Osian's Auction Catalogue Indian Contemporary Art | February 2005

June 2000 Neville Tuli establishes Osian’s – Connoisseurs of Art, a pioneering institution taking on the dual responsibility of being India’s first Auction House & Archive for the Contemporary Arts & Cinema. Their auction catalogues become the key document in providing credibility and knowledge to the art market. July 2000 Bonham’s of London also joins the Indian Contemporary Art euphoria with Indian art expert Patrick Bowring joining them after his long stint at Sotheby’s. September 2000 Amrita Sher-Gil’s View from Majithia House sells for $75,500 (INR 3,473,000), establishing a new high with a S.I.R. of 30,584, which is also the highest S.I.R. ever paid for any contemporary Indian painting. December 2000 Dinesh & Minal Vazirani establish the site Saffronart.com, holding their inaugural online auction, the first for India. The third sale from the Chester & Davida Herwitz collection by Sotheby’s (New York), again reveals the quality and significance of this art collection. The rise in the prices of Tyeb Mehta & S.H. Raza stand out, with the Tyeb ($72,625) setting new highs only bettered two years later, while the Raza ($55,375) is bettered in October 2001, with the Manjit Bawa & Sudhir Patwardhan prices of $23,750 & $10,800 respectively, still remaining as highs. February 2001 Osian’s holds its inaugural curated auction India the Passionate Detachment by Tuli, opening up a vast knowledge-base for the Indian art world and widening the range of artists who are to receive financial credibility over the next five years. April 2001 Christie’s successfully introduces Indian Contemporary Painting to its Singapore Southeast Asian sale. September 2001 Christie’s Southeast Asian Art sale establishes new highs for V.S. Gaitonde $52,875 & Ramkumar $41,125 which are bettered one & two years later, respectively. Saffronart.com ties up with Apparao Galleries, after its collaboration with Pundole Gallery (New York, May), to take Indian Contemporary Art to Los Angeles, so developing a new client base for its online auctions. October 2001 Unlike other auctions, Osian’s continues to introduce new artists and maintains its curated focus on the art historical perspective, rather than cashing in on the saleable ‘signatures’. The long term sustainability of the Indian art market rests on this approach. November 2001 Bowring’s, estb. by Patrick Bowring, holds its inaugural auction in New Delhi, adding new decorative artefacts such as Gold Boxes, Glass, Porcelain, Marble & Silverware. The auction is marred by allegations of fraud & theft, which unfortunately dog their genuine attempts at helping to build the Indian art market. March 2002 Osian’s curated auction The Historical Mela successfully introduces the art & memorabilia of Indian Cinema to the world, taking forward the whole untapped market of popular contemporary arts, ranging from rare posters, Lobby Cards to ‘calendar’ art & advertisement forms. August 2002 Osian’s curated auction The Historical Epic , on India’s Independence Struggle further galvanises interest for the popular art forms of India, especially the art of political propaganda. September 2002 Tyeb Mehta’s Celebration (Triptych) from the Times of India Collection establishes a new world record for the highest priced Indian contemporary painting, at $317,500 (INR 15,398,750), crossing the important Rs.10,000,000 barrier, so adding momentum to the growing art awareness and appreciation.