ArtDayMe : An untitled painting by the renowned Iranian painter and late founder of the Saqqakhaneh School, Sadegh Tabrizi, which belonged to Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples' collection, was the sole piece of Iranian art that sold at the most recent Christie's auction in Paris.

Christie's Paris division held an online auction called "Collections" from February 29 to March 13, 2024. The auction featured 169 works of art, ranging from ornamental arts and design to classical and modern pieces.

Tabrizi's artwork up for auction was a little, untitled acrylic on canvas piece from the 1970s, and measuring 44.8 by 35 cm. The work, which had been predicted to run between 1,500 and 250 euros, sold for 2,268 euros.

Mehrdad Fallah, a painter and the family's creative agent for the late Sadegh Tabrizi, commented on the artist's work being offered at Christie's auction: "After Tabrizi's works were last seen at the Tehran Auction, where three of his pieces had been sold, Christie's auction house in Paris held an auction featuring some of its important collections, one of which included a Tabrizi piece. The intriguing part about the auction is that he was the only Iranian artist whose work was displayed and sold. Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples and son of the late Umberto II, the last King of Italy, possessed this piece of art until his death in Geneva, Switzerland, in February 2024."

Creative representative for the Tabrizi's family added: "That marked the 133rd time that Tabrizi had taken part in an international auction. Since his passing six years ago, the artist has established a respectable reputation in both domestic and international auctions, and purchasers at Christie's, Sotheby's, Bonhams, Tehran Auction, and other Iranian and foreign auctions have shown interest in his works." 

Finally, Fallah declared that during the following two months, Tabrizi's calligraphic creations would be on display in Dubai.

Known as the father of calligraphy in Iran and one of the founders of the Saqqakhaneh School, Tabrizi passed away in London during the winter of 2017 at the age of 78.