NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s announces Asian Art Week, a series of auctions, viewings, and events, from September 4-29. This season presents twelve auctions featuring over 1,000 objects from 5,000 years of art spanning all epochs and categories of Asian art comprising Chinese archaic bronzes through Japanese and Korean art to contemporary Indian painting.
Highlights include a 3rd to 4th century gray schist figure of a bodhisattva from the ancient region of Gandhara ($1,500,000-2,500,000), the groundbreaking The Last Chapter by Rameshwar Broota ($250,000-350,000), an early to mid-6th century B.C. ding bronze ritual tripod food vessel and cover ($350,000-450,000); and Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong porcelain from the prestigious collection of James and Marilynn Alsdorf. From rare huanghuali furniture to modern paintings by Vasudeo S. Gaitonde, Tyeb Mehta, and Jehangir Sabavala, treasures from every category of Asian art wait to be discovered.
All works will be presented in an exhibition by appointment from September 16 at Christie’s New York.
ASIAN ART WEEK | LIVE AUCTION OVERVIEW:
Japanese and Korean Art
22 September 2020 | 10am
Christie’s sale of Japanese Art and Korean Art spans 250 lots of classical to modern and contemporary works. Highlighting the Japanese section is an important pair of six-panel screens by Kano Tsunenobu (1636-1713), Chrysanthemums Blooming in a Garden ($150,000-250,000) along with a superb offering of prints by Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858), Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806), and Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849), including “Red Fuji” ($100,000-200,000) and “The Great Wave” ($150,000-250,000). Other Japanese highlights include important lacquers, screens, and metalworks as well as a selection of modern and contemporary painting. Featured Korean works include a blue and white porcelain jar with three worthies playing weiqi, Joseon dynasty ($250,000-500,000); and an impressive eight-panel screen attributed to Kim Hongdo (1745-1806), titled Hunting Scene ($100,000-200,000).
A Lasting Engagement: The Jane and Kito de Boer Collection
23 September 2020 | 10am
A Lasting Engagement: The Jane and Kito de Boer Collection offers more than 150 works of Indian art from the prestigious collection of Jane and Kito de Boer. Highlights include a suite of rare works by Ganesh Pyne dating from the 1950s to the 1990s, and a range of works by Rameshwar Broota including the seminal 1982 painting, The Last Chapter ($250,000-350,000). Additional highlights include early paintings by Akbar Padamsee and Maqbool Fida Husain, alongside a strong selection of works from the Bengal School and artists like Francis Newton Souza, A. Ramachandran, Bikash Bhattacharjee and K. Laxma Goud. Contemporary works in the auction include an early painting by Atul Dodiya and a sculptural work by Anish Kapoor. The live auction is accompanied by an online sale, offering additional works from the collection between 4-25 September.
South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art
23 September 2020 | 11:30am
The sale of South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art is led by an important painting by Vasudeo S. Gaitonde, Untitled from 1983 ($2,000,000-3,000,000), that will go under the gavel for the first time and typifies his contemplative, non-objective aesthetic. Another highlight of the catalogue, Jehangir Sabavala’s widely published pastoral painting, The Peasants ($450,000-600,000), is also appearing at auction for the first time. Other highlights include exceptional examples works by of modern masters such as Tyeb Mehta’s dynamic Untitled from 1974; The Pull, a rare early work by Maqbool Fida Husain; and Candamerie, a sublime landscape from 1969 by Sayed Haider Raza. A diverse contemporary section includes works by the region’s most renowned practitioners like Nalini Malani, Shilpa Gupta and Imran Qureshi to name a few. The sale also includes the complete 1991 portfolio, House with Four Walls, by Zarina.
Devotion in Stone: Gandharan Masterpieces from a Private Japanese Collection
23 September 2020 | 2pm
One of the most important collections of Gandharan art in private hands, Devotion in Stone: Gandharan Masterpieces from a Private Japanese Collection will offer 28 iconic and well-published examples of Buddhist figures, friezes and narrative reliefs with Japanese provenance. Highlights include a rare and magnificent gray schist triad of Buddha Shakyamuni with bodhisattvas ($600,000-800,000), one of a very few dated Gandharan works of art known; published in more than thirty publications, the triad is perhaps the most important Gandharan sculpture to come to market. The sale also features a superbly-carved large and important gray schist figure of a bodhisattva ($1,500,000-2,500,000), a monumental gray schist bust of a bodhisattva ($400,000-600,000), and a very finely-carved gray schist figure of Buddha Shakyamuni ($300,000-500,000).
Sacred and Imperial: The James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection: Part I
24 September 2020 | 8:30am
Christie’s New York will present Sacred and Imperial: The James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection. Part I offers a curated cross-section of 24 of the best examples across the Alsdorfs’ most collected categories, spanning South Indian bronzes, Qing dynasty porcelain, Chinese painting, and Chinese and Japanese works of art. Featured lots include a rare and magnificent bronze figure of Shiva Tripuravijaya, South India, Tamil Nadu, Chola period, circa 1050 ($1,000,000-1,500,000); a very rare and important marble head of buddha, China, Sui dynasty, AD 550-618 ($500,000-700,000); a superb peachbloom-glazed water pot, taibai zun, China, Kangxi six-character mark in underglaze blue and of the period, 1662-1722 ($150,000-250,000); and an album of landscapes and calligraphy attributed to Zhang Ruitu.
Sacred and Imperial: The James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection: Part II
24 September 2020 | 9:30am
Part II of the Alsdorf collection spans Chinese ceramics and works of art, Chinese paintings, Indian, Himalayan, and Southeast Asian art, Japanese works of art, and European and American Decorative arts and Design. Highlights include Qing dynasty mark-and-period porcelain, jade carvings, Himalayan bronzes, Indian stone sculpture, a hanging scroll depicting a horse by Xu Beihong, an important suite of Sicilian reverse-painted glass furniture from the 18th century and 20th century furnishings by American designer Samuel Marx.
Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Works of Art
24 September 2020 | 4pm
Christie’s sale of Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Works of Art will present 37 carefully chosen lots featuring works from across India, the Himalayas, and Southeast Asia, including two rare Central Indian red sandstone figures from the collection of Herbert and Florence Irving, a buff sandstone figure of a Yakshi ($200,000-300,000) and a rare buff sandstone figure of a Salabhanjika ($120,000-180,000), both with early documented provenance. Other highlights include an important thirteenth-century Nepalese gilt-copper figure of Padmapani Lokeshvara ($2,000,000-3,000,000); an extensively-published rare gilt-copper figure of Avalokiteshvara from the Khasa Malla kingdom of Nepal ($300,000-500,000); and a rare Chinese painting of Chakrasamvara dated to the reign of the Chenghua Emperor ($300,000-500,000).
Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art
25 September 2020 | 8:30am and 2pm
Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art will be held on September 25 across two sessions and comprises over 300 objects, representing works from a variety of collecting categories, including ancient ritual bronze vessels, early Buddhist sculpture, a range of ceramics, jade, lacquerware, furniture, and other works of art. The sale is highlighted with works from important private collections, including Ming and Qing porcelains from the Lenora and Walter F. Brown Collection; a pair of Qianlong famille rose ‘boys’ jars and covers from the Wanamaker Collection ($800,000-1,200,000); a rare large blue-glazed globular vase, tianqiuping, yongzheng six-character seal mark in underglaze blue and of the period (1723-1735) ($300,000-500,000); and from the Irving Collection a superb jade Qianlong period ‘elephant and boys’ group ($500,000-800,000), Lady by Lin Fengmian ($200,000-300,000), and a selection of archaic jades. Other highlights include a Northern Qi grey limestone figure of Buddha ($400,000-600,000); and important huanghuali and zitan furniture.
A Lasting Engagement: The Jane and Kito de Boer Collection
4-25 September 2020 | Online
The online auction, A Lasting Engagement: The Jane and Kito de Boer Collection, will be open for bidding from 4-25 September. The sale offers a selection of Indian court paintings in addition to modern works by artists including Ganesh Pyne, Francis Newton Souza, K. Laxma Goud, Bikash Bhattacharjee, Somnath Hore, Prosanto Roy and Abdur Rahman Chughtai among others. A selection of photographs by Henri Cartier-Bresson, Raghu Rai and Steve McCurry and contemporary works by Chittrovanu Mazumdar and Hema Upadhyay round out the catalogue.
Sacred and Imperial: The James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection
4-29 September 2020 | Online
The James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection Online offers an opportunity for those starting their collection as well as for established connoisseurs to acquire desirable works across a range of affordable prices with distinguished twentieth-century provenance. Highlights include porcelain from the Kangxi period, jade carvings, Himalayan bronze figures, a Chinese painting signed Lin Liang, and a Japanese painting attributed to Nagasawa Rosetsu.
Contemporary Art Asia
4-27 September 2020 | Online
Christie’s New York will present the Contemporary Art Asia online sale comprising a curated collection focusing on Modern and Contemporary Art from Asia. The sale is led by an exceptional collection of works by Leonard Tsuguharu Foujita, a thoughtfully curated selection of contemporary ink artworks and a prominent American private collection of Chinese Contemporary art, alongside works by renowned artists such Ding Yi, Zao Wou-Ki, Liu Ye, Walasse Ting, Zeng Fanzhi, Yoshitomo Nara and Yayoi Kusama.
Crafted Landscapes: The Ankarcrona Collection of Japanese Lacquer and Asian Works of Art
10 September - 1 October 2020 | Online
Christie's will present, Crafted Landscapes: The Ankarcrona Collection of Japanese Lacquer and Asian Works of Art, an online auction from 10 September to 1 October. Sten Ankarcrona (1861–1936) began collecting Asian works of art upon his first visit to Japan in the late 1880s—a golden age of travel and European collecting. The young aristocratic Swedish naval officer became fascinated by the breadth of artistic production in the region and continued to add to his collection back in Europe. In 1923, by then an admiral, he was appointed by the King of Sweden to travel back to Japan on a special mission, where he spent two months making many more purchases. This love of Asian art was later passed down to his children and grandchildren, who have enriched the ensemble into the early 21st century. Comprising fine Japanese inro, beautiful lacquer incense boxes (kogo), delicately decorated writing boxes (suzuribako), Chinese porcelain and other exceptional objects, the collection symbolizes the Ankarcrona family passion and tradition of collecting.
