From 17 February 2022 to 20 February 2022, RtistiQ, Singapore’s leading online art marketplace, ran the exclusive live non-fungible token (NFT) auction for some of the legendary artist Raja Ravi Varma (RRV)’s most treasured works including digital editions of The Coquette and Reclining Nair Lady. The auction was held in collaboration with gallery g and Raja Ravi Varma Heritage Foundation.
The NFT drop also included 5 lithographs from the painter’s Gods and Goddesses series, with all pieces selling above the reserve price of $999. After a bidding war that led to a bid extension, the Lakshmi lithograph was sold for the highest bid of $2,150, coming in at twice the reserve price.
Meanwhile, the other lithographs for Saraswati and Yashoda bagged $1,700 while Shankar and Vishnu were sold at $1,400 and $1,350 respectively.
The lithographs were reproductions of some of Raja Ravi Varma’s iconic works depicting Indian gods and goddesses adorned with colourful garments and pretty jewellery, brought to life in 1894 after RRV set up a printing press with Fritz Schleicher.
“The lithographs were a key part of Raja Ravi Varma’s legacy in making art affordable to the public. This NFT auction was the next step in the journey of his works as his iconic works were minted and tokenised, immortalized in the metaverse as it allowed everyone else the opportunity to own a piece of India’s beautiful art legacy,” said Jothi Menon, CEO and co-founder of RtistiQ.
The auction also included lots for NFT and digital versions of The Coquette (Reserve Price: $63,999) and The Reclining Nair Lady (Reserve Price: $74,999) as well as a documentary series with copyright and digital photographs, Wanderers Between Worlds (Reserve Price: $6999), though the reserve prices had not been met.
With over 17,000 unique visitors to the auction page and 1,000 confirmed participants from India, UAE, Singapore and the US, 45 bids had been placed over the three days of the auction.
