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It may not be news for those already entrenched in Indian art, but in terms of the emerging art markets the Indians are definitely coming. "In the past few years, we have seen an art market buoyed by the new wealth and income of Indians based in India, and also by non-resident Indians (NRIs)," says Farah Rahim Esmail, director of Aicon, London's premier gallery of Indian art on Heddon Street (the former space of the Gagosian gallery).
"They are simply taking a new interest not only in the modern masters, but in contemporary art. What they are doing, then, is buying back into their heritage. We have seen increased activity in the past five to eight years, and much of it was through a rush in online buying from sites such as saffronart.com and artsindia.com."
The group of "modern masters" to which Esmail refers consists of veteran artists, either recently deceased or in their senior years. They were members of the Progressive Artists' Group, founded by Francis Newton Souza in 1947 - artists who lived through colonial rule, were active in Gandhi's Quit India freedom movement, and were deeply affected by Partition.
For the greater part of their careers, these artists had only modest success, but gradually they have become icons in their homeland. Among them are Souza, Maqbool Fida Husain, Ram Kumar, Syed Haider Raza, Akbar Padamsee and Tyeb Mehta. A somewhat younger grouping of artists in their mid-60s are also pivotal in the Indian contemporary art scene and include Laxma Goud, Anjolie Ela Menon and Nalini Malani.
It was in 2003, when Mehta's room-size triptych Celebration sold for more than $300,000 at Christies in New York, that many observers claimed that the turning point for Indian art had arrived. For the buyer it was a very sound investment; in 2005, Mehta's Mahisasura went for $1.58 million at Christie's in New York.
Buyers of contemporary Indian art are not just newly flush Indians; European and North Americans are also looking on south Asian talent with fresh eyes. "There is a lot of interest from non-Indian buyers who were collecting Chinese art but have been priced out of that market because of the soaring costs," explains Esmail.
Big sales
Prajit K. Dutta, a partner of Aicon Gallery and founder of artsindia.com, says: "The Indian art market turns over roughly $300 million of sales internationally, and much of it can be accounted for by the wealth of the Indian diaspora." He adds: "When you think that the Indian economy is growing at eight per cent a year it means there is a lot of spare capacity to buy. There is no doubt that potential buyers are in place.
"There is also a new consciousness of collecting among Indians. They are not just collecting art but also books, jewellery and so forth."
But are these savvy collectors buying up Indian art for the love of art, or for the investment value?
Both, it seems. "If a buyer is spending about $5,000, then it is such a negligible part of a disposable income that it is really because they just like the piece," says Dutta. "Once you get to the $100,000 mark, you have to be concerned about investment value. I always advise potential buyers that they have to like the art first, but, at that price range, you can't ignore the economic reality of it being an investment."
Sant Chatwal, a Manhattan-based NRI, hotel tycoon and modern-day Indian Medici in the making, also buys for love and money.
"I think the interest in contemporary Indian art has been fuelled by the high prices fetched by Indian artists at international auction houses. Today there is a frenzy to collect works in anticipation of rising prices. Art collectors are becoming investors to generate returns on their own art investment."
Chatwal is particularly interested in the work of Ganesh Pyne, Jogen Choudhury, Arpita Singh, Anjolie Ela Menon and Bikash Bhattacharya, as well as upcoming artists Chintan Upadhyay and Pushpamala.
There is no doubt that works by artists such as MF Husain are already highly sought after by collectors and, according to Esmail, prices for his best pieces have gone up in price by over 400 per cent (prices for some have reached the $1 million mark).
This puts him and his contemporaries out of reach for the vast majority of buyers. But there is a group of well-known contemporary artists that is still relatively affordable, and another group still who are on the rise.
Hip group
The former, known as the "Bombay Boys", is a preternaturally hip group of thirty to forty-somethings, most of whom trained at the Sir JJ School of Art in Mumbai. They are India's answer to the "YBAs" and are receiving recognition far quicker than the masters before them.
Like their predecessors, they are influenced by violence and poverty, but are also interested in modern issues: technology, terrorism and the environment. Marquee names include Subodh Gupta, GR Iranna, Riyas Komu, TV Santhosh, Atul Dodiya and Baiju Parthan.
For keen collectors on a budget, there is another grouping of artists who are beginning to cut a swath through not just Mumbai and Delhi, but also through Manhattan and Palo Alto.
Young, cheeky and brash, they include Akhilesh, Adip Dutta, Yogesh Rawal, Rathin Kanji, Debanjan Ray, S. Harsha Vardhana, Indrapramit Roy and Smriti Dixit. Their work with linear and modular shapes, audio visual installations and recycled junk is piquing the interest of collectors worldwide.
For Esmail, the changes in the Indian art market and economy can only be good.
"The country has such a strong history in mysticism and belief, fantasy and story-telling, and that is being represented in its arts every day. It is a hugely exciting time for Indian art."
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