Sotheby’s is set to auction 18 distinguished paintings, including pieces by Raja Ravi Varma, MF. Husain and Francis Newton Souza. Just before the main auction set to take place on March 19, we spoke to Yamini Mehta, International Head of Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art, Sotheby’s to know more about the auction and the change the art industry has witnessed.
Excerpts:
Tell us about the auction?
This event is essentially the launch of the auction that we will be having in New York on March 19 for modern and contemporary South Asian art and we are unveiling this painting by Raza called Viel Provinsa. It is a masterpiece that hasn't seen light of the day in history except for the brief moment when it was shown at the Venice Biennial in 1956. It is his signature work and is important for art history in general because that was the time in Indian modernism when a handful of Indian artists went to France. France was the centre of the art world in the post war years. S.H. Raza, Alyque Padamsee and Francis Newton Souza particularly communed together and they were the only artists from India in the foreign land. They not only critiqued each other but also worked together. This work is interesting because it actually shows the influences that these artists had on each other. In 1955, Madanjeet Singh, a famous diplomat based in Italy, got around 60 artists to participate in Venice Biennial for the first time. In 1956, they paired what he thought was essential. He showed works of Raza, Padamsee and M.F. Hussain. This painting was also one of the hallmarks of that particular exhibition.
How has art scene changed in the last one decade?
Having observed this market for 20 years, I would say that it went for a quick high between 2005-2008. It was a time when there was a lot of speculation at the market place and artworks were coming back in the market. We were creating just as many investors as art collectors. The crash of art markets in 2008 globally turned away speculators. They moved on to other forms of investors. Now there are true blue collectors, who are buying for the love of art. These collectors are knowledgeable and have understanding, not just about the name but also the period an artist belonged to.
How do lesser known artists get their share from auctioneers?
Art collection has been a part of the community. It is a luxury item. If you are passionate about it, you'll need it but it's not something that you will need in your everyday life. Now-a-days, people are looking at what's on your wall and that is what distinguishes one collector from another. In the last 10 years, the art market has become more diverse. On one hand, you have a handful of artists such as Hussain, Souza, Gaytonde, Tyeb Mehta who have catapulted at the top. But you also have a lot of energy on the other end of the market where people are showing interest in modernist sculptors such as Amarnath Sehgal and Prodosh Dasgupta. I think modernist sculptors are the areas that people can explore as these artist are working concurrently. There is a strong presence of female artists and people are looking at them very closely.