Manjari Sihare explores Art + Auction’s June 2012 feature on the most collectible artists of the coming future.

New York: The current issue of Art+Auction magazine features a refreshing list of “50 Next Most Collectible Artists.” The list compiled by the magazine is based on conversations with collectors, art advisors, auction house specialists and dealers. One almost expects such lists to be predictable but this list includes the art of two Indian women artists, the Indian born and New York based Rina Banerjee, and Bharti Kher, who was born in London and lives and works in New Delhi. This says something not just about these artists, but about the market for contemporary Indian art in general, which is often acknowledged at the tail end of its modern counterpart.

The magazine editors emphasize that the artists who have made it to the list “have demonstrated past strength at auction or in primary sales and show promise of continued development. We did not want to merely list the people at the top of the market, but to cite those who might find themselves there in 10, 20, or 30 years.” Editor Benjamin Genocchio elaborates on the parameters for such an evaluation including comparisons with peers of the same generation, as also major next steps in an artist career – a major museum show or a change in dealer representation. Banerjee and Kher are regularly represented in international mainstream art fairs as also at leading museums across the world.  In the recent past, Banerjee had a solo booth at the Hong Kong Art Fair, her first in that part of the world, while Bharti Kher debuted in New York this March at the Hauser & Wirth Gallery. In the coming year, both artists are poised to participate in important shows, beginning with India: Art Now at the Arken Museum of Contemporary Art, Denmark. Further, Kher is slotted for a solo show at the Parasol Unit Foundation for Contemporary Art in London, a publicly funded institution, while Banerjee is slated to participate in the prestigious 7th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT7) in Queensland, Brisbane.

For the Art+Auction website, click here.