venus de Milo is a popular ancient Greek statue located in Louvre Museum. Zhu Cheng, one of China’s most renowned sculptors, helped nine art students recreate Venus de Milo’s statue using excrement. ..
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Every piece of artwork, it is often argued, should push the boundaries of what is deemed acceptable in the society. The piece of artwork called ‘Piss Christ’, by the American artist and photographer Andres Serrano, pushed the boundaries a little too far.
‘Piss Christ’, is essentially a photograph of the Crucifix,a holy Christian symbol submerged in the artist’s urine. To no one’s surprise, the piece of ‘art’ caused a massive outrage and major controversy, with Serrano receiving death threats and hate mail. However, the bizarre artwork received a funding of $15,000 (Rs.10.67 lakhs) from the taxpayer’s money.
Several others alleged that the government funding of the artwork violated the principle of separation of Church and State.
Every piece of artwork, it is often argued, should push the boundaries of what is deemed acceptable in the society. The piece of artwork called ‘Piss Christ’, by the American artist and photographer ..
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If you are a fan of big blank walls in your home and workspace, chances are, you would absolutely adore the ‘non-existent’ art sold by Museum of Non-Visible Art, based in New York. The people behind the museum, call the art ‘non-visible’.
If you haven’t figured it out by now, the artworks are essentially pieces of empty frames. The art exists only in the imagination of the artist. As per a report by npr.org, a woman in 2011, paid $10,000 (Rs. 7.11 lakhs) for a piece called ‘fresh art’ by the museum.
Looks like the museum took the popular quote ‘beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder’ too literally.
If you are a fan of big blank walls in your home and workspace, chances are, you would absolutely adore the ‘non-existent’ art sold by Museum of Non-Visible Art, based in New York. The people behind ..
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This piece of artwork was created out of a bet placed among a bunch of friends. Justin Gignac, was a New York-based artist who was often belittled by his co-workers because he stood for the importance of package design. That was when Gignac took it upon himself to prove his co-workers wrong.
Gignac came up with a souvenir which is essentially a nicely-packaged cube containing garbage from New York City. In no time, people started viewing the souvenirs as a piece of art, thereby proving Gignac’s point. The cubes were sold for as high as $50-$100 (approximately Rs. 3,550- Rs. 7,113).
This piece of artwork was created out of a bet placed among a bunch of friends. Justin Gignac, was a New York-based artist who was often belittled by his co-workers because he stood for the importanc..
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Everybody loves snacking on Cheetos, but for Andy Huot, a mechanical engineer from Louisville, Kentucky, every bag of Cheetos contains uniquely shaped curls which can be used to re-enact creative scenes. Whatever scenes Huot creates, he shares it on his Instagram account, which has 40,000+ followers.
The artist recently recreated the scene where ‘The Three Wise Men’, come to shower baby Jesus with gifts. The scene of Christ’s nativity was created entirely using Cheetos cheese puffs and gained massive appreciation from Huot’s fans.
Everybody loves snacking on Cheetos, but for Andy Huot, a mechanical engineer from Louisville, Kentucky, every bag of Cheetos contains uniquely shaped curls which can be used to re-enact creative sce..
"This morning, following recommendations, we removed the installation at 9 am. We want to thank the organizers of the fair for their help and continued support. Art Basel collaboratively worked with us to station guards and create uniform lines.
"However, the installation caused several uncontrollable crowd movements and the placement of the work on our booth compromised the safety of the artwork around us, including that of our neighbours," gallery Perrotin said in a statement.
'Comedian', with its simple composition, ultimately offered a complex reflection of ourselves, it added.
"We would like to warmly thank all those who participated in this memorable adventure, as well as to our colleagues. We sincerely apologize to all the visitors of the fair who today will not be able to participate in 'Comedian'," the statement added.
