Amrita Sher-Gil’s painting sells For Rs 37.8 Crore, becoming the 2nd-highest priced Indian artwork to be auctioned

Amrita Sher-Gil’s 1938 painting titled ‘In the Ladies Enclosure’ sold for Rs 37.8 crore (USD 5.14 million) at Tuesday, July 13 by Mumbai-based auction house Saffronart. The painting set a world record for the highest value achieved by the artist in the auction.

The auction house in a statement mentioned, that the painting is also the second-most expensive work of Indian art sold globally after V S Gaitonde’s Untitled, 1961 which sold for Rs 39.98 crore in March this year.

About the artist

Amrita Sher-Gil (1913-1941)

She was a Hungarian-Indian painter and has been called one of the greatest avant-garde women artists of the early 20th century. The National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi also houses a large collection of her works of art.

According to Saffronart CEO and Co-Founder Dinesh Vazirani, “The record-breaking sale of Amrita Sher-Gil’s seminal painting from 1938 titled ‘In the Ladies Enclosure’ is a clear indication of her artistic merit and is a testament to her skill and talent.

Vazirani in a statement said, “The work highlights her growth and development as an artist and is a culmination of years of coming into her own as an artist of repute. It is, additionally, a rare work of the artist from that particular period to emerge in the art market and we are honoured to have played a part in creating a new benchmark with this auction,”