NEW YORK

Christie’s annual autumn auction of South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art on September 18 was held during New York’s annual Asia Week series of exhibitions and auctions, largely focused on the classical arts of Asia. Held in the centennial birth years of leading modernists Francis Newton Souza and Ram Kumar, Christie’s New York’s sale of 104 lots brought in USD 9.4 million, with all but two artworks finding buyers for an impressive 98-percent sell-through rate.

Unfortunately for the house, one of those unsold was the auction’s cover lot, Souza’s monumental Resurrected Christ (1962), depicting a naked Jesus figure against an eye-searing orange and red ground, estimated at between USD 600,000–800,000. Nevertheless, Souza was still the top seller with his more modestly hued Still Life with Relics (1954) surpassing its high estimate of USD 250,000 to hammer home at USD 478,800. A collection of 11 largely unseen early works by Ram Kumar was highlighted by his gouache Untitled (Couple) (ca. early 1950s) that nearly tripled its high estimate to land at USD 176,400 and Untitled (Sketchbook) (circa 1950) that topped USD 200,000.