Asian art is the highlight of all major auctions in New York this month. While each auction is bringing something absolutely fantastic to the table, some unique masterpieces on offer by Bonhams from the Himalayan art genre dating back to 14th 16th centuries, are certainly going to grab headlines when the sale of Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian art is held on March 16 in New York, as part of its Asia Week (March 13-21).The biggest headlining act is a lineage portrait Thangka of the ninth and the tenth abbots from Ngor monastery in Tibet. It hails from a private European collection and has come to the market for the first time. The thangka is expected to fetch $800,000 $ 1,200,000 (approx. Rs 5 crore Rs 7.5 crore). Hailing from the 16th century, it is an extremely rare example of a painting from Central Tibet. With heavy gold outlining, it shows two central figures seated next to each other and was commissioned to mark the ascendancy of the 11th abbot of Ngor order.Amongst the metal works, the most outstanding figures being offered at the auction include a gilt copper alloy figure of Chakrasamvara from the same European collection as the Ngor thangka. The figurine depicts the 12armed Chakrasamvara locked in a passionate embrace with a female deity, Vajravarahi. Both the figures are gilded and embellished with jewelry. It is expected to fetch $500,000 $700,000 (approx. Rs 3.1 crore Rs 4.3 crore).Edward Wilkinson, head of the Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Art department at Bonhams, says that the sale "taps into a particularly buoyant market, as the Buddhist art has been enjoying a continually enhancing popularity amongst the collectors over the past few years”.Wilkinson speaks to BLOUIN ARTINFO on the upcoming auction, the market for Himalayan art and more in this interview.Of all the traditional arts of the world, where would you place the arts of the Himalayas – largely Buddhist art –on the interest scale of the collectors?Not easy to gauge this as collectors are very specific in their tastes and cultural preferences. Number wise, Himalayan art has a large international following, but is it any more than any other field would be hard to say.Auction houses have been reporting about the Chinese collectors taking greater interest in Buddhist art from India. What do you think has brought about this interest? I think it is reasonable to speculate that Chinese collectors, like Europeans and Americans, are interested in rare and good quality Buddhist art from across South and Southeast Asia.Most of the Himalayan and Indian works of art that come to the auction table hail from European collections with the Chinese emerging as the most prominent buyers. Do you see an unprecedented shift in the residences of these art works? There is certainly a reversal with the Europeans and Americans selling and Chinese becoming the dominant buyers. The market value for art from this region has increased dramatically over the past decade and it certainly tempts owners from Europe and America to sell. Also, I think that the pioneering collectors in this field are passing so we are seeing a natural cycle of material coming on the market.Which period of Buddhist art is the most sought after today?All periods of the best quality. Whether it be the 3rd century or the 19th century, the collectors are competing for the best quality.Is there always a rather comfortable supply of superlative works of art in these genres for two annual sales that the Bonhams conducts? To date, we have been very fortunate to work with a number of important collections and make a few chance discoveries along the way. The focus of each sale varies according to what we are able to gather. This season it is heavily weighted towards the Himalayan region, the next may be India.Could you share some Eureka! moments from your career when you succeeded in securing an absolutely rare work of art for a sale?The discovery of the Indian painting by the celebrated artist Bagta, dated 1808, sold for $302,000 at a Bonhams auction in March 2012. It was bought in 1980 for $150 from an estate for the frame. Another discovery came in 2002 with a powerful sculpture of Lowo Khenchen Lundrup, Tibet, 15th century. It had been acquired from Tibetan refugees in 195862 by an aid worker who then stored it under his bed for 50 years not realizing its historical importance and value. It sold for $150,000 to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. In both instances, the proceeds had a significant impact on the lives of the owners perhaps, related to good karma.As you've have worked with tribal art too during your stint in Australia, could you throw light on the reasons for underrepresentation of Indian tribal art at the South Asian art auctions?I am, indeed, interested in all arts of India, both classical and tribal. I would love to see more of it included but it is rare to find pieces of quality and the best of this category is commonly offered through sales devoted to Tribal art.Follow @ARTINFOIndia
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