Faye Bradley surveys Hong Kong’s autumn auction scene, discovering some fascinating trends amid the jaw-dropping prices.

A rare pink diamond was up for grabs at a Sotheby’s Hong Kong auction on Oct 7. The piece was sold for HK$453.2 million ($57.73 million). (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

The 11.15-carat Williamson Pink Star — the second-largest internally flawless Fancy Vivid Pink diamond ever to appear at auction — sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong for an eye-watering HK$453.2 million ($57.73 million) on Oct 7, setting a new per-carat price record. The rare gemstone fetched more than double what experts had predicted, indicating a return to the kind of “revenge spending” seen intermittently at local auctions since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It (livestreamed auctions) helped to create an impactful, immersive experience when travel was completely restricted.

Alex Branczik, chairman, modern and contemporary art at Sotheby’s Asia

Since 2020, auction houses have seen accelerated growth in online auctions, touch points and experiences, led by a new crop of young collectors who are more at home with digital interactions.

Alex Branczik, chairman of modern and contemporary art at Sotheby’s Asia, says the introduction of livestreamed auctions necessitated by the onset of the pandemic in 2020 “helped to create an impactful, immersive experience for our audience when travel was completely restricted”. Since then, online auctions have been embraced by art enthusiasts and collectors globally, with unprecedented demand from the younger generation. 

The return of in-person auctions notwithstanding, online auctions remain important to the younger segment of customers. “Many of our clients are used to living their lives online, and they expect auctioneering to be no different,” says Julia Hu, managing director of Bonhams Asia. She adds that nearly 50 percent of under-the-hammer activity at the auction house so far this year has been the result of digital bidding.

A rare imperial blue and copper-red, turquoise-glazed “dragon” moonflask is a highlight of Bonhams’ upcoming sale in November. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Sotheby’s is playing a crucial role in introducing works by many of today’s most-coveted women artists to a Hong Kong audience. The list includes names such as Emily Mae Smith. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Sotheby’s is playing a crucial role in introducing works by many of today’s most-coveted women artists to a Hong Kong audience. The list includes names such as Lynne Drexler. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Sotheby’s is playing a crucial role in introducing works by many of today’s most-coveted women artists to a Hong Kong audience. The list includes names such as Maria Berrio. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Wendy Goldsmith, director of Goldsmith Art Advisory in London, and former director and senior vice-president at Christie’s, says that with the geopolitical issues affecting world markets and COVID-19 restrictions still in force in some regions, there may be some softening of prices. “This could prove a good time to buy,” she adds.

Christie’s — which kicked off its fall previews in Hong Kong last week — achieved global sales totaling $4.1 billion in the first half of 2022, an 18 percent increase over the previous year and the auction house’s best result since 2015. Its “Shen the T Rex” lot is the first Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton to be offered at auction in Asia, and promises to be a highlight of the 20th/21st Century Art Evening Sale on Nov 30. 

“This is a groundbreaking moment for the market in the region, where we’ve witnessed a growing demand for objects of historical significance,” says Francis Belin, president of Christie’s Asia Pacific. Standing a terrifying 4.6 meters tall and 12.2 meters long, Shen will be displayed and auctioned at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

A rare pair of cloisonne enamel “peacock” censers from the Qianlong period (1736-1795) is also on offer at the same event. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Shen the T Rex, a highlight of Christie’s upcoming November auction, is the first Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton to be offered in Asia. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Women at the forefront

Fine art trends in Hong Kong this season include Chinese contemporary art and works by female artists. 

The opening of M+ in November 2021 seems to have renewed collectors’ interest in Chinese contemporary art. “It’s a great time to be buying truly historic works by this generation of Chinese artists,” Branczik notes. Sotheby’s on Oct 6 presented New Wave Beyond Yuanmingyuan: An Important European Private Collection of Chinese Contemporary Art, with Yu Youhan’s Circle 1986-8 fetching HK$7.56 million.

Christie’s will hold Rich Golden Hues and Graceful Forms: Classical Chinese Furniture from the Tseng Collection on Nov 29. The sale will offer the rarest and finest huanghuali (Chinese rosewood) furniture from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), with individual pieces expected to achieve up to HK$12 million. On the same day, an exquisite, carved meiping vase with dragon motif will lead the auction house’s Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art sale. The vase is expected to fetch up to HK$80 million.

A handcrafted gold, platinum and diamond tulip necklace by Tiffany & Co is a highlight piece of Bonhams' Nov 26 sale. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

A rare and large underglaze-blue and copper-red decorated dish from the Kangxi period (1662-1722) is on offer at Christie’s November auctions. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

The 11.15-carat Williamson Pink Star, sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong on Oct 7, is the second-largest, internally flawless Fancy Vivid Pink diamond ever to be auctioned. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Female artists are in focus at auctions as well as other exhibition spaces. Louise Bourgeois’ Spider IV became the most valuable sculpture ever sold in Asia in April, when it achieved HK$129.2 million. Art Intelligence Global’s Hong Kong exhibition space launched with Shatter: Color Field and the Women of Abstract Expressionism, earlier this month. The trend is a global one, with more than 90 percent of exhibitors at this year’s Venice Biennale being either women or gender-nonconforming, while at Sotheby’s most-recent The Now Evening Auction in New York, women for the first time outnumbered their male counterparts. “That’s reflective, I think, of the long-overdue critical reappreciation we’re witnessing across institutions and in the market for the huge wealth of talent that exists among female artists, both those practicing today and those of previous generations,” says Branczik.

Sotheby’s is playing a significant role in bringing works by many of today’s most coveted emerging women artists to Hong Kong. The list includes Lucy Bull, Maria Berrio, Lauren Quin, Emily Mae Smith, and Anna Weyant. “The interest in Western contemporary art is seemingly insatiable, and the auction houses are more than happy to fill this demand, always looking to educate their collectors in this continually expanding field,” says Goldsmith.

Alex Branczik, chairman, modern and contemporary art at Sotheby’s Asia. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Wendy Goldsmith, director of Goldsmith Art Advisory, foresees a softening of prices at auctions. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

Sought-after names

Vincent Wu, founder and senior art adviser of Curator Style, notes that Branches by Sanyu at Sotheby’s is a must-see piece this season. “It is an autobiographical masterpiece by the artist, and one of his largest flower paintings, depicting a blooming spring in the twilight of (his) life.”

Gold Infinity Nets is also not to be missed, being the largest Yayoi Kusama painting of its kind (gold nets on a black background) ever to go under the hammer. “As Kusama’s large-scale exhibition opens at M+ in November, the auction results of these artworks will become an important indicator of the market,” notes Wu. Leo Xu, senior director at David Zwirner, meanwhile, says that Bridget Riley is an artist to keep an eye on.

At Bonhams’ Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art sale on Nov 30 in Hong Kong, the star lot is a magnificent and rare Qianlong underglaze-blue and copper-red, turquoise-glazed “dragon” bianhu (moonflask), which carries an estimate of up to HK$25 million. “But beyond that there are a lot of buyers interested in collecting who can’t afford the figures they see in headlines,” says Hu. “Asia’s economy is still relatively strong in the world, so collectors are more confident about selling their best items in Hong Kong which still stands as the headquarters of Asia’s auction market.”