As a result of Christie’s groundbreaking two sales to date of international Modern and Contemporary Art, the market for Modern and Contemporary Arab Art has grown rapidly over the last two years, encouraging collectors worldwide to offer rare and unusual pieces, many completely unknown to the market and unseen for decades.
The forthcoming sale of International Modern and Contemporary Art in Dubai, to be held at the Jumeirah Emirates Towers hotel at 6.30pm on 31 October 2007 reflects this new tendency and includes many museum-quality Arab and Iranian works of art from American, European and Middle Eastern collectors, as well as a carefully curated selection of works by some of the most exciting international and Western artists and spanning several important periods.
The second sale of International Modern and Contemporary Art in February 2007 established a new world record for Adbul Kadir Al-Rais, with Yesteryear, 1995, which sold for $262,400/AED 970,880. The forthcoming auction will includes the artist’s Untitled (from the ‘Waw’ series), a rare, very large calligraphic work on paper (estimate: US$30,000-40,000), painted in 2007
The autumn auction will also feature the Qatari artist Yousef Ahmed art titled “The Letter Noon” (estimate U.S $ 16,000-20,000). Another artist from Kuwait, Sami Mohammed will display his work at the forthcoming Christies sale. Sami’s art is all about the suffering of the common man and his suppressed freedom, conditions prevalent in much of the developing world. He expresses his thoughts over one tragic event from the past and cast this very moving figure in bronze (estimate: U.S $ 40,000-60,000) titled Sabra and Chatilla.
“Built on the solid foundations laid in the first two sales of International Modern and Contemporary Art that Christie’s have staged in Dubai, this third sale will help to firmly establish a strong and vibrant secondary market for Modern Arab and Iranian Art in the Middle East, and provide a platform for the best and unique pieces of contemporary art available in the region, says William Lawrie, Specialist, Modern & Contemporary Arab & Iranian Art, and Michael Jeha, Managing Director, Middle East.
A large proportion of works offered in this sale have been sourced from private collections from across the globe, many of whom are completely unknown in the Middle East, as well as unique contemporary pieces that, until now, have not been available anywhere else in the Middle East
“We are delighted to have established a sponsoring partnership with Credit Suisse who is supporting the events around the auction for the second time”, Michael Jeha, Managing Director, Middle East said. With the backing of Credit Suisse as one of the leading global providers of
financial products and services in Investment Banking, Private Banking, and Asset Management, Christie’s is proud to be continuing to help drive the local art market, raising the standard and profile of art in the region and in bringing to Dubai works from across the globe.”
Ahmed Moustafa’s Qur’anic Polyptych of Nine Panels (estimate $300,000-350,000), painted in 1995 is an undoubted highlight of the sale. The essence of this work is based on the text of the last three suras in the Holy Qur’an. By putting these three suras in a square measuring just over 3x3 metres, the work attempts to shed different lights on the mysteries of the hidden treasure in the Divine expression.
This sale will also feature important works by most of the greatest Iranian artists of the Twentieth Century and later. Charles Hossein Zenderoudi is represented in the sale by four, outstanding works. Offered from a private French collection, Mir + 54 + BZ + S, painted in 1962 ($140,000-180,000), is representative of the Saqqa-khaneh movement, and as an early example demonstrates many of the artist’s concepts and his visual vocabulary, expressed in a strong and emergent way. First Name, 1972, is a large example by the artist and as a result will be highly-sought after ($80,000-100,000).
Parviz Tanavoli’s standing poet ($120,000-150,000) executed in 2006-7 in bronze is unique. It comes from the series by the same name. Referring to Persian mysticism, a poet is considered as a symbol of the pious man. Farhad Moshiri, considered by many to be one of the most influential young artists in the Middle East, is represented by One World – Yek Donia (estimate$60,000-80,000), a depiction of a map of the world executed in thousands of Swarovski diamond-shaped crystals on canvas on board in 2007.
A number of exciting works by Andy Warhol also feature in the sale. Warhol was fascinated by the many characters he met in life, and strove to immortalize them through his work. Farah Ashraf Pahlavi ($80,000-120,000) and Michael Jackson ($60,000-80,000) are fine examples of work from this period. The sale will also include Victor Vasarely’s Zaphir, an oil on canvas painted in 1965 and offered from a European collection (estimate: $100,000-150,000)
