The Met’s Indian affair: Iconic New York museum embraces India’s contemporary art boom

Max Hollein, chief executive of the $6 billion institution, recently visited India with an eye on the country’s contemporary art that’s been gaining global attention recently.

“The Indian art market has developed rapidly and profoundly. You now have very important galleries and art fairs in Delhi and Mumbai that have a strong infrastructure to create and disseminate artworks," Hollein told Mint in an interview, adding that contemporary Indian artists are increasingly part of the global conversation. 

“We are and want to be more engaged with India’s developed art scene."

The Metropolitan Museum of Art renewed a five-year agreement with India’s ministry of culture in 2023, covering exhibitions, conservator exchanges, and training initiatives that it first began in the early 2000s. The museum continues to showcase Indian contemporary art, such as Sudhir Patwardhan’s Fall, which is currently part of its collection and on display.

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The Met has been collecting Indian art since 1891 and currently holds a wide-ranging collection spanning 2500 B.C. to modern times. Indian art is represented across its departments including Asian, Islamic, arms and armor, musical instruments, and modern and contemporary art. 

“Not only do we constantly showcase Indian contemporary art in our gallery but collect it as well," Hollein said. “There is also a profound interest in Indian contemporary art all across the world… It is becoming part of a really vibrant global scene. Indian contemporary artists are generating a lot of interest in the broader cultural institutions, as well as with private collectors."

Contemporary and modern art are works created after India’s Independence in 1947, with modern art reflecting post-colonial themes and traditional and Western influences, while contemporary art is more focused on issues of the present.

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The Met’s Indian collection

The Met’s Asian art department holds 1,250 works of Indian art, with 350 on display in the nine Herbert and Florence Irving galleries, Hollein said. The Islamic art department has about 1,300 pieces from 1500-1900, including Mughal carpets and paintings from Rajput and Pahari schools. 

Its arms and armor collection includes Mughal and south Indian weaponry, while the musical instruments department has around 200 Indian art pieces. The modern and contemporary art collection features works by artists Sudhir Patwardhan and Zarina. 

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Drawing a distinction between India’s and China’s art markets, Hollein said India has a more elaborate, classical gallery system.

“India’s art market is being led by galleries and collectors and art fairs like the India Art Fair happening in Delhi this week. It’s developed in a more classical way unlike China," he said. “In India, it is private infrastructure which will develop the art market and allow more access to the public even though public institutions are likely to remain the same."

In 2024, the Met reported net assets of $6.02 billion, though it didn’t factor the value of its collection into its financial statements. Its revenue streams included $200 million from endowments, gifts, and grants, $53 million from admission fees, and $23 million in memberships.

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