Just when we thought that the dust had settled around the excitement at the art auctions, Osian’s Auction House springs a surprise with their first auction in 2008, Indian Modern and Contemporary 100 years of Art that concluded its bidding in Mumbai on January 19. Reporting a total sale of 32.17 crore, the auction house has two new record breakers, with S H Raza’s Encountre that went for 3.1 crore and the late J Swaminathan’s Perception XV that also sold at Rs 3.1 crore.

This is a big step for the art market that has grown more than any other unorganised sector in India in the past five years. “To take on a field that had no prior financial credibility and transformation to something that everyone is looking at takes a lot of doing,” says the Osian’s director, Neville Tuli, who was the first to launch into the auction business in 1999.  

The Paris-based Raza was not available for comment, but Tuli explained that rarity was the key factor for their phenomenal pricing. The Swaminathan was up for sale in Sotheby’s in 2006 where it sold for Rs 1.6 crore. “Today it sold for Rs 3.1 crore which indicates that the masterpieces are appreciating greatly, the discerning buyers are able to compare and judge works for their quality and rarity which is an important factor world over.”

The auction shattered another myth that Bengal School art does not sell. “If all the papers proving the authenticity of the works are in place, there is no reason why it should not sell,” says Tuli, who auctioned off an Abanindranath Tagore 5x6 inch work for Rs 50 lakh. It’s a National Art Treasure and cannot even get bids from outside the country. “This also indicates the market is maturing,” he adds.

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