NEW YORK, NY.- Bonhams saw an international community of collectors competing for top-quality treasures during its week of Asian art sales in New York, September 13-14. Primarily drawn from several superior private collections, the works were curated by Bonhams’ expert team of Asian specialists with a discerning focus on the current interests of Asian art collectors.
INDIAN, HIMALAYAN AND SOUTHEAST ASIAN
Notable among the top lots sold were the powerful 15th-century Tibetan sculpture of Gayadhara, achieving $209,000, as well as a superb 14th/15th-century Tibetan Buddha and prabhamandala, which brought $185,000.
“The market remains remarkably buoyant, which is reflected in the strong sell-through rates, and the majority of lots sold well above their high estimates,” said Director of Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Art Edward Wilkinson.
A number of Tibetan thangkas came to auction from the collection of Lobsang P. Lhalungpa, including one depicting the Buddhist Arhat Pindola Bharadvaja achieving $100,000 with premium. A devoted educator and philanthropist, Lhalungpa established the first Tibetan-language program in India, and in 1959, he announced His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama's exile from Tibet, which inspired the exodus of Tibetan refugees to India.
Lhalungpha dedicated his life to the promotion and preservation of Tibet's rich spiritual traditions. He collected his thangkas as part of his lifelong Buddhist practice. A few came from his home in Lhasa before 1947, and the rest were acquired in India between 1956 and 1971, often as gifts, as part of his ongoing work to preserve Tibetan culture.
In keeping with the spirit of Lhalungpha’s relief work, one of his thangkas joined a section of the Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian art sale devoted to raising funds for the relief and rebuilding of Nepal. As a leading auctioneer of Himalayan art and a committed supporter of Nepalese culture, Bonhams will divide the proceeds from this section equally between two charities, the Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust and Save the Children.
“Bonhams is immensely pleased to present more than $60,000 to the Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust and Save the Children – both incredibly worthwhile causes that preserve Nepalese heritage and provide humanitarian aid, respectively,” Wilkinson said.
Other significant lots include:
• SOLD U.S. $149,000, including premium, A SCHIST HEAD OF A BODHISATTVA, Ancient region of Gandhara, 3rd/4th century
• SOLD U.S. $100,000, including premium, A THANGKA FROM AN ARHAT SET: PINDOLA BHARADVAJA, Eastern Tibet, Palpung style, 18th century
• SOLD U.S. $46,250, including premium, A JAIN INVITATION SCROLL (VIJNAPTIPATRA) Udaipur, circa 1800
CHINESE PAINTINGS AND WORKS OF ART
An exceptional 17th-century, Ming dynasty bronze figure of the Chinese deity of mercy, Guanyin – the sale cover lot – achieved $125,000 including premium, more than twice the low estimate. The figure demonstrated the quality of 20 lots of art from the family collection of Emmanuel Gran (1894-1969). Also from the Gran collection, an 18th-century gilt bronze figure of Vajrasattva sold for $43,750 including premium, more than seven times the low estimate. Since 2013, Bonhams has sold numerous fine Chinese works of art from the Gran collection, assembled before 1949 in China, fetching remarkable results.
The sale also features works from two other important private collections. Robes belonging to the textile artist Jon Eric Riis include a rare chestnut hued 'dragon' robe from the Jiaqing period, which sold for $60,000 including premium. This gauze-ground robe, embellished with kesi embroidery, would have been worn in the summer months by members of the imperial house. The incorporation of multiple designs elements symbolic of long life, such as narcissus and nandina, suggests that this robe may have been made to wear at an important imperial birthday celebration.
Additionally, three lots of Tang Dynasty (618-907) silver enticed crowds during the auction preview and were, subsequently, accompanied by robust bidding results in the saleroom. Due to impressive provenance and an exhibition and publication history – in some cases, dating to the 1930’s – each of the lots sold for more than five times the low estimate. A rare repoussé and parcel-gilt silver bowl reached $161,000, including premium.
The fine Tang dynasty artworks were on sale from the Estate of Roger E. Covey, the noted software entrepreneur, scholar of Chinese culture, arts patron and president of the Tang Research Foundation. Two other works from his collection were significant highlights of the influential 1954 exhibition Mostra d’Arte Cinese in Venice, held to mark the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo’s life.
Tang silver pieces have long fascinated scholars and collectors from East to West, and they remain deeply appreciated by today’s Chinese art connoisseurs; their glories only enhanced by the renowned collections through which these objects pass.
Other significant lots include:
• SOLD U.S. $87,500, including premium, A FINE SILVER STEM CUP TANG DYNASTY, late 7th/early 8th century
• SOLD U.S. $62,500, including premium, A RARE SET OF FOUR BRONZE FIGURAL WEIGHTS, Han dynasty
• SOLD U.S. $60,000, including premium, A CHESTNUT EMBROIDERED GAUZE 'DRAGON' ROBE, Jiaqing period
FINE JAPANESE WORKS OF ART
The Japanese Works of Art sale was led by a large Satsuma vase, delicately painted in enamels and gilt over a crackled glaze with beautiful chrysanthemum blossoms, selling for $75,000, including premium.
In response to the sale, Bonhams Director of Japanese Art Jeff Olson said, “The taste for equality works from the Meiji period continues to dominate the market place, underscoring our collectors’ desire for well-crafted works of fine design.”
Other significant lots include:
• SOLD U.S. $40,000, including premium, A KAWARI KABUTO (ECCENTRICALLY SHAPED HELMET), Edo period (18th century)
• SOLD U.S. $32,500 A SHELL-SHAPED KAWARI KABUTO (ECCENTRICALLY SHAPED HELMET), by Mitsuhisa, Edo period (18th century)
• SOLD U.S. $31,250 TSUKIOKA YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892), album of 104 woodblock prints
The next Asian art sale at Bonhams will be held on November 9 in the UK, at the London Knightsbridge saleroom.
