London: Turner prize-winner Indian-origin
sculptor Anish Kapoor, whose giant sculptures adorn squares
from Chicago to Nottingham, has joined the ranks of UK's
super-rich artists with a multi-million pound fortune.
55-year-old Kapoor made a 17 million pounds of profit
in 2008, taking the fortune he has made from his art to ?40
million, new company accounts showed.
Mumbai-born Kapoor now plans to add a 5 million pounds
country house in the Berkshire downs to his assets.
He will be included in The Sunday Times Rich List
when the 2010 edition comes out, the first specialist sculptor
to appear, joining artists such as Damien Hirst and Lucian
Freud.
The reputation of Kapoor, a Turner prize-winner, has
soared in the past decade. He is now engaged in the world's
largest commission, a 15 million series of sculptures known as
the Tees Valley Giants, destined for five towns in northeast
England.
Last year 29 Kapoor sculptures were sold at auction
for 5.5 million pounds. The most expensive lot, a reflective
stainless-steel globe, went for 1.17 million pounds.
His private gallery often sells his works for more
than 1 million pounds. According to the Companies House
filing, the main activity of Kapoor's company, White Dark, is
"the creation and sale of the art".
Its 2008 accounts show an operating profit of 17.2
million pounds up from 8.4 million pounds the previous year.
Kapoor has invested heavily in property since he
bought a studio in Camerwell, southeast London for 250,000
pounds in 2001.
His 2.7 million pounds newly built home in Chelsea
has walls of glass, stone and shimmering stainless steel.
Last year, he added a 4 million pounds townhouse in
Lincoln's Inn Fields, central London, to his portfolio.
He also owns a 2 million pounds property in the
Bahamas. Kapoor has now plans to buy a 17th century National
Trust property in the Berkshire downs.
A 41-year lease for the eight-bedroom mansion is
being marketed for 4.5 million pounds, while an 83-year lease
costs 5.3 million pounds.
PTI
First Published: Monday, February 01, 2010, 12:48