Dubai: Leading auction house Christie’s announced on Wednesday that Fahr Al Nissa Zeid’s Break of the Atom and Vegetal Life has set the highest price for a painting by an artist from the region at $2.74 million (Dh10.06 million).
The painting was available for bidding for Part 1 of Christie’s twice-yearly auction, which was held from October 29 and 30.
“Over the last five to six years, we’ve seen the appetite for art increase,” Michael Jeha, managing director of Christie’s, told Gulf News in a previous interview.
Painted in 1962, Zeid’s oil on canvas painting was inspired by Islamic calligraphic aesthetic traditions.
Meanwhile, Christie’s total watch sales stood at $1,591,750 (Dh5,844,906), achieving the highest ever total in a Dubai sale, as per Wednesday’s statement. Christie’s brought back its watches auction this year after first introducing it in 2007.
The highest price achieved in the sale was for an 18 karat white gold and diamond set wristwatch by Piaget, which fetched $106,250. There were 50 watches this season.
“85 per cent of the buying came from clients based here in the Middle East,” Frederic Watrelot, regional watch specialist for Christie’s, said in a statement.
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