Christie's NY auction: Husain, Tyeb Mehta on sale

Christie is expecting to rake in over 50 crores from works by South Asian artists ranging from modern masters to cutting edge contemporary artists like M F Husain, J. Swaminathan, Tyeb Mehta and Subodh Gupta at its auction next month in New York.

Modernist painter Tyeb Mehta's  Yellow Heads, which he painted in 1979 was showcased along with 'Steal 2,' an oil on canvas measuring 167.8cm X 228.5 cm by multimedia specialist Subodh Gupta as part of the 20 exclusive art works
displayed at a select preview in New Delhi.

Yellow Heads was tagged at between 2 crore (Rs 20 million) to 3.48 crore (Rs 34.8 million) and Steal 2 was estimated between 3.4 crore (Rs 34 million) and Rs 5 crore (Rs 50 million).

"The works by over 80 artists are expected to raise between $10 million to $14 million," Sonal Singh, specialist for Indian Modern and Contemporary art told PTI.

Contemporary Pakistani artist Rashid Rana's work "Two dimensions' comprising a collage of miniature snapshots of
Lahore's urban landscape is estimated to fetch between Rs 3.4 (Rs 34 million) and Rs 5 crore (Rs 50 million).

"Rana is among the eight artists from Pakistan whose works will be auctioned on September 16,"

said Singh. 

Other highlights of the auction that would offer 140 lots of  South Asian Modern and Contemporary Indian art include
Riyas Komu's 2006 oil on canvas, Designated March of a Petro Angel or Desert March that depicts an Iranian woman.

Ritual by Maqbool Fida Husain, an untitled 1992 canvas by Manjit Bawa and The Same Old Story, by Rameshwar Broota will also be open for bids.

Writer, political activist and painter Jagdish Swaminathan's two untitled works from the  Bird Mountain Series will also go under the hammer.