2016 Tehran Auction Breaks Sales Record

Last night, Azadi Hotel hosted the 5th edition of the Tehran Auction, where the best of Iranian art ranging from established and emerging artists was presented to art collectors and the global audience.

50 out of 80 presented artworks were ‘Untitled’, which, considering the fact that modern artworks are usually untitled, becomes meaningful only when compared to the 18 classical works, all with rather lengthy titles.

40 works, which made 50% of the auction, were by non-living artists.

One artwork failed to be sold, and two works sold below their low estimates, while 31 works were sold at the estimated prices and 46 above them, which is considered a major success for the Tehran Auction.

The highest-valued pieces at the 5th Tehran Auction included: two untitled artworks by poet and painter Sohrab Sepehri (1928-1980) bought at $985,200 and $509,020, a work by Manouchehr Yektai (b. 1922) at $482,748, artwork by Mahmoud Farshchian (b. 1929) which went for $410,500, ‘Blue Dance’ by Mohammad Ehsai (b. 1939) and ‘SAT+HE+SAT’ by Hossein Zendehroudi (b. 1937), both of which sold at $328,400.

The total proceeds of Tehran Auction 2016 stood at $8,328,880 which broke last year’s record of $6,909,536.

The first of its kind in Iran, Tehran Auction was launched in 2012 as an independent and private initiative to support the domestic art market as a key basis for the international market.