SHANGHAI.- Christie’s China will hold its 2014 Autumn Auctions on October 24th at the Peninsula Hotel, Shanghai. This season, Christie’s brings two new additions to Shanghai, “Chinese Contemporary Design” and “Prestigious Lifestyle”. These sales will be followed by the “Asian and Western 20th Century & Contemporary Art” evening auction. Both newly-launched auctions aim to meet the increasingly diversified appetite and interest among Chinese connoisseurs and collectors in the areas of design and lifestyle.
The auctions will begin with two innovative sales in the afternoon of October 24th. In the "Prestigious Lifestyle" auction, Christie’s has carefully curated a collection of rare jewels, watches and wines, with a total of 66 lots from around the world for discerning collectors who aspire to artistic and exquisite life style.
Inspired by its vision and creativity, Christie’s debuts a new category "Chinese Contemporary Design" taking it from the Shanghai saleroom to the world, with 20 unique works of art, furniture and ceramics, drawing inspiration from the artistic achievements of 5,000 years of Chinese culture and history.
The evening sale of "Asian and Western 20th Century & Contemporary Art" showcases over 60 works from Chinese, Japanese, Korean, South East Asian and Western modern & contemporary artists, spanning a wide range of subjects, techniques and styles. The sale includes internationally renowned artists, such as the celebrated Expressionist painter Bernard Buffet (1928-1999), the master of 20th century modern art Marc Chagall (1887-1985), Surrealist master Salvador Dalí (1904-1989), Pop Art icon Andy Warhol (1928–1987), the influential Young British Artists (YBA) Damien Hirst (B.1965) and Marc Quinn (B.1964), illustrious abstract painters Zao Wou-Ki (1921-2013) and Chu Teh-Chun (1920-2014), and Chinese contemporary artists Zeng Fanzhi (B.1964) and Zhou Chunya (B.1955). The evening sale particularly highlights a strong pipeline of emerging Chinese artists through representative works by Chen Fei (B.1983), Hao Liang (B.1983) and Liu Wei (B.1972). In addition, a collection “Color and Ink” featuring paintings from Chinese contemporary ink to Picasso (1881-1973) on paper, enables viewers to transcend different cultures and arrive at an aesthetic destination of black, white and color, all using paper and silk as media.
Alongside the auctions, selected works from the Shanghai and Hong Kong Autumn Auctions will tour Beijing and Shanghai for previews. Christie’s Art Forums and lectures through Christie’s Education will also return by popular demand.
Following its inaugural mainland China sale last autumn, Christie’s celebrates the anniversary with the opening of its new home in the Ampire Building on Shanghai’s historic Bund. A beautifully curated cross-category private sales exhibition, “The Art of the Horses”, will open on October 21st at the art space of the new home and tour to Hong Kong in November.
Steven P. Murphy, Chief Executive Officer, Christie’s, remarks, “It is an historic moment to open our new office in Shanghai, a landmark event in our mission to expand accessibility to art to enthusiastic audiences across the world. To mark the occasion of our first anniversary of sales here, we are introducing new themed auctions and staging a host of events. It is Christie’s ambition to promote Chinese art and culture to the rest of the world and to stage exciting, creative events in China. We are proud to welcome collectors and those who love art through our open doors.”
Jinqing Cai, President of Christie’s China, adds, “Through Christie’s Shanghai new art space, we hope to open new doors for Chinese collectors to the vibrant international art market. The global debut of 'Chinese Contemporary Design' in our Shanghai saleroom further demonstrates our strength and vision as a global art business. Our mission remains to build the bridge between China and the world through innovation and accessibility.”
