Category: Auction House

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 12 – Art Beyond Borders – African, Middle Eastern and Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Bobur Ismoilov (b. 1973) – ‘Behind-the-scenes’ – 2012 – 35.5 x 35.5 in. (90 x 90 cm.) – Oil on canvas – Lot 12

Bobur Ismoilov is one of Uzbekistan’s premier artists, His works explore the depths of human nature and are deeply rooted in the Uzbek culture. He takes components from theatre, illustration, opera, ballet, and video installations for his oil-on-canvas creations.

Ismoilov has a deep affection for the theatre, particularly since it dates from antiquity in Uzbekistan. He directed the musical play “The Tricks of Nasreddin” at the National Theatre of Opera and Ballet (1997) and worked at the Republic Puppet Theatre and the Theatre of Drama from 1997 to 2000. Having had this background from the performing arts, some of his works drew inspiration from theatre including the present work. Explaining the symbolism of his work Ismoilov alluded, “I paint from my heart and soul. The scenes reflect episodes around me. There is no particular philosophy in what I show — it is only the world around me!”

Auction Catalogue – Art Beyond Borders – March 28 – 31, 2019

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 15 – Art Beyond Borders – African, Middle Eastern and Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Timur D’Vatz (b. 1968) – ‘Falconers’ – 2012 – Oil on canvas – 51.25 x 51.25 in. (130 x 130 cm.) – Lot 15

Drawing inspiration from ancient histories, early Byzantine art, medieval tapestries, and mythology Timur D’Vatz produces dreamlike creations featuring the timeless metaphor of hunting.  

He used the motifs of dogs and falconers to emphasize the ancient theme of a hunt. Here, he depicts the figure of a hunter with the pointed hat of a magician or shaman ready for the sacred ritual. The gold-colored hunting robes emphasize the idea of the ceremony while the birds of prey perched on the arm and the dog posed with overarching necks give a sense of movement. The concept, widely held among hunting people and often found in prehistoric art referred to them as the master of the animals. 

Early Russian icons influence the elongated forms of the figures as seen here. The use of golden colors reflects the traditional gold ornamentation of Uzbekistan. D’Vatz masterfully merges the ancient culture and traditions of Central Asia to create a powerfully iconic image.

Auction Catalogue – Art Beyond Borders – March 28 – 31, 2019

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 16 – Art Beyond Borders – African, Middle Eastern and Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Manu Parekh (b. 1939) – ‘Banaras in Monsoon’ – 2014 – acrylic on canvas – 24 x 30 in. (61 x 76.2 cm.) – Lot 16

The paradoxes that exist in the relationship between man and nature lies at the heart of Manu Parekh’s Banaras. As a continuation of the artist’s fascination for the intriguing contradictions that lie within the holy city, issues of mortality and the temporal nature of all existence are referenced in his colorful landscapes. 

On his Banaras inspired paintings, Manu Parekh said, “I had always wanted to create a truly Indian landscape, and in Banaras I found the inspiration and the symbols to create one. A darker landscape, but with patches of brightness; fearful, crowded with uncertainties but full of faith. A landscape with both bright colors and solemnity; teeming with human energy yet with underlying quietude. I was painting, perhaps, the riddle of faith, by simultaneously depicting incompatible experiences.”

A common motif of his Banaras is the ubiquitous temples and shrines. The lights emanating from them provides Parekh the imagery and symbols to create dramatic compositions. To frame a slight change in the mood, he depicts Banaras in different lightings and seasons. Aptly titled, the current piece is Manu Parekh’s depiction of the Banaras landscape in the monsoon season.

Auction Catalogue – Art Beyond Borders – March 28 – 31, 2019

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 13 – Art Beyond Borders – African, Middle Eastern and Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Javlon Umarbekov (b. 1946) – ‘Tuareg Family’ – 1979 – acrylic on canvas – 47.25 x 41.25 in. (120 x 105 cm.) – Lot 13

Javlon Umarbekov uses art as a means of crossing thresholds between the East and the West, bridging cultural and even religious and political divides. Relying on traditional images and themes, his work exudes authenticity and verity. 

Here, he employs his individual interpretation of Cubist style in bright and resonant colors while reflecting on the unique history and heritage of the Tuareg people. Inspired by his travels in the Algiers, home to some of the Tuareg people, he depicts a Tuareg family in a rich blue color. Colloquially known as the “Blue people of the Sahara” because of the color of their traditional robes and veils, the Tuaregs wear this as a symbolic and important part of their cultural identity. This blue colored garment, Tagelmust, stain their skins and lend it a bluish color emphasized here by the artist. By incorporating oriental and occidental aesthetics with a rich cultural narrative, he transforms his work into a visual vocabulary that is truly his own.

Auction Catalogue – Art Beyond Borders – March 28 – 31, 2019

ARTIANA announces Art Beyond Borders auction | No Buyer’s Premium | 28 – 31 March 2019

Artiana announces its first auction for the year slated for March 28-31, 2019. Aptly titled, Art Beyond Borders, the sale will be the auction house’s inaugural international sale. It will feature 40 lots in total from artists from 15 different countries across the world. Estimates ranging from USD 600 to USD 20,000 for works in various and wide range of media will be available.

The cover lot is an untitled work by leading Middle Eastern artist, Mahmoud Hammad estimated at USD 20,000, other entries of Middle Eastern art include works by renowned painter and sculptor, Khaled Ben Slimane and French-Iraqi calligraphist, Hassan Massoudy. Also featured are Korean and Vietnamese art with a strong selection of contemporary works from leading artists alongside works from established Uzbekistan masters Bakhodir Jalal, Bobur Ismoilov, and Javlon Umarbekov.

A sculpture from South African based Bulgarian artist Rado Kirov together with works from popular African artists Ablade Glover and Kofi Agorsor, Indian modernists S.H. Raza and Paritosh Sen will also go under the hammer among others. 

The collection will be sold through an online auction at www.artiana.com from March 28 (9 am) through March 31st (9:00 pm) UAE time with a No Buyer’s Premium policy in an essentially ‘What You Bid Is What You Pay’ format. FlexiPay which allow buyers to ‘Bid Now Pay Later’ will also be available for eligible clients. (FlexiPay scheme details are available on the website.)

The catalogue can be viewed online, and viewings can be arranged by prior appointment. Collectors may place bids at ARTIANA’s website, or through the mobile app available on both Google Play for Android and the App Store for Apple devices.

For information on how to register and bid, visit their website at www.artiana.com; For assistance and inquiries, call Artiana’s Help Desk at +971 55 815 3030 or write to [email protected]. 

Auction Catalogue – Art Beyond Borders – March 28 – 31, 2019

ARTIANA’s auction sales turnover cross USD 3.5 million in 2018

Dubai – ARTIANA’s total auction sales in 2018 crossed the USD 3.5 million mark after the conclusion of the South Asian Art ‘Classical, Modern and Contemporary’ sale on 10 December 2018, which realized USD 1.8 million and achieved sell-through rates of 92% by lot and 102% by value. 

The first of the two South Asian Art auctions held in May was Artiana’s first white glove sale with a 100% sell-though rates and 111% of the total lot value sold. Both auctions were held with Artiana’s ‘No Buyer’s premium’ policy ensuring the minimum transaction cost for both buyers and sellers.

Growth continues

Continued growth and engagement of clients from within UAE, India, and other parts of the world – many of them first-time buyers, were equal contributors to the overall sales.

Highest prices were bid for paintings by M.F. Husain – ‘Trinity of Mother Teresa’ (USD 320,000) and ‘Arjun and Sudarshan Chakra’ (USD 300,000). Work of artists S.H. Raza and F.N. Souza also performed well in the auctions confirming the continued demand for modern Indian art.

Other established modernists Sakti Burman, Krishen Khanna and Ram Kumar completed the top ten list of highest prices realized.

Sculptures and company paintings attracted good interest from collectors throughout the year and opened up the accessibility of this genre to enthusiasts in the region.

Exceptional prices for Zarina Hashmi’s pieces were achieved on the back of increased demand for her works. The artist’s delicately executed prints, crafted through handmade paper, have become one of the most sought-after pieces for contemporary art collectors. Zarina and other leading printmakers work will be showcased in our upcoming Prints and Multiples Art Auction in early 2019. 

Future plans and engagement

The increase in the overall sell-through rate cements Artiana’s presence in the South Asian auction calendar whilst concluding another year of successful sales.

With its expanding client base and continued diversification across collecting categories, clients can look forward to rare pieces and wide range of artworks in the following year. Artiana’s line-up include Prints and Multiples, South Asian Art and Art Beyond Borders Auctions for 2019. For more details, visit the website at www.artiana.com.


ARTIANA – South Asian Art Auction | Over US$ 1.8 Millions in Sales | 102% Estimate Value Sold | 92% Lots Sold

Our recently concluded South Asian Art auction was a success, with 92% of the lots sold, over USD 1.8 million total sales and 102% estimate value sold.

For the complete auction result and analysis, please visit www.artiana.com.

Thank you for your bids! 

ARTIANA | South Asian Art | Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium | Classical, Modern and Contemporary | Sale 1802 | 6 – 10 December 2018

MF Husain’s unseen works to be auctioned online by Artiana in December

Published November 17, 2018 (moneycontrol.com), by Tasmayee Laha Roy

Maqbool Fida Husain (b.1915), ‘Arjun and Sudarshan Chakra’ (circa 1980s). Estimate: $300,000-500,000

In a bid to make the deals lucrative for the buyers, Artiana’s finance arm is offering an installment scheme which allows buyers to pay for an artwork in installments ranging from 3 months to 24 months.

Known for their luxury collectibles, UAE’s Artiana is all set to bring to the international market some of the unseen works of Indian artist Maqbool Fida Husain during their December auction.

With 50 works on display in the online auction, the range will offer works of modern and contemporary artists from the Indian subcontinent including a suite of Company School paintings.

The highlights of the auction are MF Husain’s canvas from the 1980s titled ‘Arjun and Sudarshan Chakra’ and another work, ‘A Magician Dangles the Fortune Bird in a Cage’ from the seminal Lost Continent series. Both the works are new to the market for art connoisseurs. The other important works from prominent artists include SH Raza’s 1998 work ‘Prakriti’ and ‘Srijan’ from 2007 and FN Souza’s ‘Profile’ and ‘Red Houses with Front Garden’ from 1957.

Some other artists on display include Jogen Chowdhury, Jamil Naqsh and Zarina Hashmi among others.

While the ten Company School paintings are all priced at a base bid under $1000, the other works have a range of starting bids between $6000 and $2,60,000.

“The costliest of the lot is Husain’s Arjun and Sudarshan Chakra which is a 40inch x 60 inch acrylic on canvas and has the potential to sell for anything between $300000 and $500000. This is followed by one of his other works -A Magician Dangles the Fortune Bird in a Cage which is an oil on canvas painted in 2005. The starting bid for the same is $1,80,000 and has the potential to sell for anything between $2,00,000 and $3,00,000,” said Lavesh Jagasia, founder of Artiana.

In a bid to make the deals lucrative for the buyers, Artiana’s finance arm is also offering an installment scheme which allows buyers to pay for artwork in installments ranging from 3 months to 24 months at a service charge of 1 percent a month after paying 20 percent of the price as a down payment.

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 35 – Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Sayed Haider Raza – Srijan – 2007 – acrylic on canvas – 57.5 x 45 in. (146 x 114.3 cm.) – Lot 35

Srijan, prominent artist S.H. Raza’s seminal work will be up the auction block on December 6-10, 2018 in ARTIANA’s South Asian art sale. The artist, one of India’s best colorists, is best-known for works that are densely geometric; inviting viewers into deep meditation and contemplation. 

The focus of SH Raza’s art over the last decades has been to explore and represent the elements of nature, he used the language of symbols and saturated his canvases in geometric shapes and colors to produce powerful works that are contemplative and spiritual. Merging his background and training, he produced work both with deep Indian vision and French plastic mastery, enfolded in modernism yet with the deep resonance of the past. Raza repeatedly revisited his defining themes creating an extraordinary series of meditative and symbolic paintings.

In this piece, Srijan, which loosely translates to creation, Raza’s geometric vocabulary was apparent. Deeply immersed in ancient Indian cosmological symbolism, he celebrated the process of creation in an expansive interplay of visually disparate images sharing a collective narrative. The painting is divided into sections enclosing principle forms, each with strips of colors and variation of aligned triangles, with a black bindu in the upper center of the canvas. Just below that is a pair of bindu in red and blue representing male and female energies – close but not merging into each other. The colors, like most of his works, are remarkably vibrant with a concentration of red, orange, and earthy browns.

Supporting a central idea, Raza wields his unique visual language to reinforce the gestural idioms and philosophical aesthetics of his work. The painting seems to chronicle a story with the different patterned squares coming together to form the whole construct, with each fragment with its own metaphysical significance. The serpent-like painted circles of kundalini forming an unbroken continuity are the rejuvenation and the cyclical nature of life; the Bindu which is the primordial life-force, in turn, connects to germination which is conveyed with the use of triangular yonis; while the symbols of fire, water, earth, wind and sky embody elements that sustain life. The interconnectedness of the key components of the universe simplified in Raza’s canvas.

Auction Catalogue – South Asian Art ‘Classical, Modern and Contemporary’ – December 6-10, 2018

ARTIANA announces Online Auction of Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – No Buyer’s Premium – 6-10 December 2018

 

Maqbool Fida Husain (1915-2011), ‘Arjun and Sudarshan Chakra’ (circa 1980s). Estimate: $300,000-500,000

ARTIANA, UAE’s first home-grown auction house for art and luxury collectibles, will offer works of modern and contemporary artists from the Indian subcontinent, including a suite of Company School paintings in its upcoming December auction. The auction will take place online at www.artiana.com from December 6 (6pm) till December 10 (9pm), 2018. The works listed in the auction are available for viewing at Artiana’s viewing gallery.

The auction features 50 works in various media such as oils, acrylics, and paperwork by established masters such as M.F. Husain, S.H. Raza, F.N. Souza, Jogen Chowdhury, Jamil Naqsh, Zarina Hashmi among others, alongside works by contemporary artists.

The highlights include M.F. Husain’s canvas from the 1980s titled ‘Arjun and Sudarshan Chakra’ as the cover lot of the sale and another work, ‘A Magician Dangles the Fortune Bird in a Cage’ from the seminal Lost Continent series; S.H. Raza’s ‘Prakriti’ (1998), ‘Srijan (2007) and F.N. Souza’s ‘Profile’ and ‘Red Houses with Front Garden’ both from 1957.

Besides Artiana’s attractive No Buyer’s Premium policy which essentially is ‘What You Bid Is What You Pay’, from this auction they have also launched FlexiPay – an installment scheme which allows buyers to ‘Bid Now Pay Later’ subject to eligibility and pre-approval prior to the auction. (FlexiPay scheme details are available in the catalogue and on the website)

A print catalogue is available from Artiana upon request and the online catalogue can be viewed on their website. Collectors may place bids at ARTIANA’s website www.artiana.com, or through the mobile app available on both Google Play for Android and the App Store for Apple devices. 

For more information and registration, visit www.artiana.com; For viewing appointments, write to [email protected] or call ARTIANA’s help desk at +971558153030/ +971558253030

Auction Catalogue – South Asian Art ‘Classical, Modern and Contemporary’ – December 6-10, 2018