Christies is holding its debut auction in India when gallerists are still complaining about a lull in the market. Is this the right time? The market for Indian art has evolved really quickly in the last 10-15 years,and the next logical step is education. We are still finalising the works for the India auction,but it will focus on South Asian art and take place on December 19 at Taj,Mumbai. Well look at Moderns as well as Contemporaries,and also national treasures,in particular Amrita Sher-Gil,Tagores and Nicholas Roerich. These cant be exported,our goal is to source entirely in India for the Indian market. We are preparing the ground with our September sale in New York,which is a single-owner sale of Supratik Bose,Nandalal Boses grandson. Will the India auction be a regular feature? Its going to be an annual auction. People suggested that we should conduct it in Delhi,but for now it will be in Mumbai. With regard to artwork,among other things we are looking at Modernists. The next step would be to consider antiquities,miniature paintings,and bronzes. This year,Christies has also became the first international auction house to acquire a license to conduct an auction in China. Are you looking at a global expansion? This year is about Asia,India as well as China. The future lies here. We look at it as a larger South Asian entity. When did you develop an interest in Indian art? I studied art history in Switzerland and was particularly interested in cultural exchange. So I studied Asian art Japanese,Chinese and Indian. I was interested in,for instance,how Buddhism originated in India and went across Asia,how ideas travelled and then how art evolved. India was the motherland for so many things. The power of the Indian culture was perhaps the strongest in Asia. Are there any particular steps taken to initiate new collectors? It is our constant endeavour to get young collectors on board. For that the price points have to be good,we look for works on paper and photography that are only a few thousand dollars but are good. Can you name young artists whom you think have potential? To be honest I was really impressed by the Bangaladeshi art scene,there is a lot of energy coming out. I liked Tayeba Begum Lipi and her husband Mahbubur Rahman,but there are several others. How was it to be the auctioneer when Indian art fetched its record prices both when Tyeb Mehtas Mahishasura sold for US $ 1.5 million in 2005 and SH Razas Saurashtra for US $ 3.49 million in 2010. That was thrilling. Its amazing how art is always related to people and we are the facilitators. An auction starts a new chapter in the life of the work. I remember Tyeb was present when we sold Mahishasura,everyone was applauding for him. He said he hadnt been to New York for 40 years and does not benefit from the sale as the work doesnt belong to him anymore. I said everything he did now,hell benefit from and he replied,Im an old man and paint slowly. Then he said,My dream is that one day my work will be in MOMA,and now I think it will be possible. Its about a new level of recognition that happens.
