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20th Century Art / Middle East

This October, Sotheby’s is honoured to host what will be among our most seminal  auctions for 20th century Art/Middle East, featuring some of the rarest and most sought-after artists of the modern era. Approaching the anniversary of the relaunch of our Arab, Iranian and Turkish art sales in London, we are delighted to present a cohort of masterworks spanning an array of countries and regions. Highlights of our sale include exceptional works by Samia Halaby, Paul Guiragossian and Charles Hossein Zenderoudi, whose paintings sold for nearly double their estimates in our last April sale. Sotheby’s October sale surveys some of the most significant artists and artworks of the 20th century—artworks influential enough to be considered turning points in history.  

On Saturday 21 October, please join us at Sotheby’s New Bond Street to celebrate our forthcoming sale of 20th Century Art of the Middle East. We are delighted to be hosting a short talk and tour to explore the influence of Arabic calligraphy on modern masters and contemporary innovators Charles Hossein Zenderoudi, Azra Aghighi Bakhshayeshi, Farhad Moshiri and Carla Accardi. The tour will led by our team of specialists, and will begin in the Wemyss Gallery at Sotheby’s at 1.30pm.

Following this, the New Bond Street galleries will be open with several exhibitions on view. These include Arts of the Islamic World, 20th Century Art of the Middle East, Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art and the Estate of Howard Hodgkin.