Sayed Haider Raza has set a new record, seven years after he died. The Indian Modern artist’s acrylic on canvas Gestation (1989) fetched ₹51.75 crore, including commissions, at Pundole Auction House a little over a week ago, making it the most expensive Indian artwork ever sold at auction. (It broke Vasudeo S. Gaitonde’s 2020 record of ₹32 crore.) The painting showcases Raza’s signature Bindu in earthy colours.
The August 31 auction clocked a few other records for Moderns, too: F.N. Souza’s oil painting Hunger sold for ₹34.5 crore, setting a world auction record for the artist, and Tyeb Mehta’s bronze sculpture Two Heads fetched ₹14.95 crore, gaining the world auction record for a Modern Indian sculpture.
