First Contemporary Middle Eastern Art Auction Announced at Artnet Auctions

Artnet Auctions is proud to announce the first online auction of Contemporary Middle Eastern Art. This seven day sale brings together a unique collection of artworks by both emerging and established artists from the Middle East, including Ahmad Mater, Sadegh Tirafkan, Vahid Sharifian, and Parviz Kalantari. The artworks range from outstanding photographs to sculptures and paintings by sought-after artists from countries such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.

This unique sale is curated by Nazy Nazhand, founder of ART MIDDLE EAST, the leading platform for promoting Contemporary Art from the Middle East through specialized programming and cultural events. “As the premier online auction site, artnet has revolutionized viewing, debating, and acquiring art for a global audience with the click of a button,” Nazhand said. “This is the first auction of Middle Eastern Art on artnet Auctions. Having previously held special auctions focusing on periods and movements, including Pop Art, Design, European, 20th century, Modern, and Latin American Art, this once again confirms the leading position artnet holds at the forefront of the global art market.”

Robin Roche, director of artnet Auctions, said: “The addition of a Middle Eastern auction confirms the strength and growth of the art market in the region and the continued international interest in the works. We hope this is the beginning of many more sales in this category.”

Leading the sale is a beautiful, late work by one of Iran’s Modern masters, Parviz Kalantari. This large work, Untitled, 2009, exemplifies his raw and innovative approach to painting (Est. US$22,000–30,000). In this piece, Kalantari captures the quiet beauty and rural sophistication of his town set in the arid deserts of Iran and embraces his homeland with unique materials such as mud, straw, and soils. Also included in the auction is the only complete set of all 23 photographs in the highly regarded Queen of the Jungle (If I Had a Gun) series by Vahid Sharifian (Est. US$30,000–40,000). These works have been the subject of numerous critical reviews and the series highlights Sharifian’s range of sharp political critique and humor.