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This is an archive article published on July 13, 2007

KITTY ART

Here8217;s a joint venture that makes the masters affordable. Pool in the money and buy a Raza with your friend. But, we wonder, who keeps the canvas?

So thota vaikuntham8217;s voluptuous women and the anguish spilling out of Jogen Chowdhury8217;s canvases are beyond your wallet8217;s reach? Well, there is comfort in numbers8212;find a few friends never mind their eye for colour, pool in the moolah and pick up that gouache. Samar Mehra did.

When this 30-year-old management executive from London visited his home in Mumbai last year, he had business on his mind. So off he went shopping in the art mart. 8220;I had read a lot about Indian art, the skyrocketing prices and its impact across the world. A few rounds of the galleries in Mumbai were enough to convince me that this was a sure means of multiplying my money,8221; says Mehra. When he zeroed in on a portfolio, he found he did not have enough money. So, he approached a few friends and one of them agreed to pitch in with the money. The duo ended up buying four works that include small canvases by Jogen Chowdhury and Gopi Gajwani. 8220;That collection came to Rs 40 lakh. I was convinced about my choices and did not want to compromise on the number or quality of works,8221; he smiles.

Mehra is not alone. As prices of Indian art reach new heights, fussy connoisseurs and hard-nosed businessmen alike are coming up with new ways to tap the art mart8212;from renting canvasses to pooling in to buy one.

Tripat Kalra of Gallerie Navya reveals that many of her clients invest as a team. Says she, 8220;They are often friends who may not be able to buy the works individually. Some are new entrants in the art market and do not want to take the risk of taking the plunge alone.8221; Renu Modi, owner of Gallery Espace, has come across larger groups of five or six who jointly invest in a range of works with the sole purpose of selling them when the prices peak. 8220;Many of these function like a kitty where all members pool in and purchase works by several artists. They sell them at regular intervals and reinvest a part of their profits.8221;

Sunaina Anand, owner of Art Alive Gallery, says, 8220;The groups usually comprise two to six individuals, all of whom come together either to purchase a single work or several works. Usually all of them contribute equally to buy all the artwork. Senior artists are popular with those looking at collectively purchasing works. At the recent exhibition of Yusuf Arakkal8217;s works we sold one of the canvases to a duo.8221;

Now, the big question: whose wall does the canvas adorn? Mehra has chosen to leave all the works with his friend in Mumbai. Others like Delhi-based Seema Shah keeps half the canvases and lets her partner take care of the rest. Shah has been buying canvases with her friend for over two years now her possessions include a large canvas by Manu Parekh. 8220;We started out with two works, but several purchases followed once we were clued in. Rotating the canvas is bound to be cumbersome so we prefer to keep some with each of us,8221; says the 44-year-old, eyes resting proudly at the Manu Parekh canvas on her walls. Some of Anand8217;s clients have arrangements where they each can keep the canvas for a few months. 8220;A work could be with one of the members till it is sold, or it could be rotated so that all can enjoy it.8221;

With no rules to guide the still-nascent trend, collaborators draw terms and conditions on their own. 8220;The works could either be owned jointly or can be transferred in the name of one individual. The second member could be a sleeping partner. Trust is the key and it is important that the partners have similar likes.8221;

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The popular picks for the joint ventures? Sharan Apparao, director of Apparao Gallery, who has sold works to innumerable small groups based in Mumbai, rattles names of blue-chip artists like Anjolie Ela Menon, Jogen Chowdhury, S.H. Raza and M.F. Husain.

According to Kalra, works by Thota Vaikuntham are most coveted. Young artists like Viraj Naik and Gurdeep Singh are also being up picked up.

The art world is divided about the trend and its long-term impact. Neville Tuli, founder chairman of Osian8217;s is not too impressed. 8220;It is not viable in the long run and only structured formal platforms such as art funds will eventually bring recognition to art as a genuine capital asset.8221;

Jogen Chowdhury is clearly uncomfortable about the trend. 8220;The ultimate objective in most of these cases is selling the work. There is no sentimental value that the purchaser has with the creation.8221; But Arpana Caur is more optimistic. 8220;Joint investments could emerge as a possible means for genuine art connoisseurs to take home artwork that they could not afford till recently,8221; says the artist, who sells her works on installments when a buyer cannot afford to pay at one go. Anand refuses to label the practice commodification. 8220;Even individual collectors buy art for investment. So the criticism that the works are bought with the sole intention of being sold is not fair.8221;

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Away from the debate, Mehra is a satisfied man. 8220;The value of our works has nearly doubled. Just goes to show that two minds are always better than one.8221;
Some names have been changed to protect the buyers8217; identity

Vandana Kalra

Vandana Kalra is an art critic and Deputy Associate Editor with The Indian Express. She has spent more than two decades chronicling arts, culture and everyday life, with modern and contemporary art at the heart of her practice. With a sustained engagement in the arts and a deep understanding of India’s cultural ecosystem, she is regarded as a distinctive and authoritative voice in contemporary art journalism in India. Vandana Kalra's career has unfolded in step with the shifting contours of India’s cultural landscape, from the rise of the Indian art market to the growing prominence of global biennales and fairs. Closely tracking its ebbs and surges, she reports from studios, galleries, museums and exhibition spaces and has covered major Indian and international art fairs, museum exhibitions and biennales, including the Venice Biennale, Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Documenta, Islamic Arts Biennale. She has also been invited to cover landmark moments in modern Indian art, including SH Raza’s exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the opening of the MF Husain Museum in Doha, reflecting her long engagement with the legacies of India’s modern masters. Alongside her writing, she applies a keen editorial sensibility, shaping and editing art and cultural coverage into informed, cohesive narratives. Through incisive features, interviews and critical reviews, she brings clarity to complex artistic conversations, foregrounding questions of process, patronage, craft, identity and cultural memory. The Global Art Circuit: She provides extensive coverage of major events like the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Serendipity Arts Festival, and high-profile international auctions. Artist Spotlights: She writes in-depth features on modern masters (like M.F. Husain) and contemporary performance artists (like Marina Abramović). Art and Labor: A recurring theme in her writing is how art reflects the lives of the marginalized, including migrants, farmers, and labourers. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent portfolio is dominated by the coverage of the 2025 art season in India: 1. Kochi-Muziris Biennale & Serendipity Arts Festival "At Serendipity Arts Festival, a 'Shark Tank' of sorts for art and crafts startups" (Dec 20, 2025): On how a new incubator is helping artisans pitch products to investors. "Artist Birender Yadav's work gives voice to the migrant self" (Dec 17, 2025): A profile of an artist whose decade-long practice focuses on brick kiln workers. "At Kochi-Muziris Biennale, a farmer’s son from Patiala uses his art to draw attention to Delhi’s polluted air" (Dec 16, 2025). "Kochi Biennale showstopper Marina Abramović, a pioneer in performance art" (Dec 7, 2025): An interview with the world-renowned artist on the power of reinvention. 2. M.F. Husain & Modernism "Inside the new MF Husain Museum in Qatar" (Nov 29, 2025): A three-part series on the opening of Lawh Wa Qalam in Doha, exploring how a 2008 sketch became the architectural core of the museum. "Doha opens Lawh Wa Qalam: Celebrating the modernist's global legacy" (Nov 29, 2025). 3. Art Market & Records "Frida Kahlo sets record for the most expensive work by a female artist" (Nov 21, 2025): On Kahlo's canvas The Dream (The Bed) selling for $54.7 million. "All you need to know about Klimt’s canvas that is now the most expensive modern artwork" (Nov 19, 2025). "What’s special about a $12.1 million gold toilet?" (Nov 19, 2025): A quirky look at a flushable 18-karat gold artwork. 4. Art Education & History "Art as play: How process-driven activities are changing the way children learn art in India" (Nov 23, 2025). "A glimpse of Goa's layered history at Serendipity Arts Festival" (Dec 9, 2025): Exploring historical landmarks as venues for contemporary art. Signature Beats Vandana is known for her investigative approach to the art economy, having recently written about "Who funds the Kochi-Muziris Biennale?" (Dec 11, 2025), detailing the role of "Platinum Benefactors." She also explores the spiritual and geometric aspects of art, as seen in her retrospective on artist Akkitham Narayanan and the history of the Cholamandal Artists' Village (Nov 22, 2025). ... Read More

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