Osian's Auction Catalogue Masterpieces and Museum-Quality III | March 2004

245 PAST PUBLICATIONS 5 India: the Passionate Detachment Auctions of Indian Modern and Contemporary Art & Books Mumbai: Osian’s February 2001/ OS 001 11” x 8.25” / Paperback; 240pp & 307 illustrations / Rs. 3000 (last few copies) Osian’s inaugural curated auction by Tuli; it demonstrated that high quality works by established artists and those with clear historical significance will achieve good prices. A greater discrimination amid the buying public was evident. This auction also represented for the first time, the work of India’s only Authentication Department for Indian Modern Art in weeding out fakes of old masters. Interest in the subject by International Museums was also detected during this sale. 6 India: A Historical Lila Auctions of Indian Modern and Contemporary Paintings, Drawings and Graphic Art Mumbai: Osian’s October 2001/ OS 002 11” x 8.25” / Paperback; 200pp & 226 colour illustrations / OUT OF PRINT Osian’s successfully introduced several artists into the international arena for the first time: B.K. Ganguly, S.C. Ghosh, R.N. Chakravorty, Baburao Painter, P.K. Pal, Haku Shah, D. Venkatapathy, M. Senathipathi, M. Suriyamoorthy, among others. By auctioning works of an aesthetic sensibility removed from the mainstream tastes, collectors were prompted to once again re-question their aesthetic preconceptions. The catalogue once again set new standards in documentation and design. 7 A Historical Mela: The ABC of India The Art Book & Cinema Mumbai: Osian’s March 2002 / OS 003 11” x 8.25” / Paperback; 320pp & 502 colour illustrations / OUT OF PRINT Here, for the first time, Tuli presented rare art works from Hindi Cinema, within their historical context, on the same platform as works of modern & contemporary fine art and rare books, in an unique effort to re-examine the aesthetics of popular Indian cinema. To have transformed these neglected art forms and provide them artistic respect and serious economic attention was the first step in establishing a credible infrastructure for the film publicity materials & memorabilia. 8 A Historical Epic: India in the Making 1757-1950 From Surrender to Revolt, Swaraj to Responsibility Mumbai: Osian’s August 2002 / OS 004 11’ x 8.25” / Paperback; 208pp & 307 colour illustrations / OUT OF PRINT 11” x 8.25” / Hardbound; 208pp & 307 colour illustrations / Rs. 3500 A Historical Epic once again broke new ground, opening out a range of new options for the study and dissemination of various branches of Indian art, culture and history. The vast scale and vision of this project is beautifully presented through the format of the exhibition-auction catalogue. This is turn takes forward the process of transforming the infrastructure-building function of the book, and its ability to help change material systems, which range from the education of the fine art & history to the establishing of financial benchmarks for the arts. Like all previous publications this has also become a collector’s item.