SOTHEBY’SOTHEBY’S TO HOLD ITS FIRST-EVER MAJOR INTERNATIONAL AUCTION SERIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST ON MA --The Auction Series Will Take Place at The Ritz Carlton Hotel
in Doha, Qatar --
LONDON, TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2008 --- Sotheby’s is delighted to confirm that its first-ever
major international auc
News-Antique.com - Dec 05,2008 - Eshgh (Love) by Mohammad Ehsai (b.1939), 2006, oil on canvas in two parts
Estimate: US$150,000-200,000
Sale: Contemporary Art
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Sotheby’s two-day international auction series will include sales of Orientalist Art, Watches, Arab, Iranian and
International Contemporary Art. Highlights from all the auctions will be exhibited in the United Arab
Emirates in February prior to the sales and will be on pre-sale view at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Doha on
MarcMarch 16 and 17, 2009.
Contemporary Art Sale
The Contemporary Art Sale will include in the region of 50-70 lots of International, Arab and Iranian
Contemporary Art and is estimated to realise in excess US$10 million. One of the current highlights of the
Arab and Iranian component of the sale (illustrated on the front page) will be Mohammad Ehsai’s (b.1939)
oil on canvas Eshgh (Love), 2006, in two parts, which is estimated at $150,000-200,000.
Fine Watches Sale
The auction will comprise fine and important watches by all the renowned
watchmakers, including IWC, Patek Philippe, Rolex, Breguet, Cartier and
Audemars Piguet.
One of the most important highlights in the auction will be a fine and
impressive white gold and diamond set minute repeating wristwatch (the
total diamond weight is 10.5 carats) which measures 40mm in width, circa
2000, by the maker Breguet. The watch, illustrated left, is estimated at
US$240,000–440,000.
Another major highlight of the auction (illustrated right) will be a magnificent
white gold and diamond set bracelet watch (total diamond weight 39 carats),
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, measuring 38mm in width, which is estimated at
US$300,000–500,000.
The Orientalist Sale
Sotheby’s Orientalist Sale in Doha will present an impressive showcase of Middle Eastern-inspired works,
including important paintings by Rudolf Ernst and Jean Baptist Huysmans.
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Highlighting the sale will be an important work by the Austrian
artist Rudolf Ernst, who was one of a generation of artists that
took their inspiration from scenes of daily life in the Middle East,
rather than political events like their predecessors, Eugène
Delacroix and Horace Vernet. Illustrated left is Ernst’s oil on
panel The Waterpipe Smoker (28 by 36 1/4 inches), which is
estimated to realise US$400,000-600,000.
Another important painting in the auction is an oil on canvas
(measuring 17 1/2 by 29 inches) by Jean Baptist Huysmans
entitled A Private Meeting, illustrated right, which is estimated
at US$60,000-80,000.
Notes to EditorsNotes Editors:
At a press conference in Doha on Sunday, October 5, 2008, Sotheby’s announced its future activities in Qatar:
Bill Ruprecht, President and Chief Executive of Sotheby’s, said: “Doha is today a centre of dynamic economic and
cultural growth, not only for the region but also internationally. The magnificent Museum of Islamic Art as well as other
museums planned for this city are stirring huge excitement around the world and it is a great honour for Sotheby’s to be a
part of this dynamism.”
“Our links with Qatar go back almost twenty years when we held pioneering sales for Arab stallions in the USA which
attracted great interest from Qatar. Since that time,
