Christie's auction will showcase some of the rare items of celebrated artists like Jamini Roy and Subodh Gupta among many others. Sonal Singh, department head of Christie's, speaks to Shrabasti Mallik about Rabindranath Tagore’s pocketbook and other exhibits
There is a significant pocketbook belonging to Rabindranath Tagore, where the Noble laureate has written in Bengali. The book is a rare amalgamation of poetry, art and introspection. It encompasses the poet’s life from 1889 to 1904 and the pages reveal a lot about his life and what happened around him. It is where he composed songs of Sonar Tori (Golden Boat) and 19 poems of the Swarn series. It will be a piece at Christie’s and is priced at approx `60 lakh. This along with other significant works and art items by some of India’s designated National Treasure artists will be a part of the Christie’s auction.
“The pocketbook is by far the best example to show how rare the items of the auction will be. It is one of the oldest pieces on offer. Nothing similar by Tagore has been offered before for sale at an auction in India,” said Sonal Singh, department head, Christie’s.
The auction will also boast of works by few celebrated names in the industry, namely Vasudeo S Gaitonde, Jamini Roy and Francis Newton Souza. Their works will be put up along with 10 art pieces donated by contemporary artits like Subodh Gupta, Rashid Rana, Mithu Sen, Thural and Tagra, Nilima Sheikh and Bharti Kher. The revenue from the auction will benefit Khoj International Artist’s Association.
Tyeb Mehta’s painting Falling Bull leads the sale. His master strokes depict the mastery of composition and economy of lines. Estimated at a maximum price of `12 crore, it illustrates the central figure of a bull on a rickshaw set against blocks of vivid colour. The painting showcases his recurring motif of the trussed bull being a compulsive image for him.
Sonal said, “The selection of works should find a general interest with the Indian and international art community. It covers 100 years of art making in India, giving an overview of the artistic development.”
One of the last works by the internationally recognised artist, Vasudeo S Gaitonde (1924-2001), for sale just six weeks after the opening of a retrospective of his work at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, will be another highlight of the auction. “It is offered by a private collector in India and was painted in 1998, the last year he is known to have worked. Painted in vibrant hues of green, this painting is expected to sell for `7 crore and has never been up for sale at an auction before,” Sonal informed.
The art works will mainly represent the Modern and Contemporary art movements which took place throughout India from the beginning of the 20th Century. Bringing together some of the celebrated works of stalwarts in the field is no easy task. Sonal explained how the works were put together, “The selection of the works of art is done very thoroughly and we make sure it is of the highest standard to which we operate,” and added that an auction, “is the most transparent way to transact and all our catalogues can be viewed online where the sales can also be followed.”
Buying at the auction requires a registration 24 hours ahead of the sale. Bidding can be done in four different ways: In person, by leaving an absentee bid, over the telephone (need to be arranged by Christie officials) or over the Internet.
The auction will take place on December 11 at The Taj Palace in Mumbai. A selection of works will also be publicly previewed in New Delhi at The Taj Mahal Hotel from November 28 to 30