In 2007, driven by the financial strength of Hong Kong and the dynamism of Shanghai, China took third place on the global art market podium behind the United States and the United Kingdom. The rocketing price indices of Fanzhi ZENG, Xiaogang ZHANG, Lijun FANG, Minjun YUE, Guoqiang CAI and Guangyi WANG fuelled an unprecedented optimism, inspiring thousands of would-be artists across the country, prompting hundreds of new gallery openings and giving a very substantial boost to the Chinese art auction market. Just when our figures showed that one third of the world's top 100 contemporary artists (ranked by auction revenue) were from China, Bonhams decided to set up shop in Hong Kong (26 November 2007) alongside Christie’s and Sotheby’s who were already well established on the island. After Bonhams, Artcurial decided to head East with a first sale in Shanghai in January 2008. The following month in London, Sotheby’s was unable to sell Overwhelm by Minjun YUE, despite his leading position on the contemporary Chinese art scene. At the time, this was a rare event: only 9 paintings by the artist were bought in over 10 years (between 1997 and 2007). In 2008, the number was 12 …
After the record bought-in rates posted in October at Sotheby’s and Christie’s Hong Kong, the November and December sales confirmed the contraction of demand and the choosiness of buyers. Sales have not been frozen, but we are definitely seeing a sharp correction of the Chinese art market. Collectors are now being extremely selective both in terms of quality and price. Numerous works by the stars whose prices had risen too high (e.g. Lijun FANG, Minjun YUE, Xiaogang ZHANG and Fanzhi ZENG) sold below their low estimates or were bought in. The recent failure of an attempted quick sale of a painting by Xiaogang ZHANG at Est-Ouest Auctions Co. Hongkong drew a definitive veil over the speculative mood. The work in question is a portrait from the Big Family Series. Initially selling for CNY 8.5 million (USD 1.15 million) in November 2007, it failed to sell in December 2008 even after a substantial trim of its estimate (roughly USD 554,000).
The stars of contemporary Indian art are in more or less the same boat. Despite a 957% increase in the price index between January 2004 and January 2009, more than half of Subodh GUPTA's works offered from October to December 2008 were bought in. His important work Vehicle for Seven Seas III was bought in on 13 November, 2008 in New York despite carrying a reasonable price estimate (300,000 to 400,000) compared to the USD 625,000 that a work from the same series fetched in April 2008 (Artcurial, Paris, EUR 425,000). We find the same scenario in the field of Iranian art where nearly half the works offered for public sale by Farhad MOSHIRI (1963) have remained unsold. Back in March 2008, collectors at the Dubaï sales were a lot more extravagant, pushing up the price of Eshgh (Love) to USD 900,000, which was six times the estimated price (Bonhams).
The February Contemporary Art sales in London timidly propose 2 to 5 Chinese and Indian star attractions at Sotheby’s (5 February) and Christie’s (11 February), including the unavoidable Fanzhi ZENG and Anish KAPOOR. However, the real test will be in March and April 2009 with sales dedicated to Asian art. On 12 February, Phillips de Pury & Company will be offering works by six Chinese artists, one Korean (Kim Whanki), two Indians (Hema UPADHYAY and Jiten & Sumir THUKRAL & TAGRA) and one Pakistani (Rashid RANA). Phillip’s is also participating in the emergence of the African artist El ANATSUI whose 2006 work entitled Congress of Elders is expected to fetch around GBP 200,000. Almost a complete stranger to the secondary art market, a work by this artist entitled Healer fetched USD 500,000 at Sotheby's London in October 2008… not the most favourable period for generating a new record… Still buoyant throughout the first half of 2008, demand on these highly dynamic new markets has substantially contracted since the autumn. In a global crisis context, many works have become too expensive and speculative temptations are no longer on the agenda. Nevertheless, among the major buyers of contemporary Russian, Chinese, Korean, Indian or Iranian art, profit is often not the primary motive. In recent years, many Russian and Chinese collectors have invested in the works of their compatriots in order to build coherent collections for foundations or museums.
PARIS (Reuters) - The auction of Yves Saint Laurent's monumental art collection ended on Wednesday having broken a string of records, defied the Chinese government and raised more than 370 million euros ($470 million). The late fashion designer's collection, built up over five decades with his partner Pierre Berge, had been described as one of the most important in private hands and the auction attracted interest from collectors and spectators all over the world. The final total of 373.5 million euros broke estimates of 300 million euros but Berge, who is donating the proceeds to charity and medical research, said he was not surprised by the sale's success even in the worst global recession for decades.
YSL auction fetches record price (01:49) Report Reuters Video
Feb 24 - An art collection by late fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent defied the financial crisis, breaking world records by raising over 206 million euros, 262 million USD on its opening day. The sale of two bronze sculptures in the YSL collection - originally looted 150 years ago by British and French troops - have been the subject of a Paris court case, after Chinese officials pleaded for them not to be auctioned by owner Pierre Berge, the former partner of late fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent.
Damien Hirst / Jeff Koons – Artists and managers [Sep 08]
The two most well-known and expensive contemporary artists alive today have other talents in common. They both enjoy exceptionally high media profiles, both elicit controversy, both set their respective auction records in 2008… and both know how to communicate. They also both seem to be "financially aware". September 2008 sees both on centre stage with just five days between the two. The American Jeff Koons, the most expensive living artist at auction today, is currently rubbing shoulders with French royal history having inaugurated his exhibition at the Palace of Versailles (10/09/2008 to 14/12/2008) while the English artist Damien Hirst has caused a mini sensation by selling directly through Sotheby’s…
The subprime crisis, banks on the verge of bankruptcy, Wall Street in the dumps… nothing seems to have bothered the collectors and dealers who participated in the round of highly publicised auction sales this month. On 15 and 16 Sotheby’s London played the role of promoting Damien HIRST's work normally attributed to the prestigious galleries White Cube (London) and Gagosian (New York) by dedicating 2 entire sales sessions to his productions. Short-circuiting his traditional gallery network, Hirst has managed to write a new page in the history of art auctions by demonstrating that the market is capable of digesting pieces that are fresh off the production line, with no other pedigree than Hirst's star-studded signature … and notwithstanding an altogether alarming economic context. Given the context, Hirst exposed himself to a significant risk of market "disinterest". However, the gamble paid off: Sotheby’s generated a total revenue of £70.5m (over $127m) on 15 September and £40.9m the day after, making a fortune for Hirst. By becoming his own manager, the artist has found the process the most profitable way of selling his works.
According to Sotheby’s, the eleven days of pre-sale exhibition drew in some 21,000 visitors. The big sale on 15 September – conducted very much as a show – attracted an eager crowd. Hands were raised at this pagan event where The Golden calf was indeed worshipped… a piece carrying that name generated Hirst's latest auction record when it was hammered down at £9.2 million. More ostentatious than his other installations, the sale of this golden-horned calf in a formaldehyde aquarium set on a marble pedestal with a golden disk above its head had a substantially positive effect on Hirst's price index. His previous auction record generated by Lullaby Spring was £8.6m (June 2007, again, at Sotheby’s). Like Hirst, Jeff KOONS manages his artistic enterprise with considerable savoir faire! Both employ a hundred assistants, both are supported by heavyweights like the Gagosian Gallery and both reap multi-million-dollar auction results. Jeff Koons' current auction record stands at £11.5m ($22,947,100), generated by his Balloon Flower (Magenta) when it sold at Christie’s in London on 30 June last. But that is not all. Both artists have a strong penchant for independence and both have experience of the art market dating back to the 1980s: when Hirst was a young student in 1988 he set himself up as a champion of self-promotion by orchestrating the Freeze exhibition. He was immediately spotted by the advertising mogul, art collector and dealer Charles Saatchi who subsequently launched the Young Bristish Artists in 1997. At the same epoch the somewhat older Jeff Koons was a Wall Street trader. Having launched himself as an artist, he also enjoyed the support of a high-flying sponsor: François Pinault.
Today both artists are so famous that the roles appear to have been reversed: Koons is called in to "dust off" the cultural heritage of Versailles… and a deal is struck with Hirst that has the effect of revitalising the "secondary market".
Copyright@Artprice.com
Shock art fails to sell in Rotterdam (Source The Art Newspaper) Stuffed, reversible animal was the talk of the fair ROTTERDAM. Most of the discussion surrounding the ninth edition of Art Rotterdam in the Netherlands last month (7-10 February) centred around a single work of art: a taxidermied dog, which, when turned inside out, became a cat. The piece, titled Popple after stuffed toys sold in the 1980s, is by Katinka Simonse, a Dutch artist who goes by the name “Tinkebell”. It was on offer at Amsterdam-based Torch Gallery for e4,500 ($6,500). Tinkebell has in the past angered animal rights groups in the Netherlands with works such as a “fashionable purse” she claims she made out of her pet cat and a project that involved putting (dead) baby chicks into a paper shredder. In general, the displays by the 75 galleries at this year’s fair were “more daring” than in previous years, said Art Rotterdam director Fons Hof, co-owner of the Hof & Huyser contemporary art gallery in Amsterdam. He did not mention Tinkebell’s reversible dog, and when asked about it, he said: “I didn’t mean that piece,” adding that he had not seen it. The small contemporary fair, which took place at the Rotterdam Cruise Terminal on the banks of the Maas River, aims to display emerging talent. The bulk of the works for sale were priced below e10,000 ($14,500), with only a handful of items in the five-figure range. “Pieces for E800 to e1,000 ($1,200-$1,500) sold very quickly and easily,” said Aeneas Bastian, owner of Upstairs Berlin, a German gallery that was making its third appearance at the fair. There were some notable exceptions. Among the highest priced works were large gold-leaf paintings by contemporary Indian artist Anant Joshi at the Amsterdam gallery, Willem Baars Project. Single paintings went for e38,500 ($56,000) and triptychs sold for e96,000 ($140,000): Mr Baars said he sold out before opening night.
Louder Than Bombs Nina P. West, Artfact.com 02.21.08, 5:21 PM ET A sigh of relief was heard around the world as art prices held firm during the first major auctions of the 2008 season. Christie's sale of Impressionist, Modern and Contemporary art in London fetched $440 million, the second highest ever total for a week of art sales in Europe. All indications are that the spring auction season will be strong if prices are set at reasonable levels. Sotheby's (nyse: BID - news - people ) London auctions also posted excellent results. The contemporary arena provided collectors with extraordinary choices, including a plethora of paintings by today's ''it'' artists, a cabal of young Chinese painters including Liu Ye, Yue Minjun and Chen Zhen. Powerful works by Lucio Fontana, Gerhard Richter, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Egon Schiele all sold well, with some achieving record prices. But it was the sale of Francis Bacon's ''Triptych 1974-77'' for $51.6 million at Christie's that was the highlight of the week. The sale to an anonymous buyer is a landmark moment for the London art market and establishes a record price for any Post-War work of art sold at auction in Europe.
Inside Art - A Sparkling Skull, Shrouded in Mystery - By CAROL VOGEL - Published: September 7, 2007 Here are the most popular theories making the rounds on the sale of Damien Hirst’s diamond-encrusted skull.
