Iranian and Arab Modern and Contemporary Art

Auction 24 october 2009

28 July 2009

TWO EXCEPTIONNAL COLLECTIONS

This will be the first auction at Artcurial | Briest - Poulain - F. Tajan devoted to Iranian & Arab Modern & Contemporary Art. The sale is based on two exceptional collections, consigned to Artcurial because of the firm’s acknowledged ability to promote emerging specialities, and includes nearly 150 works by many leading artists – making it the most important auction ever staged in this field in continental Europe.

The Fereydoun Ave Laal Collection: Monsieur Ave is a famous pioneer who has been collecting Iranian artists for 40 years. Seventy works by prominent Iranian contemporary artists are being sold in aid of the Association for Zoroastrian Studies in the world.

The second collection consists of 21 horses, each 4ft (1.2m) tall, commissioned from 21 leading Iranian artists to mark the re-opening of the Tehran Racecourse.

FEREYDOUN AVE: LAAL COLLECTION

Today the vitality of Iran’s art scene is acknowledged throughout the world – from New York (where the show Iran Inside Out opened at the Chelsea Art Museum on 27 June 2009) to Paris (Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, February/March 2009) via London (Saatchi Gallery) and Dubai. Fereydoun Ave – renowned both for his gifts as a talent-spotter and as an artist in his own right – began collecting works by Iranian artists 40 years ago.

A striking feature of the collection is the presence of early works by the most popular artists on the market: Farhad Moshiri (3 works estimated €50,000-120,000); Reza Derakhshani (€15,000- 20,000); Abbas Kiarostami; Rokni Haerizadeh; and Bita Fayyasi, who starred at the 2005 Venice Biennale and subsequently at the Espace Culturel Louis Vuitton in Paris. The Laal Collection has a total estimate of €500,000, and is being sold in aid of the Association of Zoroastrian Studies in the world.

 

 

 

 

HISTORY - A MANE THEME FOR IRANIAN ARTISTS

References to Iran’s eventful national history abound in the work of the country’s artists, as illustrated by this horse by Khosrojerdi with its legs tied up. The horse, a major figure in Persian literature, was the subject of works commissioned from 21 Iranian artists to mark the re-opening of Tehran Racecourse, thirty years after it was closed during the Islamic Revolution. These exceptional sculptures, evocative of the horses adorning the walls of Persepolis, reflect the dynamism and diversity of Iranian artists. Estimates for the horses range from €3,000–30,000.

The 21 artists include:
Reza Derakhshani (born 1952) Hails from a family of nomads; his talent as a painter was recognized at a very young age. His work is inspired by natural elements blended with Persian cultural heritage. Divides his time between Tehran, New York and Europe. Yaghoub Embadian (born 1948) Famous for his abstract landscapes conceptualizing geometry, colours and proportions. Hossein Khosrojerdi (born 1957) Awarded Grand Prix for Visual Arts at the 2001 Venice Biennale. Afshin Pirashemi (born 1974) Prize-winner at International Biennales in Beijing (2005) and Tehran (2004). Aneh Mohammad Tatari (born 1956) Works can be found in numerous museums, including the British Museum in London. Distinctive reds and orange inspired by the colours of the desert. Mohammad Ali Taraghija (born 1943) His work exudes rural Iranian imagery, captured in the manner of Persian miniatures which he greatly admires. Stylized horses have been a constant feature of his work since the 1980s. One of his works soared to $110,000 against an estimate of $15,000 at Bonhams in March 2008. And also: Pooya Aryanpour, Shahla Habibi, Hossein Maher, Karim Nasr, Ahmad Vakili, Pooneh Jafarinejad, Hossein Mahjoubi, Gizella Varga Sinai, Sadegh Tabrizi, Yadollah Kaboli & Iraj Zand

Five of these sculptures will be shown in Deauville from July 23–August 30: at the Casino Barrière and the Royal Barrière and Normandie Barrière Hotels

THE FOUNDERS OF 20TH CENTURY IRANIAN ART

Among consignments from private European collections, highlights include works by artists considered to be the pioneers of 20th century Iranian art – Hossein Zenderoudi (€80,000-120,000); Mohammad Ehsai (€50,000-70,000); and the great sculptor Parviz Tanavoli (€50,000-70,000), whose work achieved a price of $2.8m in May 2008. There will also be works by artists from the younger, sometimes domestically controversial generation, such as Ghazel or Arash Hanaei, whose work is currently on show at the Chelsea Art Museum in New York.

 

 

 

 

20TH CENTURY ARAB ART

The sale’s 20th Century Arab Art includes works by Benanteur (Algeria, born 1931); Chafik Abboud (Lebanon, 1926-2004); Ben Bella (Algeria, born 1946); El Bacha (Lebanon, born 1932); Henein (Egypt, born 1929); Fateh Moudarres (Syria, 1922-99); Azzawi (Iraq, born 1939) and Lalla Essaydi (Morocco, born 1956).

“Artcurial | Briest - Poulain - F. Tajan has fostered the development of numerous emerging specialities in the field of modern and contemporary art (Chinese Avant-Garde, 20th Century Italian art, Street Art…)” notes François Tajan, Co-Chairman of Artcurial | Briest - Poulain - F. Tajan. “Today, thanks to the confidence of several major collectors from the Middle East, we are in a position to launch a department of Modern & Contemporary Iranian & Arab Art. Buyers’ interest is growing rapidly and works by artists from the Middle East are now highly sought-after. In fact, the market has never been so dynamic – witness several historic auction prices, in excess of $1m, in 2007 and 2008, and the staging of exhibitions around the world.”

Artcurial’s specialist Olivier Berman has this to add on market trends: “A decade ago, the market was restricted to expatriates and Middle East connoisseurs. But, over the last five years, collectors from other countries have made their presence felt – and the market has a very promising future!”

This exceptional auction will be accompanied by a bilingual catalogue prefaced by Serge Lemoine and leading collector Mariam Homayoun Eisler. The catalogue will include a biography of all the artists present in the sale.

Artcurial Art Bookshop

Hossein Amirsadaghi will be signing his work Different Same – New Perspective in Contemporary Iranian Art (published by Thames & Hudson, a veritable encyclopaedia of Iranian contemporary art). Co-author Gérard Khoury will sign copies of the monograph on Shafic Abboud in the presence of Claude Lemand (publisher) at the auction presentation cocktail on Thursday 22 October (7pm).
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Sale Info

Sale: 1706

location: Hôtel Marcel Dassault

Date: 24 October 2009

Specialists

Olivier Berman

Tel. +33 1 42 99 20 67

Arnaud Oliveux

Tel. +33 1 42 99 16 28

press Contact

Sylvie Lajotte-Robaglia, Art & Communication

Mob. +33 6 72 59 57 34

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