Art Books Offer Affordable Entry to Collecting Masterpieces at India Art Fair
Owning a work by a celebrated artist like Bharti Kher, Marina Abramović, or Sebastião Salgado typically requires a substantial investment of thousands of dollars. Beyond the initial purchase, collectors must also invest in specialized infrastructure, including temperature-controlled environments, expensive insurance schemes, and robust security arrangements. Consequently, art collecting has long been the exclusive domain of the ultra-elite. However, a new trend is emerging that allows enthusiasts to own pieces by great artists at a fraction of the traditional cost.
The Art of the Book: A New Collecting Frontier
At this year's India Art Fair, CMYK, the flagship store of Delhi-based publisher Roli Books, has curated a remarkable collection of rare and collectible books under the banner "The Art of the Book." Each of these books is a limited edition, distinguished by exclusive features such as the artist's signature or special paraphernalia that elevates it to the status of an "art object." Kapil Kapoor, managing director at Roli Books, explains, "We have works starting at under ₹50,000, going up to ₹40 lakh." This range makes art collecting more accessible to a broader audience.
Among the high-end offerings is Heinrich Harrer's Seven Years in Tibet, available in a limited edition portfolio of just 50 copies, along with five artist's proofs, priced at ₹40 lakh. The clamshell box contains 10 archival silver gelatin prints from Harrer's original negatives and a printed message signed by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Kapoor notes, "Getting our hands on this work has been a coup for us. Not only are these images of great historic value, but the set includes what Harrer claims to be the last photo of the Dalai Lama taken by him before he fled Lhasa."
Affordable Options for Aspiring Collectors
For those seeking more affordable options, a special edition of India Through Iconic Maps by Deepti Anand, Juhi Valia, and Sanghamitra Chatterjee, published by Roli Books last year, is available. This edition comes in a clamshell box with a framed archival print of one of four maps, each limited to just 10 copies. While the book alone retails for ₹30,000, the version with the framed print is priced at ₹48,000.
Kapoor emphasizes the historical significance of books as art forms, stating, "One of the reasons I got into antiquities is to show how books as an art form have been around for centuries. The miniaturists were making it then, and we are making it now." In recent years, lens-based artists have been particularly inventive in using books as a medium, a trend prominently showcased at this edition of the India Art Fair.
Sensory Objects and Artistic Innovation
Rahaab Allana, curator and publisher at Alkazi Foundation for the Arts in New Delhi, draws inspiration from historical models. "Art history was a bedrock for me when I was a student," he says. "I was used to looking at manuscripts from the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries that were created by guilds of artists working for a patron." He believes that using the book as a medium allows artists to "build an experience through sensory interventions."
One notable publication from the Alkazi Foundation's photobook grant is Filmi Jagat (2014), a found scrapbook of images from the earliest years of Indian cinema. Allana highlights that "subdued and strident methodologies have always been part of the practice of artists, even if they were autodidacts." The foundation has been instrumental in supporting artists who struggle to create books independently, as European publishers often require sponsorship due to high production costs.
Redefining the Artist's Book
Dayanita Singh, one of contemporary India's finest lens-based artists, has redefined the scope of the artist's book. From early works like Myself, Mona Ahmed (2001) to Sent a Letter (2008), Singh has shifted focus from isolated photographic images to collective bodies of work. Sent a Letter featured accordion-fold booklets in a cardboard box, creating a beautiful, collectible object priced at a few thousand rupees that could be displayed as desired.
Singh has continued to experiment with forms and structures, incorporating prints and books into frames, boxes, and museums. Her goal is to democratize art and give it a public life. "In the last few decades, there has been a significant shift in prices in the art world," she observes. "As art becomes more expensive, the book object begins to turn premium." For example, her book on Mona Ahmed offers an accessible alternative to expensive prints.
New Initiatives and Collecting Opportunities
In 2018, Delhi-based artist Anshika Varma founded Offset Projects, a multichannel initiative engaging with photography and storytelling. The project includes a photobook library, Offset Pitara, and a publishing imprint, Offset Press. Varma notes, "Books provide a beautiful entry point to looking at and understanding an artist's practice as a whole instead of engaging with it in a fractional way."
At the India Art Fair, Offset Projects presents a curated Collector Series of limited-edition portfolio boxes featuring work by early- and mid-career lens-based artists: Sean Lee from Singapore, Prasiit Sthapit from Nepal, and Pretika Menon from Goa. Each portfolio box, priced at ₹65,000, contains six archival pigment prints and is designed as an intimate, collectible format that encourages sustained engagement with artistic processes.
Lens-based artist Bharat Sikka, with over a decade of bookmaking experience, describes the appeal: "holding a complete body of work in your two hands." These book objects, with strong conceptual foundations, validate Singh's belief that "the book becomes an object when it is conceived as such, not in hindsight."
Challenges and Future Prospects
Despite growing interest, challenges remain in promoting artists' books. Allana points out that in an image-saturated culture, where social media accelerates consumption, the photobook is becoming more "readable." However, in price-sensitive markets like India, convincing bibliophiles to pay thousands for a book is difficult. Singh notes, "In Europe, the difference between the prices of, say, a novel and a photobook isn't often that wide, unlike in India, where the gap is much larger." As a result, authors of artist's books often earn little.
Kapoor shares anecdotal evidence of growing appetite in the subcontinent, citing the increased value of books like Thomas Laird's Murals of Tibet, which has risen from ₹9.5 lakh to ₹20 lakh as copies become scarce. To overcome hurdles, initiatives like Singh's support for Kushal Ray's Intimacies, republished at ₹900 with royalties for the author, show innovative ways to work within the system without compromising quality.
As publishers build distribution channels and raise awareness, the future holds promise for making artists' books more accessible. The India Art Fair's showcase is a significant step in introducing these unique collectibles to a wider audience, offering an affordable entry point into the world of art collecting.
