The highest price ever paid for a work of Modern Indian Art was set at Christie’s auction in Rockefeller Center on March 19, as Maqbool Fida Husain’s Untitled (Gram Yatra) sold for $13.75 million to an unnamed institution.
Historic Sale for South Asian Art
The total sales for South Asian modern and contemporary art at the auction reached nearly $25 million, according to Christie’s press release.
“It was a dramatic moment that capped off a day of strong results,” the famous auction house stated.
The final sale total was $24,864,316, with:
- 95% of lots sold
- 321% hammer and premium against the low estimate
Breaking Previous Records
Husain’s Untitled (Gram Yatra) shattered multiple records, including:
- Doubling the previous record for any Modern Indian painting—Amrita Sher-Gil’s The Story Teller (1937), which sold for approximately $7.4 million in Mumbai (September 2023).
- Surpassing the previous Husain record—his painting Untitled (Reincarnation), which fetched $3.1 million in London last year.
“We are thrilled to have been a part of setting a new benchmark value for the work of Maqbool Fida Husain and the entire category,” said Nishat Avari, head of Christie’s South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art.
“This is a landmark moment and continues the extraordinary upward trajectory of the Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art market.”
The ‘Volodarsky Husain’ – A Hidden Treasure
Christie’s described the sale as the latest chapter in the incredible story of the ‘Volodarsky Husain’, a work that had been hidden away for decades in Norway before resurfacing at the auction.
Multiple Artist Records Set
The auction also saw record-breaking sales for several modern and contemporary South Asian artists, including:
- Sayed Haider Raza(work on paper)
- Gulam Rasool Santosh
- Sudhir Patwardhan
- Jeram Patel(work on paper)
- Ivan Peries
- Senaka Senanayake
- Prabha(work on paper)
The strong bidding activity underscored the growing global demand for South Asian modern and contemporary art, further solidifying its place in the international art market.