M.F. Husain’s “Gram Yatra” sells for record $13.75 million at Christie’s

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The hammer came down and applause filled the saleroom at Rockefeller Center March 19 afternoon as Christie’s sold Maqbool Fida Husain’s Untitled (Gram Yatra) for the largest sum ever paid for a work of Modern Indian Art, $13,750,000, selling to an unnamed institution.

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Overall, South Asian modern and contemporary art sold for close to $25 million, Christie’s said in a press release.

“It was a dramatic moment that capped off a day of strong results,” the famous auction house said.

The sale totaled $24,864,316, selling 95 percent by lot, and 321 percent hammer and premium against low estimate.

In addition to the Husain, the sale established records for numerous artists, including: Sayed Haider Raza (work on paper); Gulam Rasool Santosh; Sudhir Patwardhan; Jeram Patel; Ivan Peries; Senaka Senanayake; B. Prabha (work on paper).

The price realized by Husain’s Untitled (Gram Yatra) doubled the previous record for any Modern Indian work ever – approximately $7.4 million for Amrita Sher-Gil’s 1937 oil on canvas painting, The Story Teller in September of 2023 in Mumbai – and soared past the previous record for Husain – approximately $3.1 million for a painting named Untitled (Reincarnation) set 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,” the head of Christie’s South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art, Nishat Avari, is quoted saying in the press release. “This is a landmark moment and continues the extraordinary upward trajectory of the Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art market.”

This record-setting sale is just the latest chapter in the “incredible story of the so-called ‘Volodarsky Husain,’ a work that was virtually hidden away for decades in Norway, Christie’s said.

In addition to the Husain, the sale saw competitive bidding throughout and established records for numerous artists, including: Sayed Haider Raza (work on paper); Gulam Rasool Santosh; Sudhir Patwardhan; Jeram Patel (work on paper); Ivan Peries; Senaka Senanayake; B. Prabha (work on paper).

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