Collectors Items

Owner of over hundreds of works,many of which were purchased in the late 90s when Jhaveri and husband Christopher Davidge were setting up their apartment,her entire collection was not accessible to Mehta. We started out with hundred-odd works. It was extremely difficult to decide what to leave out,as all of them are of significance, says Mehta. After several phases of shortlisting,the Amaya collection comprising 43 works was chosen to be brought under the Sothebys hammer on March 19. Spanning the second half of the 20th century to the early 21 st century,the works include those by modern Indian masters like MF Husain,SH Raza and FN Souza as well as more contemporary artists like Sudhir Patwardhan,Pushpamala N and Abir Karmakar.

The New York auction will be the first international evening sale of Indian art also the first single-owner sale in this category since Sothebys Chester and Davida Herwitz auction in 2000. Estimated to garner between US 5 million and 7 million,leading the sale is Tyeb Mehtas untitled 1982 painting,estimated between US 800,000 and 1.2 million. Part of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to Khoj International Artists Association in Delhi. She is one of the most prominent collectors of Indian art,so its a coup for Sothebys, says Bhavna Kakar,director of Delhi-based Latitude 28 gallery.

Even though her passion was homegrown,Jhaveris curatorial ambitions took concrete shape abroad,studying art history in the UK,from where she would go on to become the first Indian representative of the worlds largest auction house Christies,London. My first ambition was to work in the museum,the non-profit side of the art world,but that was barely developed when I returned to India after my studies in the UK. The only art-related job I landed was at the auction house Christies,which I got because I had interned there earlier, says the 41-year old.

People in the art circuit know Jhaveri for her keen eye for quality art. She was born with an art spoon. Her father was a serious collector who particularly liked Anjolie Ela Menon, says Arun Vadehra,owner of Delhi-based Vadehra Art Gallery. He worked closely with Jhaveri during her stint at Christies where Vadehra is a consultant. We worked together on four-five auctions. She has also been buying works from us. The last purchase was one or two years ago, says Vadehra,who will be attending the New York auction.

Shuttling between London and Mumbai,Jhaveri is considered somewhat a recluse. Shes shy,a woman of few words,but very intelligent, says Kakar. In Mumbai,Jhaveri reportedly attended an Anglo-Scottish school before moving to the UK for higher studies. As Christies first representative in India in the early 90s,she later moved to the London office where she was a curator of Asian artefacts. Here,she fell in love with Charles Davidge,managing director of the auction house. Their relationship was not approved of by the then owner,Francois Pinault. In one of the biggest scandals of the art world,Davidge went on to disclose details of price-fixing agreements between Sothebys and Christies. Based largely on his evidence,a jury indicted officials from Sothebys and Christies in 2001. Eventually,Davidge walked away with a US10.2 million severance from Christies. Jhaveri and Davidge took a long vacation in South America,and later tied the knot in Rajasthan.

After her marriage,Jhaveri began collecting art more actively. I learned from my husband to always buy the very best and to pay over the odds to secure them. But profit is never the main consideration. I have never put profit before my instinct or my immediate reaction to a work of art, she says. When she got married,her sizeable collection already included works on paper of moderns,contemporaries as well as those of up-and-coming artists that she had purchased while working for Christies. She has some of the early works of artists who went on to become really big, says Mehta. In 2003,Jhaveri started working on her book 101: A Guide to 101 Modern and Contemporary Indian Artists,written for new collectors of Indian art. The best way to develop an eye is to see as much as you can. Its still something I do with relish visit exhibitions at every opportunity. Reading is equally important. I do less of that than I should but in the early days I would read voraciously, she says. The year of the books publication,2005,is also when she formed her consultancy AM Art India Private Limited. Her clients reportedly include Indian corporations such as Tata Consultancy Services,and Mukesh and Nita Ambani.

Her gallery in Mumbai,Jhaveri Contemporary,which Amrita established with sister Priya in 2010,has been consistently showcasing works of international artists including US-based Pakistani artist Hamra Abbas,British artist Alexander Gorlizk and American photographer Michael Müller. In 2010,Jhaveri helped organise Anish Kapoors maiden exhibition in the country. The two part exhibition took place at National Gallery of Modern Art,New Delhi,and Mehboob Studios,Mumbai. With the Sothebys auction,she has brought Indian art in the spotlight once again.

with inputs by Sankhayan Ghosh

Auction Highlights

n Tyeb Mehtas untitled 1982 oil on canvas. Part of the Chester and Davida Herwitz collection,it was purchased from Sothebys in 2000.

Estimated between US 8,00,000 12,00,000

n SH Raza8217;s Rajasthan I that brings together his influences from France and India. Depicting nature,the acrylic was exhibited at The Philips Collection in Washington DC in 1986.

Estimated between US 600,000 8211; 800,000

n VS Gaitondes untitled 1962 work. One of the few canvases painted by the meticulous artist.

estimated between US 600,000 -800,000

n MF Husain8217;s The Puppet Dancers. The 1963 oil on canvas combines his fascination for toys,folk art and rural culture.

Estimated between US 2,00,000 8211; 3,00,000

n Bhupen Khakhars 1988 oil on canvas Satsang. This has him seated in a gathering where a group of men are paying their respects to a deceased. The vibrant hues contradict the mourning scene.

Estimated between US 1,80,000 2,50,000