In the current COVID scenario, Bid & Hammer has pulled off a coup of sorts by convincing a few entrepreneurial collectors of the Indian art world to offer attractive artworks in a ‘No-Reserve Online Auction’ from 4th-10th August 2020. One of the paintings on offer is a trademark Maqbool Fida Husain(1915-2011) oil on canvas ‘Horse’. Estimated at Rs 30,00,000 – 40,00,000 but as the auction has no minimum starting-bid and reserve price, the painting can be acquired for a fraction of the market price. The other artists whose works are being offered in a similar fashion are Paresh Maity, K G Subramanyan, K M Adimoolam, Jogen Chowdhury, Rabin Mondal, K K Hebbar, S G Vasudev, J M S Mani, and Lalu Prasad Shaw.
“We appreciate the element of risk that our large-hearted patrons have taken, knowing that the artworks might go at less than their market value. This gesture will allow other connoisseurs an opportunity to acquire fine art at exciting prices,” said Ankush Dadha, Director, Bid & Hammer. The price of the artworks from the Modern & Contemporary masters of Indian art starts from as little as Rs 60,000 with the potential to be acquired for even lower. If staying in and art can heal, Bid & Hammer hopes that the colorful range of these select lots, on which one can comfortably bid online, adds more splendour to your homes and also aids in economic revival during these uncertain times.
On the same note, to keep the momentum going, and with Independence Day around the corner, the auction house is conducting another online auction titled ‘Antique & Vintage Photographs; India – from RAJ TO SWARAJ’.
From the Taj Mahal in the North to the Charminar in the South and from the Ajanta & Ellora Caves in the East to Calcutta of the 1960s in the West, the specialist and unique auction covers photos of 35 towns, hill stations, cities and states of India showcasing its natural beauty and monuments of its greatness – Red Fort, Charminar (Hyderabad), Hawa Mahal (Jaipur), Teli Ka Mandir (Gwalior) Chepauk Palace (Chennai) and Victoria Terminus Railway Station (Mumbai) to name a few. A section is dedicated to the rulers of India’s former Princely States of Alwar, Baroda, Bhavnagar, Cooch Behar, Dharangadhra, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kapurthala, Jammu & Kashmir, Mysore, Nawanagar, Patiala, Palitana and Rewa among many others.
Vintage photos depicting political events – the Delhi Durbar, Queen Elizabeth’s first visit to India (being driven through the streets of New Delhi and Calcutta), Lord & Lady Mountbatten in the State Coach to Viceroy’s Palace (Rashtrapati Bhawan) upon their arrival to India in 1947, S. Radhakrishan (second-President of India) being assisted by the Shah of Persia in Iran, Maharani Gayatri Devi with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi (her school mate from Shantiniketan) during an election campaign and an iconic photograph of Mahatma Gandhi addressing students at Vellore Medical School, with wife Kasturba Gandhi by his side – are also on offer.
The timing of the auction re-scheduled for Independence Day 15th August 2020 is apt given the relevance of these historic moments. “With 180 original silver gelatin prints and albumen photographs from a single-owner collection, it is probably the largest lot-wise dedicated auction of photographs from 19th century leading up to the Imperial Delhi Durbar, followed by Indian Independence and beyond. And with estimates starting from Rs 9,000 going up to Rs 60,000, it is a good starting point for patriotic Indians and first-time collectors,” says Maher Dadha, Founder-Director, Bid & Hammer.
As the lower estimate of the No-Reserve auction starts at Rs 60,000 and the higher estimate of the Antique & Vintage Photographs auction ends at the same figure, both these auctions offer a good opportunity for investors looking at acquiring affordable blue-chip art.
With a safe and secure online bidding software, integrated with an easy to download mobile app, high-resolution images of the lots can be viewed online and bidding from the palm of your hands cannot get any more comfortable than this. For details and to register visit the website http://www.bidandhammer.com or download the app from the Android Playstore or iTunes Store.
