Saffronart sets a world record price for an artwork sold at any online auction

Saffronart, the world's largest online fine-art auction house, concluded its annual Winter Online Art Auction on December 9, 2010 with strong results that highlight the continued demand for important works with notable provenance. With a total of 80% of the 100 lots on offer selling, the auction brought an impressive Rs 30 crore (USD 7.1 million).

As anticipated, the lot illustrated on the catalogue's front cover, a stunning mural made up of sixteen individual canvas panels by one of India's most prominent and critically acclaimed women artists - Arpita Singh - titled "Wish Dream', achieved a record price for the artist, fetching an astounding Rs 9.6 crore (USD 2.24 million). This is also the highest price achieved by an Indian woman artist at auction globally, and a world record price for an artwork sold at any online auction.

Speaking about the record breaking auction, Dinesh Vazirani, Co-founder and CEO of Saffronart said, "We are very pleased with the results of our Winter Online Auction 2010 which was a celebration of our 10th anniversary. This auction was an historic event for the online art auction market with Arpita Singh's magnificent 16 panel mural titled "Wish Dream' selling for Rs 9.6 crore (USD 2.24 million). Throughout the year we have seen a strong demand for works of art of the highest quality and following this sale, a new benchmark has been established in this category."

Saffronart's Winter Online Auction of Modern and Contemporary Indian art was marked by exceptional prices for several modernists including artists S.H. Raza, Jehangir Sabavala, F.N. Souza, K.G. Subramanyan and M.F. Husain, demonstrating that the modern masters remain highly sought-after by collectors.

Saffronart's Winter Online Auction featured 100 by 43 modern and contemporary Indian artists. The sale saw unprecedented participation from collectors across the world, and closed with a total of Rs 30 crore (USD 7.1 million). Notable among the artists featured in the sale were Arpita Singh, S.H. Raza, F.N. Souza, N.S. Harsha, M.F. Husain, Akbar Padamsee, Subodh Gupta, Shibu Natesan, Manjit Bawa and Jehangir Sabavala. In addition to publishing a print catalogue to accompany the online sale, Saffronart also hosted preview events in New Delhi, Mumbai, London and New York.