Our spring season saw exceptional results for Asian 20th Century and Contemporary Art across two days of sales in Hong Kong. Led by Sanyu’s Chrysanthemums in a Glass Vase which sold for HK$81,880,000 the auctions set a total of 51 world records for Asian artists, from Chinese and Japanese to Korean and Filipino, demonstrating collectors’ enthusiasm for modern and contemporary art from the region.
Abstract art performed exceptionally well at auction alongside Korean modern art selling 100% by lot, while important works from the Japanese Gutai movement attracted competitive bidding from collectors across Asia and Europe, with five new artists auction records set.
Strong prices were achieved for superlative works by 20th century artists like Affandi, Arturo Luz and Sanyu, whose Chrysanthemums in a Glass Vase fetched HK$81,880,000, the artist’s record price for a painting of flowers and his second highest result overall. Works by Korean modern artist Kim Whanki, whose Montagne Bleue (Blue Mountain) sold for a world record price of HK$13,840,000, continues to capture the attention of a broad Asian audience while remarkable results and record prices were achieved for numerous contemporary artists like Yoshitomo Nara, Tomoya Tsukamoto, Suh Do-ho, Zeng Fanzhi, Liu Wei, Yuan Yuan and Jane Lee underlining the widespread demand for the category.