Sotheby’s London will host an auction titled ‘20th Century Art / Middle East’ on April 24 concluding an exhibit of ‘Orientalist and Middle Eastern Art Week’, beginning April 20.
The auction wants to sell 60 lots, among which 12 works are by seven Iranian artists.
“The sale will feature some of the rarest and most sought-after artists from the modern era up to the contemporary period. The event presents a cohort of masterworks spanning an array of countries and regions rarely seen”, Sotheby’s website wrote.
The highlights of the sale are the works of renowned contemporary Iranian painter and sculptor Bahman Mohasses (1931-2010), Iranian-French artist Charles Hossein Zenderoudi, Egyptian artists Mahmoud Said and Ramses Younan, Moroccan artist Mayo Farid Belkahia and Saudi artist Ahmed Mater.
‘Adam and Eve’ a painting by Said (1897-1964), is estimated to fetch $416,790-$694,650, ‘The Minotaur Scares the Good People’ by Mohasses ($389,004-$486,255), and an untitled work by Iranian poet and painter Sohrab Sepehri ($277,860-$416,790) from his ‘Tree Trunk’ collection are the three most expensive works to go under the hammer.
Describing Mohasses’ lot ‘The Minotaur Scares the Good People’, the website wrote, “it is an iconic work from the artist’s most sought after period to date. In it, the artist shows monstrous creatures of his nightmares - half-human, half-beast, missing extremities that symbolize the powerlessness of humans in an existence full of fear - rare are the works by Mohasses who hold this many figurines in them. The composition brings to mind Picasso’s renowned Minotaur and ‘Dead Mare in Front of Cave’ (1936).”
Mohasses has four more pieces to go up for sale at the auction.
About Sepehri’s lot at the auction, the website wrote, “in this particular painting, which Sotheby’s is proud to present, there is the added unique feature of huts glimpsed from in between the tree trunks forming a dreamlike oasis.
The huts appear to be made of adobe clay, and only a single window helps to identify them as a dwelling or shelter. The organization of colors in this painting is highly deliberate - with greens in the foreground and browns behind, in a pattern which indicates depth through tonal gradation. It is as if the artist is moving towards a more stylized and contrived approach,”
Also present at the auction are Monir Farmanfarmaian and Manouchehr Yektaei, each with two works, and Farshid Maleki, Behjat Sadr and Bahmad Dadkhah, with one piece each.
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