Modern Indian masters at Saffronart’s annual Evening Sale

NEW DELHI: Syed Haider Raza’s 1957 painting “Village en Provence” offering a magnificent six-foot-long panoramic view of the south of France, will go under the hammer at Saffronart’s annual Evening Sale on September 20. The auction will feature 69 works of historical significance by India’s foremost modernists including Raza, Akbar Padamsee, V S Gaitonde and Tyeb Mehta.
“Village en Provence”, estimated at Rs 2.75 3.75 crores, was painted a year after Raza won the prestigious Prix de la Critique award and a decade after the Progressive Artists’ Group was formed. This work is a unique and rare format for the artist and demonstrates the significant shift in his style, which led him to redefine the course of Indian Modernism, becoming one of the most influential artists of the post-Independence era.
From the same decade is Akbar Padamsee’s Untitled (Head of a Woman) work, estimated at Rs 1 1.5 crores. Painted in 1952, the same year he won the third prize in the Journal D’Arte competition for a similar work; it is an example of Padamsee’s early explorations with the figure. “These works offer collectors a chance to acquire not just a painting, but really a piece of Indian art history. With a strong Indian art market and rising interest from younger collectors, we look forward to offering some of the best of Indian art in New Delhi,” Dinesh Vazirani, CEO, Saffronart, said.
Leading the sale will be a 1975 untitled work by V S Gaitonde. Estimated at Rs 15 20 crores, the work in deep crimson merges Gaitonde’s interest in Zen Buddhism with the principles of calligraphy. “One of the few works he painted that year, it is a classic example of his later work, which is a period highly coveted among collectors,” the auction house said. Tyeb Mehta’s seated female figure, painted in 1961 during his stay in England, will also be part of the auction.
A significant early painting in the artist’s career, it is estimated at Rs 3.75 4.75 crores. Saffronart’s collection of rare masterpieces will also feature an early oil and tempera work by Nicholas Roerich, painted in the early 20th century. Created as part of a stage design for the Russian opera Snegurochka (The Snow Maiden), it represents Roerich’s early success as an auteur of theatre design in Russia and Europe.
The Snow Maiden is estimated at Rs 2.2 2.8 crores. The auction, to be held at The Oberoi here, will be preceded by viewings at Saffronart in Mumbai and New Delhi. PTI