Sotheby’s Hong Kong Spring Sales Hit Record $256 Million

XXXV No. 17
(April 20, 2010)

Sotheby’s Hong Kong Spring Sales Hit Record $256 Million
by Raj S. Rangarajan

NEW YORK—Sotheby’s spring series of auctions in Hong Kong April 3–8 took in a record total of HK$2billion ($256.2million), much higher than last year’s total of HK$317.33 million ($40.6 million). Sales of fine Chinese art and contemporary art brought in HK$735million ($94.2million). The sale of Chinese paintings on April 6 was 97 percent sold by lot and 99 percent sold by value, and realized a total of HK$304.9million ($39.2million). Chess Playing, 1943, an ink and pigment on paper by Fu Baoshi (1904–65) sold to a private Asian buyer for HK$38.74million ($4.97million), five times the estimate of HK$5million/7million. Four works by Zhang Daqian (1899–1983) figured among the top ten lots, with Landscape, 1981, a splashed ink and pigment on paper hanging scroll, selling for HK$21.9million ($2.8million), more than four times the estimate of HK$3.2million/4.5million. Hen on the Rock, 1956, an ink and pigment on paper hanging scroll by Pan Tianshou (1897–1971) sold for HK$17.5million ($2.2million) on an estimate of HK$5million/7million.
A separate session dedicated to paintings from the Robert Chang collection brought in a total of HK$113.3million ($14.5million). Tiger, 1950, an ink and pigment on paper by Qi Baishi (1864–1957), was the top lot of the Chang sale, fetching HK$32million ($4.1million) against an unpublished estimate in excess of HK$28million.
Patti Wong, chairman, Sotheby’s Asia, said “participation by established collectors and numerous new buyers provoked fierce bidding which resulted in our setting many records for individual artists and objects.” The sales, she said, “emphasized the growing importance of Hong Kong as one of the vibrant auction centers.” Kevin Ching, CEO of Sotheby’s Asia, noted “growing involvement and participation by mainland Chinese.”
Blue-Chip Contemporary Art Fuels $19M Sale
The sale of contemporary Asian art on April 5 totaled HK$144.9million ($18.6million), with 129, or 76 percent, of the 170 lots sold. By value the auction was 88 percent sold. Bright Road, 1995, an acrylic and oil on canvas by Liu Ye (b. 1978) set a record for the artist, bringing HK$19.1million ($2.5million) against an estimate of HK$4.5million/6.5million. The top ten lots included two paintings by Cai Guo-Qiang (b. 1957). A Certain Lunar Eclipse: Project for Humankind No. 2, 1991, a gunpowder and ink drawing on Japanese paper mounted on seven wood panels, was bought by an Asian bidder for HK$18.58 million ($2.38 million). Two works by Yue Minjun (b. 1962) were also in the top ten, including On the Lake, 1994, an oil on canvas, which sold for HK$14.7million ($1.9million) on an estimate of HK$7million/10million.
Evelyn Lin, Sotheby’s head of Asian contemporary art, said the results “demonstrated a strong return for blue-chip contemporary Chinese artists after a period of adjustment in which we experienced constricted supply.” Results showed a “pent-up demand for great art with bidders from China, Indonesia, Korea, Europe, the United States and Taiwan in heated competition for top talents.”
The sale of 20th-century Chinese art on April 5 realized HK$102.6million ($13.15million), with 52, or 80 percent, of the 65 lots finding buyers. By value the auction was 84 percent sold.
Four of the top ten lots were works by Zao Wou-Ki (Zhao Wuji, b. 1921), which represented various periods of the artist’s career ranging from figurative work from the early 1950s to his later abstract paintings. These included the top lot of the sale, 4.4.1959, 1959, an oil on canvas, which sold for HK$20.8million ($2.7million) against an estimate of HK$5.8million/9million. Zao’s abstract painting 10-3-78, 1978, sold for HK$15.2million ($1.95 million) against an estimate of HK$7million/10million. And his oil The Lillies, ca. 1950, sold for HK$9.84million ($1.26million) against an estimate of HK$2.5million/4million.
The sale of modern and contemporary South east Asian paintings on April 5 took in a total of HK$69.3million ($8.88million) for 141 lots. Of those, 124, or 88 percent, found buyers, and the auction was 99 percent sold by value. The top lot was Bali Life, ca. 1960s, an oil by Lee Man Fong (1913–88), which set a record for a Southeast Asian painting at auction as well as an artist record. The lot opened at HK$4million, and sparked strong competition; after 31 bids the winner was an Asian collector on the phone, who bought the work for HK$25.3million ($3.24million). Mok Kim Chuan, Sotheby’s head of southeast Asian paintings, said that “in today’s more mature market, collectors are selective and discerning but eager to compete for quality works.”

Asian Art Auctions Upbeat Despite Financial Crisis

by Raj S. Rangarajan -- Sept. 30, 2008

NEW YORK—Sales of Asian art at Christie’s and Sotheby’s in New York Sept. 15–19 were healthy, despite a drop in overall volume to $77 million from over $100 million last fall (ANL, 10/16/07). Contemporary Asian art—particularly by artists from South Asia—continues to show strength.

Christie’s realized $51.14 million for eight sales, up from $44.43 million for four sales last year. The top-grossing sales at Christie’s were of Chinese ceramics and works of art, which took $13.2 million, and of South Asian modern and contemporary art, which followed closely with a total of $12.6 million.

Sotheby’s realized $26 million in four sales, the lion’s share of which was for contemporary art. Two sales—contemporary Asian art on Sept. 17 and modern and contemporary South Asian art on Sept. 18—took a combined $16.4 million, accounting for well over half of the total. However, Sotheby’s overall Asia week total was less than half the $61.9 million it took in last fall. Last summer, Sotheby’s announced that, starting in 2009, it would hold all of its contemporary Asian art auctions in Hong Kong, noting that that is where the house has achieved the highest prices for the category.

At Christie’s South Asian sale, 84 of the 126 lots on offer, or 67 percent, found buyers. By value the auction was 78 percent sold. The top lot was Subodh Gupta’s Steal 2, which sold just above its $1 million high estimate for $1.2 million to an American collector, despite its having been executed just last year. Two other works by Gupta figured among the top lots: Miter, also dated 2007, an installation featuring the artist’s signature stainless steel pots, cleared its $600,000/800,000 estimate to sell for $1 million, and an untitled 2005 oil on canvas (estimate: $600,000/800,000) sold to an Indian dealer for $962,500.

Also breaking the $1 million mark was Maqbool Fida Husain’s painting Ritual, 1968, which surpassed its $600,000/800,000 estimate. An oil painting by Tyeb Mehta, Untitled (Yellow Heads), 1979, sold for $902,500. Three years ago, Mehta’s painting Mahisasura, 1997, was the first Indian painting to sell at over a million dollars when it fetched $1.6 million at Christie’s (ANL, 9/27/05).

Two works by Rameshwar Broota (b. 1941) sold well, with the oil painting Man, 1991, bringing $506,500 (estimate: $250,000/350,000) and The Same Old Story II, 1979, a painting depicting two large monkeys conversing arm-in-arm, taking in $662,500, more than triple the estimate of $150,000/200,000.

Six auction records were set for works by artists representing India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, including Jyothi Basu, Riyas Komu, Chitra Ganesh, Mohammad Zeeshan and Zainul Abedin. Indian artist Manjit Bawa’s oil on canvas Untitled, 1992, fetched a record $362,500 (estimate: $200,000/300,000).

Asian Demand Fuels Sales

At Christie’s sale of Chinese ceramics and works of art and masterworks of ancient and Imperial China, the top lot was an early Ming dynasty tianbai-glazed anhua-decorated meiping (a vase inspired by the shape of a female body), Yongle period (1403–1425), which sold to Hong Kong dealer Chak’s Company Ltd. for a record $2.8 million, more than three times the high estimate of $800,000.

Tina Zonars, Christie’s international director, Chinese works of art, said the sales “illustrate the continuing strength of the market.” Zonars noted that “among the stronger collecting fields were snuff bottles, white jade carvings, imperial ceramics—all Chinese-taste categories.”

The second-highest lot was a rare Qing dynasty yellow-ground “Dragon” vase decorated with green enamel, Qianlong period (1736–1795), which was won by London dealer Eskenazi Ltd. for $1.76 million (estimate: $600,000/800,000).

Theow Tow, deputy chairman, Christie’s Americas and Asia, noted “Asians in particular participated strongly in all collecting categories, both classical and contemporary,” in the sales.

Asian Contemporary Art Tops Sotheby’s Sales

At Sotheby’s “Contemporary Art Asia: China Korea Japan” session, Zeng Fanzhi’s Mask Series, 1997, was bought by a Japanese private collector for $1.1 million (estimate: $900,000/1.2 million). The second-highest lot was Kim Whanki’s Les Oiseaux Volants (Flying Birds), 1957, which an Asian dealer acquired for $434,500 (estimate: $200,000/300,000).

In all, the sale realized $8.5 million, with 137, or 65 percent, of the 211 works on offer finding buyers. The sold-by-value rate was also relatively modest, at just 64 percent.

Among the other top prices, Cai Guo-Qiang’s gunpowder-on-paper Two Eagles, 2005, sold within estimate for $422,500 (estimate: $380,000/550,000) and Zhang Huan’s Family Tree, 2000, sold for $386,500 (estimate: $120,000/180,000) to an American buyer.

Sotheby’s modern and contemporary South Asian art sale realized $7.8 million for 126 lots, of which 82, or 65 percent, found buyers. By value, the auction was 80 percent sold.

Work by many of the same artists, including Gupta, Mehta and Husain, dominated the top ten at Sotheby’s and Christie’s in this category. Mehta’s acrylic-on-canvas Falling Figure with Bird, 2003, sold for a high-estimate $1.5 million. Gupta’s oil painting One Cow, 2003, depicting a bicycle slung with containers of milk, sold for $866,500 (estimate: $600,000/800,000).

Works by Francis Newton Souza also figured prominently at Sotheby’s sale, including the painting Orange Head, 1963, which sold for $482,500 (estimate: $400,000/600,000); Christ on Palm Sunday, a 1956 oil on board, which sold for $266,500 (estimate: $220,000/320,000); and Death and the Maiden, 1966, which brought $182,500 (estimate: $100,000/150,000).

In the Chinese ceramics and works of art sale, which included Chinese and Japanese art from a private collection, a polychrome wood and gesso sculpture of the boddhisattva Guhyasadhana Avalokitesvara, Ming dynasty, Xuande period, sold for $1.2 million (estimate: $1.4 million/1.6 million).

Indonesian Art Rises, Chinese Art Cools at Hong Kong Auctions

Indonesian Art Rises, Chinese Art Cools at Hong Kong Auctions
by Raj S. Rangarajan -- Oct. 28, 2008

NEW YORK—Overall volume was down at Sotheby’s series of fall sales held Oct. 4–8 in Hong Kong, to $140.74 million from $200 million last year (ANL, 10/30/08). Asian contemporary art has been one of the fastest-rising areas of the market in recent years, but demand was decidedly more selective this season, with higher numbers of unsold lots. In all, fine art, including modern and contemporary Southeast Asian art and contemporary Chinese art, Chinese paintings and 20th-century Chinese art accounted for about $56 million of the total.

The modern and contemporary Asian art evening sale on Oct. 4 fetched a total of HK$117 million ($15.1 million). Of 47 lots on offer, 28, or 60 percent, found buyers. By value the auction realized less than half of its presale estimate. Sotheby’s specialist Evelyn Lin said “the market for Chinese contemporary art has experienced unprecedented growth over the past five years . . . and it is not surprising that there will be some leveling off, which is also what we experienced this evening, in addition to some estimates which were overly optimistic.”

Records for Masriadi, Suwage

On the other hand, Lin noted strong prices and several records for Indonesian artists, including Affandi (1907–1990), I. Nyoman Masriadi (b. 1973) and Agus Suwage (b. 1959).

Works by top-selling Chinese artists nonetheless dominated the high end of the sale, albeit at prices that were more in line with estimates, especially when compared with other recent auction results. The top lot was Zhang Xiaogang’s Bloodline: Big Family No. 1, a work from the artist’s signature series, which sold to a European collector for HK$23.1 million ($2.96 million) on an estimate of HK$20 million/25 million. That was followed by Cai Guo-Qiang’s Eagle and Eye in the Sky: People, gunpowder and ink on an eight-panel paper screen, which sold for HK$17.5 million ($2.2 million) on an estimate of HK$12 million/16 million.

A record was set for Liu Ye (b. 1964) when an untitled 1997–98 oil painting by the artist fetched HK$12.98 million ($1.7 million) against an estimate of HK$9 million/14 million. A record for Masriadi (which would be broken the following day) was set with the HK$4.8 million ($620,382) paid by an Asian collector for a cartoonish depiction of superheroes Batman and Superman, Sorry Hero, Saya Lupa (Sorry Hero, I Forgot), 2008, far surpassing the estimate of HK$380,000/580,000. And Affandi’s oil painting Times Square, New York, 1962, brought a record HK$3.4 million ($435,040) on an estimate of HK$1.6 million/2.2 million.

Yoshitomo Nara’s acrylic on paper, Northern Light, 2000, also surpassed expectations, selling for HK$3.86 million ($496,821) against an estimate of HK$1.9 million/2.7 million. I Like My Man Covered Too, by Indian artists Thukral & Tagra (Jiten Thukral, b. 1976, and Sumir Tagra, b. 1979), sold for HK$1.8 million ($234,252) against a HK$800,000/1.2 million estimate. Zara Porter Hill, Sotheby’s head of modern and contemporary South Asian art, noted a “high level of bidding in the room from a completely new group of buyers.”

The contemporary Chinese art day sale on Oct. 5, which featured lower-priced material, took in HK$90.5 million ($11.65 million) and achieved considerably stronger sold-by-lot and sold-by-value rates than the modern and contemporary Asian sale the night before. Of 187 works on offer, 150, or 80 percent, were sold. By value, the auction was 74 percent sold.

Yue Minjun’s untitled 1990–91 oil painting of figures doubled over with laughter in Tiananmen Square topped the sale, bringing HK$6.6 million ($852,060) on an estimate of HK$6 million/8 million, followed by an untitled 2005 oil painting by Zeng Fanzhi, which sold for HK$5.06 million ($651,273), also within its estimate of HK$4.8 million/5.5 million. Lin noted “a very high percentage of lots that sold within or above their high estimates,” with “spirited bidding before the packed saleroom throughout the ­session.”

On Oct. 6, an auction of modern and contemporary Southeast Asian paintings also yielded solid results. The sale achieved a total of HK$71.6 million ($9.2 million) for 163 lots on offer; of these, 139, or 85 percent, were sold. On a value basis, the auction was 92 percent sold. The previous day’s record for a work by Masriadi was broken when The Man From Bantul (The Final Round), 2000, sold for HK$7.8 million ($1.2 million), several times its HK$1 million/1.5 million estimate.

Specialist Mok Kim Chuan said “new buyers crossing over from other collecting categories had a significant presence” in the sale, notably at the top end. The top price was HK$9.4 million ($1.2 million) for the painting Heimkehrende Javaner (Javanese Returning Home), circa 1924 (estimate: HK$5.5 million/7.5 million), by German artist Walter Spies (1895–1942).

The sale of Chinese paintings on Oct. 6 took $15 million and was 76 percent sold by lot, 82 percent by value. The top price was HK$15.8 million ($2 million), paid for an ink- and pigment-on-paper handscroll, Along The Yangtze River, 1990, by Wu Guanzhong (b. 1919), which sold against an estimate “in excess of HK$8 million” ($1 million). The work was consigned by the artist, with the proceeds earmarked for a scholarship in his name at Tsinghua University, Beijing. Three works by Zhang Daqian (1899–1983) were among the top ten, with each exceeding its estimate. The highest-selling of these, a hanging scroll titled The Leaping Ape, 1959, sold for HK$6.3 million ($805,600) against an estimate of HK$4 million/6 million.

Other sales in the series included Chinese ceramics and works of art, which took in a total of HK$75 million ($8.1 million); Chinese Imperial works of art, which took in HK$383 million ($49.1 million); jewels and jadeite, which made HK$155 million ($19.96 million); and watches, which made HK$47.6 million ($6.08 million).