798 District Blog

HONG KONG.- Seoul Auction, Korea’s leading art auction house, will hold its Modern & Contemporary Art sale on 4 October 2010 at 4 pm at Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, presenting an excellent and diversified selection of Western and Asian art. A total of 60 works by leading Western, Korean, Japanese and Chinese artists with a total estimate of HK$100 million (US$12.8 million) will be offered. Of note, collectors will be thrilled to find more striking and significant works by Western artists in this season’s sale.

Misung Shim, Managing Director of Seoul Auction Hong Kong Ltd. said, “A pioneer in the market, Seoul Auction was the first auction house to offer Western masterpieces in Hong Kong. This season, we are privileged to present an even stronger and more compelling selection of works by distinguished Western Modern, Impressionist and Contemporary artists. These carefully selected works of art are truly outstanding examples of great importance and rarity.”

“We have also assembled an impressive array of superb pieces created by the most eminent artists in the Chinese, Japanese and Korean art scene. Each section is hence proudly represented by the best quality and most exemplary objects that are set to enthrall Asia’s art market. I believe collectors with different tastes and interests will be drawn by this season’s exciting line-up, and we will witness heated competition during the sale.”
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LONDON.- The continuing international appeal of Asian Art was further illustrated in the September sales in New York which realised $70.7 million; re-confirming Christie’s continued position as market leader for the category with 72 % market share. This autumn, Christie’s London Asian Art Week will run from 9 – 12 November 2010, featuring important, rare and beautiful examples with excellent provenance. The sales include: Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 9 November at King Street; Interiors – Juxtaposing Eastern and Western Styles on 9 November at South Kensington; Japanese Art & Design on 10 November at South Kensington and Chinese Ceramics, Works of Art and Textiles on 12 November at South Kensington.

Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art: 9 November at 10.30am, Christie’s King Street
Christie’s Asian Art Week London commences with a remarkable array of porcelains, metal work, furniture, and organic materials such as jade, ivory and rhinoceros horn, offered in the Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art sale on Tuesday 9 November 2010. Featuring over 350 lots, dating from the Shang Dynasty (1600c – 1100c BC) to the Republic Period (1912-49), estimates range from £2,000 up to £1.2 million. The sale is expected to realise in excess of £8million.

The star lot of the whole sale is ceramic: an important and very rare small guanyao baluster vase, Hu southern Song dynasty (1127-1279), 13th century (estimate upon request) which is offered from the Ronald Longsdorf Collection. This exquisitely delicate rich greyish-blue glazed vase has extensive, highly attractive crackle and is of beautiful proportions, measuring just 5.1/8 in. (13 cm.) tall. The bulbous lower body is supported on a tall slightly splayed foot, with a tapering neck which ends with a flaring dished rim.
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LONDON.- A superb collection of Asian art, lovingly assembled over a decade by a single enthusiast while living and working in the Far East and South East Asia, is for sale at Bonhams Edinburgh on 7 July.

Among the most fascinating pieces is a painting by the internationally celebrated chinese artist Jiang Guo Fang who became a personal friend of the collector when he was living in Shanghai in the early 1990s. The painting, ‘Reclining Court Beauty’ shows a beautiful model posing pensively in the costume of the 19th century chinese court. It is from the artist’s well known ‘Forbidden City’ period and is estimated at £20,000-30,000.

Early 9th Century Burmese Pagan bronzes, stucco heads and votive items epitomise the simplicity and serenity so characteristic of South East Asian art and found elsewhere in the collection in sculptures from Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.

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TOKYO.- ART FAIR TOKYO, the largest fair of its kind in Japan, began in 2005. This year it celebrates its fifth anniversary. ART FAIR TOKYO features a wide range of genres and periods of art, such as antiques, Asian art, nihonga, modern art, and contemporary art. ART FAIR TOKYO is where art enthusiasts, art collectors, journalists, and curators come together to seek artworks and confirm the latest trends of the art world. ART FAIR TOKYO 2010 will feature 139 top galleries, from Japan and around the world, — showcasing a total of approximately three thousands artworks.

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