Several works unsold at Bid & Hammer auction

Despite reservations expressed against several works of art being auctioned, auctioneer Bid & Hammer called for bids behind closed doors at The Imperial here Friday. Several of the 86 lots remained unsold, while most works went to phone bidders.

According to sources, the leading work by V S Gaitonde, estimated at between Rs 1.8 crore and Rs 3 crore, failed to find a buyer, nor did Nandalal Bose’s wash and tempera on paper. While one work of Bikash Bhattacharyya sold despite objections from his daughter Balaka, substantial artwork from the Bengal School remained unsold, including two by Hemendranath Mazumdar and three by Rabindranath Tagore.

Reportedly, only one of four S H Raza works found a buyer. Raza is learnt to have raised objections. Despite legal notice from the M F Husain Foundation, Bid & Hammer went ahead with placing the artist  work in the auction. Fewer than half of the over 15 works by him found buyers.