The Indian Art Summit gave some facts and figures to the Financial Times. The last edition of the fair was held in August of 2009. The new date may have nothing to do with the jump in attendance but 2009 saw 40,000 visitors. This year’s event had 128,000 which puts it above Frieze and ArtBasel Miami Beach together:
- People came, Kirpal told [the FT], with her seamless command of facts and figures, from 67 cities around the world, including 17 in India. Galleries reported 60-70 per cent sales, across all price ranges, but particularly in the $500,000+ bracket, with most of the star attractions (Picassos, a Dalí, works by Souza) all sold. The Indian diaspora was well in attendance, with non-resident Indian (NRI) buyers coming from New York, California and elsewhere. The younger galleries did well with photography and video; there were sales to museums in Israel, Monaco, Australia, Shanghai and elsewhere. Most significantly, perhaps, some galleries reported that as much as 80 per cent of their sales were to first-time collectors.
Full Speed Ahead at the India Art Summit (Financial Times)