AIYAR GOT MAD

TAGORE'S HAND WRITTEN POEM UNDER AUCTION

A handwritten poem by Rabindranath Tagore and a collection of posters commissioned by Mahatma Gandhi are among select artworks that will go under the hammer at global auctioneer Christie's New York sale this month. A total of 81 works by Rabindranath Tagore, Abanindranath Tagore and Nandlal Bose, sourced from the personal collection of Bose's nephew Supratik Bose, would be held on September 17. The sale "The Art of Nandalal Bose, Abanindranath Tagore, and Rabindranath Tagore: The Collection of Supratik Bose," comes ahead of Christie's inaugural sale in India to be held in Mumbai in December this year. The collection by Supratik Bose, a retired architect and officer at Harvard University, is being put up in the market for the first time, according to auctioneers. "We are deeply honoured to have been entrusted by Supratik Bose to handle this extraordinary collection that his grandfather Nandalal Bose handed down to him. It documents the shared vision of three artistic geniuses, who are linked by the common goal of art and humanity, family and friendship," Hugo Weihe, Christie's international director of Asian Art, said in a statement. Highlighting the auction is a collection of posters commissioned by Mohandas K Gandhi for the Indian National Congress meeting in Haripura, 1938. A poster titled "Bull Fighter" by Bose has been estimated to sell between USD 30,000 to USD 50,000. A handwritten poem "Where the mind is without fear" by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore which was originally published in "Gitanjali" (1910) has been estimated to fetch between USD 100,000 to USD 150,000. There is also a collection of postcards shared between Abanindranath Tagore, the nephew of Rabindranath Tagore and Nandlal Bose that speaks of their friendship, the intimacy and admiration they had for each other. "Works by Abanindranath, such as his captivating Siva- Simantini demonstrate the seamless existence of the past and present in modern Indian art," the auctioneers said. Christie's September 2013 Asian Art Week comprises of eight sales spread out over the course of four days, beginning September 17. The week will feature property from several renowned private collections of contemporary Indian works, jade carvings, archaic bronzes, and more. The auction of South Asian modern and contemporary art on September 17 is highlighted by over 95 works by modern masters, including Syed Haider Raza, Tyeb Mehta, Francis Newton Souza, Akbar Padamsee, Maqbool Fida Husain, and Vasudeo S Gaitonde. There is also a selection of contemporary works from celebrated artists, such as Subodh Gupta, Bharti Kher, and Jitish Kallat. The September 18 auction of Indian and Southeast Asian Art is highlighted by bronzes, sculptures and paintings.