You could buy Picassos, Dalis and Van Goghs in India

I now have some statistics from the India Art Fair that I can share with you. While individual sales figures have not been made public, Chemold Presscott Road and Chatterjee & Lal located in Mumbai were among the first galleries to make a sale at the fair. The work by the internationally acclaimed Rashid Rana, who is known for his installations of stainless steel combined with UV prints on aluminium, was sold.

It has been further stated that there were “strong sales of Indian and international contemporary art” and unlike other years, “photography, video and installation art works sold well”. The prices of individual art works are said to range from Rs 55,000 to over Rs 60 lakh. Despite the strong representation of buyers from all over the world — the USA, China, South Africa, Israel, Greece, France, Italy, Australia and West Asia — it is also learnt that the majority of buyers were Indian collectors. Corporate houses were also seen as keen buyers. Twenty six world famous museums such as the Tate, Guggenheim, New Museum, Pompidou Centre, San Jose Museum of Art, MoMA and the Singapore Art Museum visited the fair — a sure sign of how successful this art fair has been.

We can now move on to another important art happening that also adds to India’s staure in global art. Coming up on February 15 and 16, 2012, is the first–ever online auction of international art by Indian art auctioneers, Saffronart. The works were previewed at the Saffronart Gallery in Delhi last week and then moved to the Saffronart Gallery in Mumbai. The works that are included in the list being put up for sale includes some of the biggest names from the international art world, such as Van Gogh, Picasso, Dali, Leger, Dufy, Miro and acclaimed sculptor Henry Moore, whose preliminary drawings leading to the final sculpture, gives a rare glimpse into the artist’s style and approach to his work. Also included are works by another famous sculptor, Lynn Chadwick.

The press note clears all doubts when it states “With a total of 73 lots, the sale includes a wide variety of paintings, works on paper and sculptures of exceptional provenance and quality by leading Western artists”. Among the impressionist works we have Van Gogh’s oil L’Allee aux deux promeneurs (Lane with two figures), was painted in the Dutch village Neunen, in 1885. This work has been estimated at $1 million. Camille Pissarro’s Lisière du bois (Edge of the Wood), painted with sweeping strokes with the help of a palette knife may be considered an important work by one of the “grand masters of impressionism”

The modern section includes several works by Pablo Picasso, including a 1953 vibrant oil painting titled Le Transformateur, estimated between $400,000 and $450,000. Picasso is represented with the widest range of artworks, including paintings drawings and ceramics.

There is an impressive watercolour by Marc Chagall titled, L’Echelle au ciel (Ladder to the Sky), estimated at US$ 280,000-350,000. There are also works by the immensely popular artists such as Henri Matisse, Andy Warhol, and Roy Lichtenstein.