HONG KONG.- Bonhams Hong Kong Spring Season closed on 6 June with a buoyant auction of Modern and Contemporary Art at Bonhams international saleroom. The auction, which was 93% sold by lot and 91% by value, was notable for strong bidding from around the world for rare and historic works from the masters of modernism in Asia. A new world record price was achieved for Japanese artist Masaaki Yamada.
His exquisite work, Work C 107 from 1962, which was featured as the front cover of the catalogue, achieved HK$1,375,000 (US$176,500).
More than half a dozen phone lines competed for both Shiy De Jinn and Richard Lin. Shiy's portrait of Nora Sun. Sun was the grand-daughter of Sun Yat-sen, the founder of modern China, and a much-beloved diplomat in her own right. The work soared past the high estimate, achieving HK$1,980,000 (US$254,000). Following up on our world record price last season for Richard Lin, this season was also highlighted by another rare work by the artist from the early 1960s, and which also sold comfortably above its high estimate, finally selling for HK$1,250,000 (US$160,000).
Chinese contemporary works performed well across the board, with strong competition on works from Yang Shaobin, Wang Guangyi, and Zhou Chunya, highlighted by Zhang Enli's majestic Big Tree from 2006, which sold for HK$1,680,000 (US$215,000).
The sale opened with a section of rare and early works on paper from Japanese artist Key Hiraga. An exhibition of works from the same era, exhibited alongside the auction, quickly sold out after the first weekend of preview, sparking fierce, international competition in the saleroom at Bonhams auction.
"The auction was a resounding success across the board," said Director of Contemporary Art, Asia, Ingrid Dudek. "Our focus is on highly curated, quality-driven auctions that reflect the tremendous range of modern and contemporary art by artists from Asia, and we are pleased to see that this focus on connoisseurship continues to be embraced by collectors not only from around the region but around the world."
