A group of Indian miniature paintings is at the heart of the 'Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Art' sale by auctioneer Bonham at the upcoming Asia Week in New York.
With a total sale estimate of USD 4 - USD 6 million, the 114-lot auction scheduled on March 14 is led by a painting from the famed "Kangra Rasikapriya," once in the collection of Abdur Rahman Chughtai, who is considered to be the first significant modern Muslim artist from South Asia.
Estimated to fetch USD 40,000- USD 60,000, the miniature painting illustrates a poem exploring the emotions and behaviors of lovers in all forms and stages, auctioneers said.
On the market for Indian miniatures, Edward Wilkinson, US Director of Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Art, Bonhams said, "Domestic auction results of 2015 in India testified to a sudden surge in demand for miniatures, indicating that now is the time to buy, before the rising tide continues to increase the price one must pay for quality."
The upcoming sale also includes another Radha and Krishna painting from the contemporaneous Guler court. It is formerly from the collection of Chughtai and complements the Kangra Rasikapriya painting.
"Divine Loveplay Under Moonlight," circa 1810, is estimated at USD 30,000 - USD 40,000. The painting illustrates a poem in Gurmukhi, which is inscribed on the top of the Bharat Kala version.
"Meanwhile from Rajasthan, there is a vibrant painting from an early school, long misattributed to the small Mughal principality of Malwa, that has recently received an explosion of scholarly and market interest," auctioneers said.
