Art and business may seem like strange bedfellows but have learnt to co-exist and more often than not, the price at which a work of art is sold is the barometer of its popularity. Now imagine being at a national forum that provides an opportunity to hobnob with fellow artists, national and international galleries, curators, critics and collectors while getting to understand the recent developments in the art world. The recently concluded India Art Fair 2015 in New Delhi had the participation of more than 90 galleries, art projects and speakers.
Laxman Aelay is glad he spent time at IAF where his painting ‘Left Myth’ was showcased. “The response was tremendous,” he says. “It is an important meeting place for the art fraternity and one gets to observe what’s happening in the global art arena,” he says.
Ramesh Gorjala, Laxma Goud and Surya Prakash are the other artists from Hyderabad whose works were exhibited at IAF. The paintings of these artists were not represented by a Hyderabad gallery but by others who have procured their works. In fact, galleries from Delhi and Mumbai lead from the front, followed by a sporadic representation from Bangalore, Vadodara, Kolkata and Chennai.
Brand building
Galleries look at the art fair as a brand building exercise. Those in the know how state that booking a booth space at IAF can cost up to Rs. 10 lakh. Besides this, galleries need to factor in the cost involved in professional packing and transporting of art works to and fro Delhi. Unless the stall manages to generate business (to both individual buyers and museums), the gallery fails to recover its investment.
Talking from prior experience, Prshant Lahoti of Kalakriti Gallery who participated in IAF 2012 says, “Participating in the art fair helps at many levels, beyond sales. A gallery gets noticed by other national and international players and this is a good forum to showcase concepts by young artists. Apart from being able to rent a stall, one needs a dedicated team to oversee arrangements, packing and transportation.”
With the logistics involved, even established galleries are keen to showcase works of recognised artists, with the hope of generating better sales. Smaller galleries in non-metros have always relied on networking, with or without art fairs, and have managed to sustain through the bleak recession period. Art fairs come as a boon for those looking to attract international buyers.
Members of the fraternity also share that business at art fairs involves a fair bit of bargaining. Big players like international museums liaise with prominent artists in India to facilitate a channel of communication and sales and bypass gallery owners to avoid paying commission. Buyers are also aware that exhibitors would prefer to sell than having to ship back the paintings, installations and sculptures and strike a hard bargain.
At the other end, curator and gallery owner Atiya Amjad points out, “Bargaining has always been there. Very few pay a quoted price, the majority haggles.”
She looks at art fairs as platforms to gain exposure. “For a couple of years the market was down due to recession and yet, galleries made huge investments to make their presence felt. All this is part of a long-term process,” she says.
Self destructing painting
Delhi gallery Latitude 28 backed Muhammad Zeeshan’s ephemeral painting that had the capacity to self destruct within three days; Veer Munshi’s installation ‘Serenity of Desolation’ depicted the plight of Kashmir after floods with a tilted traditional wooden house in the Valley; Rahul Kumar’s ceramic installation Circle Uncircled was among the few works that got attention.
Being at the art fair can also be intimidating for emerging artists.
Artist Suryaprakash says, “Many galleries tend to promote established artists for better business. For younger and aspiring artists, an art fair is a great place to learn. A group of likeminded artists can come together and rent a stall to exhibit their work.” Two of Suryaprakash’s paintings in the Nature series were showcased at IAF by Gallerie Nvya.
