New Delhi, Feb 16 (PTI) Online auction house AstaGuru’s recent ‘Present Future’ contemporary art sale witnessed active response from connoisseurs and collectors, fetching a total of Rs 12.13 crore.
The auction, touted to be one of the largest collections of contemporary art in India, featured a total of 115 works by distinguished contemporary Indian artists including Bharti Kher, Atul Dodiya, Anju Dodiya, Jitish Kallat, Sudhir Patwardhan, Thukral & Tagra, Sudarshan Shetty, L N Tallur and Raqib Shaw.
Leading the auction were two works by artist Bharti Kher — an untitled and ‘A Letter To My Love’ — fetching Rs one crore each.
Both works exhibited Kher’s signature style of using ‘Bindi’ as a motif. Traditionally a symbol of femininity, strength and spirituality, the bindi has undergone a subliminal transformation through her art since 1995.
“We are extremely proud with the outcome of our ‘Present Future’ Contemporary Art Auction. The results of this contemporary auction only demonstrate the demand for such auctions among serious as well as budding collectors. And we look forward to showcase many more such enthralling collections of contemporary art in the coming times,” said Ankita Talreja, AstaGuru’s senior specialist on contemporary Indian Art in a statement.
‘Henry VIII’ by Raqib Shaw, the artist’s reinterpretation of a masterpiece by Hans Holbein the Younger — considered to be one of the greatest portraitists of the 16th century — was acquired at Rs 88,74,458.
The work was a part of the artist’s solo exhibition titled ‘Art Now: Raqib Shaw’ held at Tate Britain, London, in 2006.
Also part of the sale were art works by artist Anju Dodiya. While her ‘Cloud Hunter’, executed in acrylic on a mattress and showcased in several exhibitions previously, was acquired for Rs 39,44,204; another important large-scale creation by the artist, titled ‘Surge’, was acquired for Rs 30,25,383.
A large-scale diptych work, titled ‘Air Show’ by artist Nataraj Sharma, also generated an impressive sale value.
Created in the year 2004, the oil on canvas work spanning across 10 feet, fetched Rs 37,57,050. The canvas dotted with imagery of para gliders, planes, helicopters, as well as sorties of jet planes across the sky, makes it an extremely attractive and pulsating artwork.
‘Aircraft Waiting In Wings’, the 1998 acrylic on canvas work by senior artist Jitish Kallat, was acquired at Rs 32,53,968. A multimedia artist, his practice spans across disciplines such as painting, photography, collages, sculpture, and installation occupy equal importance in his oeuvre.
The auction also had on offer a sculpture by LN Tallur. The work executed with industrial paint on bronze was acquired for Rs 25,25,572. PTI MG RB RB
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