 "Tyeb Mehta set a personal record at a Pundole’s auction earlier in September (photo: Cea, CC BY 2.0/ Wikimedia Commons)")
The Indian art market is heating up. FY23 was a blockbuster year for Indian art auctions, and FY24 seems promising as well. September kicked off with a record-breaking sale of a Sayed Haider Raza painting, fetching Rs 51.75 crore. Additionally, artists Francis Newton Souza and Tyeb Mehta achieved personal milestones (see: Numberwise). According to the "State of the Indian Art Market Report FY23" by Grant Thornton Bharat and Indian Art Investor, the market has grown by a staggering 265 per cent over the past decade since FY13.
In the midst of this cheerful picture, India's financial capital is gearing up for its inaugural art fair. Art Mumbai's first edition will take place from November 16 to 19 at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse, just a few months before the country's largest art event, the India Art Fair, holds its 15th edition in February 2024 in New Delhi.
Art Mumbai anticipates the participation of around 50 galleries, primarily from India. Notable names include Experimenter from Kolkata and Mumbai, Vadehra Art Gallery based in New Delhi, and galleries from Bengaluru. International galleries, such as Grosvenor Gallery from London, will also showcase Indian art.
Conor Macklin, the director of Grosvenor Gallery and a co-founder of Art Mumbai, said that it was only a matter of time before Mumbai had its own art fair. He highlighted Mumbai's status as India's auction hub, housing many of the country's major auction houses like Pundole's and Saffronart. Dinesh and Minal Vazirani, co-founders of Saffronart, are also behind Art Mumbai, along with Nakul Dev Chawla of online gallery Global Art Hub.
Art Mumbai appears to have been envisioned as the Indian Premier League, or IPL, of the art world, aiming to infuse glitz and glamour, encompassing all that defines Mumbai: art, culture, Bollywood, and fashion.
The opening day will feature a fashion show by a prominent couturier and an art conversation between Dinesh Vazirani and a renowned Bollywood filmmaker. Museum groups from London and Washington DC are expected to make the journey to Mumbai to experience the fair.
Minal Vazirani highlighted Mumbai's significance in the art world, with a considerable number of major collectors residing in the city and a substantial volume of art transactions taking place there. The art world thrived during the pandemic, with people having more time to engage with art while staying at home, leading to a surge in sales. The bull run in the stock market has further fuelled this momentum, with art buyers emerging not only from major cities but also from non-metro areas like Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, and Amritsar, said Chawla.
Concurrently, India's G20 presidency has indirectly played a role by showcasing India's geopolitical appeal to investors, instilling positivity about the country, added Macklin.
In Minal Vazirani's words, "And now we are finally having an art fair in Mumbai, which has always had a cohesive ecosystem for art. So, no, it's not 'Why Mumbai?' It's 'Of course, Mumbai'."
SH Raza, whose painting sold for a record Rs 51.75 crore (photo: Pantalaskas, CC BY-SA 3.0/ Wikimedia Commons)
