Tsuktiben Jamir
Saffronart, the most reputable auction house in India with over 400 auctions to its name, was founded in 2000 by Minal and Dinesh Vazirani. With offices in New Delhi, London, and New York, the company’s main gallery is located in Mumbai. Saffronart has conducted both online and live auctions in major cities like New York, London, Hongkong, Mumbai, New Delhi and Singapore. Apart from auctions, they are also known for organising curated exhibitions.
Safronart recently concluded their live auction on the 16th March, 2023 in Mumbai under the banner ‘Spring Live Auction: South Asian Modern Art,’ and needless to say, it was quite a success. Among many artworks sold, V. S Gaitonde’s ‘Untitled’ (oil on canvas) made history after it was sold for Rs. 47.5 crores ($5.79 million), by becoming the second most expensive work of Indian art sold globally. Moreover, it is the second highest price achieved by the artist in auction worldwide.
Courtesy: Saffronart
Another was S. H Raza’s ‘Rajasthan’ (1972) which sold for Rs. 13.2 crores ($ 1.6 million). Jagdish Swaminathan’s ‘Untitled’ (1974) pulled in Rs. 2.88 crores ($ 351,220), ‘Untitled’ by Manjit Bawa was sold for Rs. 2.64 crores ($ 321,951), another two of S. H Raza’s paintings ‘La Terre’ and ‘Paysage Nocturne’ (1960-1961) were sold for 2.04 crores ($ 248, 780) and Rs. 1.37 crores ($ 168,000) respectively. M F Hussain’s ‘Ten Years After’ was sold for Rs. 1.27 crores ($156,000). While another painting of S H Raza ‘Sapna 1’ (1964) sold for Rs. 1.18 crores ($144,000), M F Hussain’s ‘Rajasthan’ made Rs. 1.13 crores ($138, 000). These numbers are sure to blow anyone’s mind, but we must not deter from the fact that art has and will always hold an important place in society. Much like language, art is a kind of communication. A piece of music, a painting, or a book are all examples of irrational, emotional messages coming from the brain; a message sent by a soul to another. It comes at a price, but if it makes us see through the suffering of life and reminds us of the beauty it still entails, it has done its job.
Besides the live auction, Saffronart had also conducted an online auction that started from 16th March and ended on 17th March, 2023; ‘Spring Online Auction: South Asian Modern Art’ also garnered an outpour of art enthusiasts and buyers. The highlight of the event was Shyamal Dutta Ray’s ‘The Leader’ (oil on canvas) which sold for a whopping Rs 58.2 lakhs ($70,976), setting a world record for the highest price achieved by the artist in auction globally. ‘Untitled‘ (oil on canvas) by Ganesh Haloi also sold for Rs. 54.12 lakhs ($66,000).
To say that the auctions, both live and online, did well would be an understatement; they exceeded everyone’s expectations and this is testimony to the fact that no matter the technological advancements, art will never go out of style and people will always turn to art for comfort, joy and a sense of belonging. It is the best medium of connecting people and a cathartic means of liberation for both the artist and the viewer.
