NEW DELHI: Leading contemporary artist Subodh Gupta's 2002-2005 sculpture 'This Side is the Other Side' will go under the hammer at Saffronart's upcoming Contemporary Indian Art sale.
Leading the sale, Gupta's magnificent sculpture is a cast bronze Bajaj Priya scooter with stainless steel and chrome-plated milk cans hanging off the sides.
Estimated at Rs 1-1.5 crore, the bronze sculpture, like much of Gupta's oeuvre, is defined by the transformation of familiar objects of daily use into metaphorical symbols that offer insights into aspects of modern life.
The online sale scheduled to be held on December 4-5, will feature selected works from the Amaya Collection that has been built over two decades by art collector and connoisseur Amrita Jhaveri.
Also featured in the sale will be Bharti Kher's 'The Walls Have Ears' (1999), estimated at Rs 50-70 lakh.
One of Kher's first works to explore the bindi motif through painting, this work takes the viewers into the interiors of homes, using the "painted-collage" format to examine the contradictions and complexities of identity.
"The Amaya Collection is testament to an enduring passion for owning and collecting art. Amrita Jhaveri has amassed one of the most significant collections of contemporary Indian art in the world and we are extremely pleased to be able to offer these works at our auction. We believe the sale will have a significant impact on the contemporary Indian art market," Dinesh Vazirani, Saffronart CEO and Co-Founder said.
Other highlights include conceptual artist Shilpa Gupta's 'BlindStars StarsBlind', an animated light installation from 2008 estimated at Rs 10-15 lakh, and photographer Dayanita Singh's 'Blue Book #32' (2007), estimated at Rs 8-10 lakh.
Singh's work is significant for being part of the series that marked Singh's first venture into colour photography.
"The selection captures a particular moment in time from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s when there was a great sense of optimism in the art world. This sale is a snapshot of those happy days. The landscape and the human body are themes that emerge through the collection," Jhaveri said.
The auction that will take place on saffronart.com, will be preceded by viewings of select lots in New Delhi, Mumbai and London.