DUBAI: Christie’s recent online art auction proved to be a major success, selling a total of $3,152,986 in art from the Middle East. “Workers Resting” by the late Egyptian painter Hamed Ewais sold for a whopping $602,438, while Saudi artist Abdulnasser Gharem’s “Hemisphere” fetched $108,574. Meanwhile, the collection of 21 works from the Orin and Rita Parker Collection of Iraqi art sold for $738,072, with artist and poet Kadhim Haider’s “He is destroyed that he may return” from his most important series ‘Martyr’s Epic’ selling for $163,519. According to Christie’s, more than a quarter of those who purchased artworks were first-time buyers with the British auction house. “There is a growing new base of international collectors across Asia, Europe to the Americas in the category outside the region,” said Suzy Sikorski, associate specialist at Christie’s Middle East. “This sale confirms appetite for modern works is very strong at all price levels across generations,” she added.