Category: Auction House

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 31 – Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Francis Newton Souza – ‘Red Houses with Front Garden’ – 1957 – Oil on board – 36 x 24 in. (91.5 x 61 cm.) – Lot 31

Featured in ARTIANA’s upcoming online auction on December 6-10, 2018, is this striking painting by artist Francis Newton Souza – ‘Red Houses with Front Garden’. This work of the artist had been exhibited and published in the South Asian Modern Masters of Grosvenor Gallery in London.

Francis Newton Souza is arguably one of the greatest and most celebrated painters in the history of Indian contemporary art. Versatile and spontaneous over the command of his pen and brush, his facility with his craft shows in the diversity of his works. From landscapes, nudes, still-life and to his widely popular strongly drawn heads, Souza spanned the entire gamut.

Painted in 1957, the picture is part of the culmination of both technique and subject in the artist’s prime decade. “Red Houses with Front Garden” depicts an English suburban landscape in Souza’s signature strong and expressive style. The houses, situated in a grassy space, are rendered in simple rectilinear structures punctuated by gnarled trees. The trees set in the foreground give the picture a sense of depth. Unlike other artists, Souza’s landscape is not figurative or life-like, instead, they are vehicles of his mood and expression. Inspired by the ecclesiastical architecture of the Roman Catholic churches from his native Goa, the palette of the work was indicative of Souza’s interest in stained-glass windows illustrated with his use of luminous hues framed by dark outlines. Like his other landscapes, the sky appears stormy and turbulent lending a disconcerting sense in the otherwise peaceful scenario. This can be attributed to Souza’s angular brush strokes.

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

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 42 – Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Artiana Auction House will host its South Asian Art online auction on 6- 10 December 2018. Featuring a total of 50 lots, the sale boasts work from modern masters and leading contemporary artists from the Indian subcontinent. Marquee lots to go under the gavel at this auction will be exhibited for viewing at their Downtown Dubai gallery starting December 1st until the 6th by appointment. This includes Sayed Haider Raza‘s seminal work,  ‘Prakriti’ (1998) estimated at $150,000 – $250,000.

Sayed Haider Raza – Prakriti – 1998 – acrylic on canvas – 39.25 x 39.25 in. (100 x 100 cm.) – Lot 42

Throughout his career, Sayed Haider Raza has been influenced by the mystical power of nature. Drawn by his Indian heritage and driven by his desire for the elimination of the inessentials he began extensive pictorial research of the elements, the potency of colors, and symbols which soon become the formal elements of his paintings. Preoccupied with the use of these elements, it became the center of Raza’s artistic vocabulary and true raison d’être – the purpose of the existence of his painting. He went on to perfect this symbolism throughout the 1980-1990s.

Maintaining harmony in the use of simple geometry and pure color, he adopted a symbolic language to represent different aspects of the natural world. The current work is delineated in sections, with each of them containing an image, usually in geometric shape suggesting the essence of the element. He uses primary colors to highlight the elements; fire, water, wind, earth and the sun. Here he utilizes vibrant red, electric blue, black, ochres and white colors which are also significant colors to the Indian tradition.

S. H. Raza exploits shapes, lines, and diagonals to illustrate the union of forces in the universe not merely from form and color but also from their arrangement on the canvas. His works express a highly simplified perception of the powerful forces inherent in nature. “At the epicenter of many of these paintings is a dark, blank void. Emanating from this inner core the forms and shapes are like veins, energizing and giving life to the painting. The viewer begins a visual journey outwards from this center, a journey through the elements of life itself. Raza explains that at the heart of this unique visual language lie the five key symbols of fire and water, earth, wind, and sky, brought together within a geometric framework that also contains signifiers of fertility and fruitfulness, all together underlining the inevitable interrelationship of the key components of the universe and the interconnections of our humble lives within it” (S. H. Raza, Saffronart and Berkeley Square Gallery exhibition catalogue, 2005, not paginated).

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

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 32 – Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Maqbool Fida Husain – A Magician Dangles the Fortune Bird in a Cage – 2005 -oil on canvas – 72 x 90 in. (182.9 x 228.6 cm.) – Lot 32

M.F. Husain’s ‘A Magician Dangles the Fortune Bird in a Cage’ (2005) is expected to go under the hammer on 6-10 December 2018 at ARTIANA’s South Asian Art online auction. This important work is part of the seminal ‘The Lost Continent’ Series exhibited at The Arts House in Singapore and at the prestigious Victoria and Albert Museum in London. 

In the last years of his creativity, MF Husain, age 95 was India’s best-known painter. During his long prolific career as an artist, he was a witness as history unfolds; from the great wars being fought, through genocides and holocaust, the partition and the unfurling of his nation from the British Raj to modern India. He witnessed deprivation, violence and rapid deterioration of human values across the world. In pursuing the theme, he dedicated his art to express the great loss he called, “The Lost Continent” which he made into a 21-part series chronicling his thoughts about lost human values.

In the painting where a magician dangles the fortune bird in a cage, “the bird is surrounded by a mosaic of riotous color. The bird is held by the stark blue hands of a magician, who is covered in a white cloth and slowly considering his next move. The composition lures viewers into a terrain where play and uncertainty coexist.”1 The title suggests a magician dangling the bird in a cage, just like in the popular magic trick; but behind the act is the magician knowing the true nature of the trick, concealed by the sleight of hand. Concurrently referencing Mahabharata, the blue hands signify Lord Krishna as he oversees the fate of the world. Starting from the game of dice, a key incident in the great epic, deceit had been a powerful driving force that ultimately led to the cosmic war from which the order of the universe was achieved. He orchestrated the war and change the whole course of the epic in ways more than one. Despite knowing the outcome, Lord Krishna let the events unfold and ensured that everyone answers to the laws of karma. Through the act of deception, he restores dharma into the world.

The immense narrative and pivotal personas that Husain picked from the epics convey deep meaning more than the explicit imagery. His symbolic images are introduced naturally in continual juxtaposition and serves as the foundation of his work. Husain used strong even coarse lines of Jain miniature painting to express energy and movement and sharp colors in basic simple design within a strong broad border as influenced by the Basholi period. The demotic stylistics, the use of symbols, folk elements, and vibrant colors have come to characterize Husain’s signature style.

Text Reference:  Hwee Koon, MF Husain: The Lost Continent

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

ARTIANA – Highlights – Company School Paintings – Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

A collection of Company School paintings will be offered as part of ARTIANA’s upcoming online auction on December 6-10, 2018. Showcasing the miniature tradition, the works, marked by muted colors, recorded everyday rituals of local people in British India between the late 1700s and 1800s. 

Company Painting – Brahmin with a water pot- Tanjore, c.1850 – gouache on paper – 18 x 11.1 cm (painting) – Lot 3

Southern Indian artists in the 18th century were among the first to adapt their styles and subject matters for their new patrons from the French and English East India Companies. Hindu deities and religious scenes had been the traditional decorations on the walls of temples throughout the south, so it was a simple matter for the artists to produce sets of deities and festivals on paper to inform westerners of the many unfamiliar aspects of south Indian Hinduism. These paintings were painted in brilliant colors against an uncolored ground. It was again a relatively easy further step for these artists also to produce sets of occupations, castes, ascetics, and festivals when British tastes changed to want permanent records of local life. The figures were normally in the early period painted in pairs, a man and his wife, originally standing on a simply painted ground and with a blue sky background behind them, sometimes with a narrow strip of tangled clouds at the top. Around 1800 more details of landscapes and more naturalistic clouds were added and the clouds began to cover the whole sky in jagged alternations of blue and grey.

Company Painting – Woman in thought- Tanjore, c.1850 -gouache on paper – 18 x 11.1 cm (painting) – Lot 4

Men from Tanjore of the muchi or leather-workers caste are thought to have been the artists of these sets, although inscriptions of some of the albums and paintings indicate that they must have moved to other towns, particularly Madras, in search of employment, where they continued to paint their traditional subjects. Other centers where they are known to have painted included Vellore and Trichinopoly. The artists based in Trichinopoly specialized in painting on small sheets of mica that were mounted on paper guards and bound into albums. By the mid-19th century the artists had often abandoned painting couples, a man and his wife, and instead concentrated on single figures, as found here in this set.

Company Painting – Wife of an ascetic – Tanjore, c.1850 – gouache on paper – 18 x 11.1 cm (painting) – Lot 8

The figures in the set are well drawn, lively and colorful, with good modeling of forms and facial features. Without inscriptions, however, some of the women especially are difficult to identify, but most are normally based on earlier identified figures. Many of the single women seem modeled on the ‘wife’ half of the earlier couples. The women normally wear the elaborate jewelry of the south, with various heavy earrings, hairpins, noserings, necklaces, bracelets, and anklets, not detailed here.

EXPERT: J.P. Losty

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

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 41 – Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

Sakti Burman – ‘Musicians Playing for Krishna’ – 2015 – Oil on canvas – 63.8 x 51.2 in. (162 x 130 cm.) – Lot 41

ARTIANA’s upcoming auction on December 6-10, 2018 features an important painting of Sakti Burman – ‘Musicians Playing for Krishna’. Painted in 2015, the notable work showcase Burman’s exceptional technique and whimsical ethos. 

Sakti Burman’s artistic vocabulary spawned from a mutually replenishing relay between two levels of mythological narrative. Much like his influences from both India and France, he organizes the narratives of his work from grand mythologies of the world with its vibrant iconography and from personal myth. He draws instinctively from varied religious traditions and folklores as much as he borrows from his everyday encounters. His frames are graced by families and friends often seen accompanying gods, nymphs, heroes and celestial emissaries into ethereal fantasy and reverie.

Sakti’s fascination with demotic imageries is apparent in the current lot. Employing the Kalighat ethos, he humanized Lord Krishna in the picture. Here, he presented the god as a child dancing with the cow as his mount. Lord Krishna as a dancer and flutist is a recurrent object of painterly devotion for Burman. To one side stand a human father carrying his child and on the other side is a flutist. Seated below is an accordion player. Both musicians playing music to Krishna’s dancing and blurring the boundaries between the world of mortals and gods. The picture also includes Sakti’s recurring characters like a harlequin and other mythical creatures joining in a blissful coexistence. Sakti conceives paradoxical imagery depicting familial relationships, celestial and terrestrial figures of dreams and perceived reality cohesively tying them in a powerful narrative.

“Child and Supreme God, serenader of women and killer demons, the divine flutist is often at the center of a dance of other figures from Burman’s ongoing fantasia: sometimes, the peacock; at other times, a chorus of adolescents; on occasion, a centaur-like figure who prances yet remains melancholy, keeps the beat of the dance yet retains the detachment of the observer. Perhaps that centaur-like figure is, once again, the artist as chronicler and archivist of human dispositions, marking the rhythm of point and counterpoint.” (Ranjit Hoskote, Sakti Burman: In The Presence Of Another Sky, Art Musings, India, pg. 245)

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

ARTIANA – Highlights – Lot 21 – Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art – Online Auction – No Buyer’s Premium

ARTIANA’s upcoming online auction of Classical, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art on December 6-10, 2018 highlights this distinct work of Maqbool Fida Husain. This new-to-market work based on the Mahabharata is the most valuable lot in the upcoming sale, both in terms of price and history behind the artwork. 

Maqbool Fida Husain – ‘Arjun and Sudarshan Chakra’ – circa 1980s – Acrylic on canvas – 40 x 60 in. (102 x 153 cm.) – Lot 21

For decades, MF Husain had been a leading, almost magical figure in the Indian art scene. Known as the “Picasso of India”, his works have defined modern Indian painting and helped in creating a niche for Indian art, not only in the society of art but also in the prestigious art markets of the world. Enormously prolific, Husain, created works that could be caustic and funny as well as serious and somber.

Among his best-known works are based on the Mahabharata. The Hindu epic narrates the founding of ancient India culminated by the Kurukshetra War fought between Pandava and Kauravan cousins in a dynastic struggle for the throne of Hastinapura, the seat of the Kuru clan. The present work portrays Lord Krishna and the Pandava prince Arjuna before the commencement of the climactic war. Arjuna stands at the chariot holding the Gandiva (bow) and his arrows. Lord Krishna, symbolized here by the abstract hand bearing the Sudarshan Chakra, was Arjuna’s charioteer and guide. Initially hesitant to go to war against his own kin, friends, and teachers, Arjuna is persuaded otherwise by Lord Krishna. The dialogue between them formed the Bhagavad Gita, one of the most important texts of Hindu philosophy.

Accentuating the violence that forms the central core of the epic, the composition is dynamic. The strong influence of Indian folk art is indicated by the division of planes which may have been derived from the narrative style in Rajasthani miniature painting. Notably, present in the painting are all of Husain’s popular symbols; the tiger, the horses, the Sudarshan Chakra, and the mudra. His signature style and engagement with the folk elements are also evident in the sharp use of colors, simple design and broad shoulders attributed to the Basholi period. By predominantly using shades of red, black and brown, Husain conveyed the violence and frenzied energy of the war while palpable movement is conveyed through the stance of the horses and the charging tiger; enhancing the mood of the whole painting.

Husain’s treatment of the Mahabharata series is considered far more abstract in form yet has more narrative elements than the rest of his works. Most of them were done by Husain in early 1971 when India is on the brink of war with Pakistan and the Indian Emergency was on its way. Referencing the Mahabharata, before the start of the great war, Arjuna turns to Krishna for advice. Krishna advises him about the nature of life, ethics, and morality when one is faced with a war between good and evil. As with the great thinkers inspired by the epic including Husain himself, the allegory of war might signify the war constantly going on within man between the tendencies of good and evil yet it might also reflect the social and political landscape of the period. The ambiguity of Husain’s visual language allows for pluralistic readings much like the Mahabharata itself.

Husain unveiled his Mahabharata series as a thought-provoking body of work as well as a timely reminder of the horrors of war. By transforming the mythic tragedy into a powerful contemporary statement, he evolved the language of his art to reach out to people in a culturally comprehensive way. An important tribute and reinterpretation, Husain uses this particular scene to explicitly call for reflection and in a way offer rationale and clarity in the midst of confusion and divisiveness.

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

FAQ: ARTIANA Fine Art Finance

What is ARTIANA Fine Art Finance?

Artiana Fine Art Finance is our art finance, advisory division. Leveraging upon the strength of our auction house platform, we specialize in financing solutions that cater to both – buyers in our auctions as well as others who can borrow against blue-chip Indian artworks.

What services does ARTIANA Fine Art Finance provide?

We provide finance solutions to consignors and buyers at our auctions and arrange advances secured against Indian fine art at competitive interest rates. Our bespoke finance solutions provide financing for fresh acquisitions or existing collections.

Why finance or borrow against art?

By financing their purchases at Artiana auctions, clients can take advantage of opportunity buys and schedule a delayed or installment payment on their acquisitions based on their cash flows. By leveraging existing artworks, our clients optimize the use and enjoyment of their collection, while unlocking equity and allowing further portfolio diversification.

What type of art does ARTIANA Fine Art Finance accept as collateral?

We will consider individual artworks and collections of blue-chip Indian fine art as collateral. Artworks must be freely marketable and produced by prominent artists with an existing track record in the secondary market.

What is the artwork evaluation process?

We are an auction house, and offer advisory services on a highly confidential basis to evaluate artworks. The individual artwork or collection will be estimated by us as if they are being proposed for auction, and the advance against this item / s will typically be 50% of the lower estimate value offered by us. We will also require an independent inspection by a conservator.

What Loan-To-Value (LTV) does ARTIANA Fine Art Finance offer against the artworks?

We will typically advance up to 80% of the lower estimate value of artworks purchased at our auctions or up to 60% of the appraised value of the proposed external art collateral.

What are the advance sizes that ARTIANA Fine Art Finance offer?

We arrange advances starting at USD 50,000 and can assist in securing advances of substantially larger amounts.

How long does the disbursal take?

The approval depends on the location of the artworks and the clients’ art ownership structure. However, our domain expertise and large, liquid balance sheets of our financiers allows us to complete the process more quickly than traditional operators.

Do our clients retain possession of their art?

No, we require that the artwork be held as collateral in our art storage facility till the advance has been fully paid back to our financier.

Will the artworks be insured during the term they are held as collateral in storage?

Throughout the term that the artworks are held as collateral, they will be insured at double of the advance amount, to cover the full value of the art asset. The policy will be assigned to us for distributing the amounts as stipulated, between the client and financier. The insurance covers the items right from the time of collection, during storage until the final handover.

Who owns the artworks during the term they are held as collateral in storage?

The artworks remain the clients’ property during the entire storage period.

What are the advantages of Artiana’s fine art finance compared to a traditional bank loan?

Our advances offer flexibility and variable tenors up to 24 months with a no-charge early exit option. Unlocking equity and receiving liquidity without cumbersome documentation and credit approval process. There is no personal liability, the collateralized artworks are the sole guarantee towards the advance (nonrecourse).

What are the early exit options before the expiry of the agreed tenor?

Clients can request an early exit before the expiry of the agreed tenor by giving a 30 days notice without any exit charges being payable. Any advance service charges collected in such cases will be non-refundable. For exercising in rare and unlikely situations, we reserve the right of an early exit option on behalf of our financiers by giving a 90 days notice to the client.

What are the charges and costs for the service and advance?

Artiana Fine Art Finance will charge an arrangement fee of 2% of the advance amounts arranged against external art assets, this fee is waived for finance arranged against purchases made in our auctions. Depending on the value, tenor and terms of the advance the charges are calculated at typically 15 % p.a., payable quarterly in advance for fixed maturity payments, and at a flat rate of 10 % p.a. for monthly installment payments. The charges are set at the start of the facility and fixed for the entire tenor. There are no additional costs for evaluation and storage, insurance cover is procured for double the advance amount to typically cover the full value of the asset and billed at actuals to the client.

Why ARTIANA Fine Art Finance Service is Perfect for Collectors of Indian Art

Published on September 18, 2018 (widewalls.ch), by Angie Kordic

The online auction house ARTIANA, a well-known platform based in Dubai, will now expand its activities and offer a one-of-a-kind service on the market right now – their Fine Art Finance service.

Announced just ahead of their November 2018 sale of South Asian art, it is an art finance advisory division that will specialize in financing solution to both buyers in their auctions and those who can borrow against blue-chip Indian artworks. By financing their purchases at Artiana auctions, clients can take advantage of opportunity buys and schedule a delayed or installment payment on their acquisitions based on their cash flows. By leveraging existing artworks, our clients optimize the use and enjoyment of their collection, while unlocking equity and allowing further portfolio diversification.

We talk to ARTIANA’s founder Lavesh Jagasia about the importance of such service being available within the field of Indian art and its market, as well as what it could mean for all sides of the sales.

The ARTIANA Fine Art Finance

Widewalls: What brought the creation of the ARTIANA Fine Art Finance on? How did it come to be?

Lavesh Jagasia: ARTIANA Fine Art Finance will assist us in increasing our clients and broadening the collector base of Indian art. Being a part of the Indian art sphere for the last 3 decades, I have experienced the effects that lack of liquidity has on this market just as it does on any other asset class. There are many times that works are sold in auctions for attractive prices, and end buyers are unable to take advantage of these situations as they would have not planned such purchases. With other collectors already holding significant portions of their net-worth in Indian art and unable to sell it quickly or leverage it when required, it limits their investments in this sphere due to the illiquid nature of this asset class.

By introducing our FlexiPay ‘Bid Now Pay Later’ facility in our auctions and offering bespoke finance solutions for blue-chip Indian art, we will address these issues resulting in deeper penetration of the market.

Widewalls: How does the service you’d be providing differ between the buyers and those who borrow against blue-chip Indian artworks?

LJ: The buyers on the ARTIANA auction platform have multiple benefits as compared to those offering external art assets as collateral. All items offered in our auctions are eligible for deferred or installment payments under our FlexiPay ‘Bid Now Pay Later’ scheme as long as the clients have been pre-approved for this facility. ARTIANA buyers have access to a higher Loan-To-Value (LTV) ratio of up to 80% of our lower estimate value as compared with up to 60% of our appraised value of all external art assets. The arrangement fee of 2% of the advance amount is also waived from them.

Charges for evaluation, storage and the conservator’s inspection report are currently complimentary for all clients, but maybe applicable to external clients in the future.

Widewalls: What is the process like for those who wish to approach ARTIANA in order to use this service? What can they expect and what is expected of them?

LJ: For prospective bidders in our auctions, the process is quite simple. All they need to do is select between the deferred or installment payments offered in our ‘Bid Now Pay Later’ plans, agree to the Terms and Conditions thereof and get a pre-approval prior to the commencement of the auction, confirming their eligibility for this facility. If their bids are successful, then they can then choose to either pay as usual or opt for their pre-approved FlexiPay facility.

The clients who want to propose external art assets as collateral, will have to first send us the image and details of the artworks. After our preliminary requirements of the artwork, such as artist and ownership are met, then an appraisal and condition check will be carried out, subsequent to which, the evaluation, LTV and terms are discussed with them ahead of the next steps.

In both cases, the artworks are stored in our art storage facility till all amounts due against them are cleared.

Making an Impact on the Indian Art Market

Widewalls: Why Indian art? Is it exclusively Indian art?

LJ: Yes, currently we are offering this facility only on blue-chip Indian artworks. This is a market that we have in-depth knowledge of, and is our core area of focus even in our auctions. Our expertise in this domain enables us to effectively manage the risks, and have quick turnaround times in structuring bespoke solutions for our clients.

Widewalls: The ARTIANA Fine Art Finance is the first service/product of its kind out there. What are the advantages you offer, as a company already in the bespoke business, compared to other sources of financing?

LJ: That is correct, currently there is no service/product available that offers specialized financing solutions for Indian art. Our advances offer flexibility and a variable term. Unlocking equity and receiving liquidity without cumbersome documentation and credit approval process. There is no personal liability, the collateralized artworks are the sole guarantee towards the advance (non-recourse).

Widewalls: How do you see this service having an impact on the art market and the way business is being done in sales?

LJ: The availability of flexible payments in our auctions will allow buyers to make purchases and plan their payments, no longer having to wait till the entire amount is available before placing a bid or making an opportunity purchase when a work is going for an attractive price at auction.

With the clients who will use this service for external art assets, they could use this facility to unlock equity and diversify their collection, for short-term funding and bridge finance to acquire works while awaiting sale transactions on their existing ones.

The availability of liquidity against only certain blue-chip artworks will also segregate the market identifying investment-grade art from the rest.

All of this will positively impact the Indian art market and increase overall sales of the artworks that qualify for this service.