B4U India: Gunpowder art goes out with a bang at HK auction

Gunpowder art goes out with a bang at HK auction
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reuters india on 27 November, 2007 10:50:00
 
HONG KONG (Reuters Life!) - A set of abstract gunpowder-on-paper drawings have
become the most expensive Asian contemporary art sold at auction, the Chinese
works fetching US$9.5 million as the bulging ranks of Asia's rich snap up art.
Cai Guo-Qiang's "Set of Fourteen Drawings for Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation", bought in Hong Kong on Sunday by an unidentified buyer, overtook
Xu Beihong's "Put Down Your Whip" that sold for $9.2 million in April.
The series of black-and-brown patterned specks and smears on white backgrounds,
roughly the size of table tennis tables, were featured in a record-breaking
night at the Christie's autumn Hong Kong auction.
The event also notched up its highest ever sales for Southeast Asian works,
netting over US$8.2 million.
"The sales we had today were among the highest we have had to date -- including
Southeast Asian Contemporary and Modern Art and Asian Contemporary Art," said
Jonathan Stone, International Business Director for Asian Art at Christie's.
"Strong Asian demand for art, supported by global participation, is one of the
key drivers for a strong performance in the art market. We also see huge
potential for future growth."
The number of Asians with more than $1 million in financial assets, excluding
their homes, grew 8.6 percent to 2.6 million in 2006.
The 40 wealthiest people in Greater China, all billionaires, saw their combined
fortunes soar by $28 billion last year to a combined net worth of $154 billion.
Sunday's auction suggests the market for collectable art remains robust,
despite shaky financial markets and fears the fall-out from the U.S. mortgage
crisis will hit the global economy.
"From our sales, I'm happy to say we don't see signs of a downturn," Stone
said.
In the Southeast Asian contemporary category, five of the top 10 pieces were
auction records for the artists, and Stone said the results highlighted the
potential for growth.
"Southeast Asian art has historically been undervalued where, comparatively
speaking, Asian contemporary art has been rising in value in recent years," he
said.
"While a lot of attention has been devoted to Chinese contemporary art, today's
sales demonstrated that there is room for growth for other Asian art from
Southeast Asia and north Asia such as Korea and Japan."
Christie's autumn Hong Kong auctions continue through to Nov 29 and will
feature myriad top-notch Chinese and Asian contemporary and modern art,
imperial porcelain, jade, jewellery and watches.