ART FAIR REPORT: ART BASEL HONG KONG, MARCH 2024

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It was with great anticipation that the 242 exhibiting galleries from Asia-Pacific, Europe, the America’s, Africa and the Middle East welcomed a tsunami of VIP visitors to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on a uniquely sunny Tuesday afternoon. The mood of both the galleries and VIP guests was one of cautious excitement about how the coming days would unfold, with galleries variously describing the two dedicated VIP days as quieter than in 2023. Galleries reported fewer spontaneous purchasing decisions and a slower more considered approach being adopted by collectors in the opening hours. Gone were the frenzied opening hours of transaction madness, this time, while busy, collectors adopted a more thoughtful approach, with various galleries reporting remarkable sales and notable transactions by the time the fair closed.

Hauser & Wirth’s notable sales included a Willem de Kooning work and a Philip Guston painting selling for US$9 million and US$8.5 million respectively. Lehmann Maupin sold several pieces to Asian buyers, including pieces by Do Hu Suh and Kim Yun Shin. This reflects a trend noticed throughout the week of a strong demand for Asian artists, particularly from Korea and Taiwan. The artist Yayoi Kusama remains much in demand with Victoria Miro selling three of the artist’s works for a total of US$11 million, including a renowned ‘Infinity Mirror Room’. Other artists of note were Lee Jinju at Arario Gallery, Ha Chong-Hyun at Tina Kim Gallery, Kang Kang Hoon at Johyun Gallery, Tsherin Sherpa at Rossi & Rossi and Chen Zhen at Galleria Continua.

Of note were the number of artists working with non-traditional materials with textiles including lace, fabrics and thread being adopted as their medium of choice. Works in painted bronze and metals such as copper also were noted while there seemed to be fewer photographic and multi- media works than in previous years. These formats seem to continue to be a difficult ‘sell’ for many collectors in the region.

The Encounter’s section, curated superbly once again by Alexi Glass-Kantor included large scale installation works by Yoan Capote and Candida Hoffer (Ben Brown Fine Arts), Li Wei (Tang Contemporary) and Daniel Boyd’s (Kukje Gallery and Station) off site installation, ‘Doan’ attracted great interest from visitors to Pacific Place, Admiralty. Boyd’s international star continues to rise off the back of his recent first solo show with Marian Goodman Gallery in New York.

Hong Kong’s commercial gallery scene was alive with exceptional exhibitions. The highlights  being Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat at Gagosian, Glenn Ligon at the stunning  Hauser & Wirth gallery and Louise Giovanelli at White Cube. All beautiful shows in their own right.

Additional standout events included a visit to M+ to view the exceptional Uli Sigg collection, a private viewing of Ben Brown Fine Art’s exhibition, ‘Celestial Mechanics: Form and Future in the Work of Gerhard Richter and Sean Scully’ at The Asia Society and brunch at Pearl Lam to view ‘The Night’, Maggi Hambling’s first gallery exhibition in Hong Kong since her museum retrospectives in Beijing and Guangzhou in 2019.

The auction market and private treaty sale sectors reported good sales for high quality works, with estimates set to reflect the cautious economic environment. Sotheby’s auction this week will be a key indicator of the mood of the market but Phillip’s steady results from their Friday afternoon sale could be read as an early sign of quiet confidence in the secondary market.

With collectors jetting into Hong Kong from around the world, there were a noticeable number from the region, including mainland China, Korea and Taiwan as well as Europe and the UK. With the strength of the quality of work emanating from artists in East Asia at the moment, it is no surprise that collectors are keen to develop their knowledge and collections in this area. Of note however, there seemed to be fewer Australian collectors than in previous years.

With visitor numbers exceeding 75,000 across all five days of the fair, Art Basel Hong Kong in 2024 re-enforces Hong Kong’s regional and global prominence as being the second largest art market in the world, after New York.

P.S. Visit our Instagram for a further visual appreciation of our sojourn to Hong Kong.

©Angeline Collings

All images are original and taken by the author(s)

Images:

Lee Jinju at Arario Gallery
Ha Chong-Hyun @ Tina Kim Gallery
Tsherin Sherpa at Rossi & Rossi
Chen Zhen at Galleria Continua.
Louise Giovanelli @ White Cube Gallery (exhibition)
Sean Scully @ Ben Brown Fine Arts exhibition @ Asia Society HK

ART FAIR REPORT: FRIEZE SEOUL & KIAF 2023

Installation, Thaddeus Ropac, Frieze Seoul

Amid some concerns on the health of the South Korean art market, with art sales having dropped back to pre-covid level, gallerists, dealers and collectors alike were pinning their hopes on the return of Frieze Seoul and its counterpoint fair, KIAF.

Whilst various pundits have suggested the Korean market is “thin” due to its “volatility”, others suggest the number of buyers has in fact increased, with the ‘popularity’ of all things art having harnessed a broader demographic.

For more than three decades now, South Korea has maintained an important position within the broader Asian market, particularly with respect to the secondary market; as sophisticated, well-educated and focused collectors these members of affluent families hold significant purchasing power. 

With this as a backdrop, it is only reasonable then that a new generation of young collectors is emerging, one that is enthusiastically participating in the art market and happily embracing the concept of a collection. Notably, collectors under the age of 50 equate for 80% of contemporary art sales.

This strong and multi-demographic collector base has no doubt encouraged leading Western galleries to set up shop over the years, with the likes of Perrotin, Pace, Thaddeaus Ropac, and Lehmann Maupin taking up residence in the arts precincts on offer.  Jay Jopling’s White Cube is the most recent addition, with its timely opening of a group exhibition “The Embodied Spirit” offering some respite during Seoul Art Week.

Of course, South Korea has created a favourable business environment for European galleries, with an ever-increasing availability of English-speaking Korean art professionals, relatively low rent on gallery space, and ‘free trade zones’ providing seamless logistics.

Installation, Jonas Wood @ Gagosian Gallery, Frieze Seoul

Frieze Seoul

At just after 2pm at the VIP opening of Frieze Seoul, an enthusiastic ambience permeated the stands, with fresh-faced gallery staff at the ready; and they needed to be!  With foot traffic increasing by the minute, this was a buoyant and clearly successful start to Frieze’s 2nd iteration in Seoul.

Clearly a number of works had been pre-sold but equally, there was some high value negotiations taking place on the first day; a Kusama bronze pumpkin was being considered by competing parties at one stand (and this was not the only Kusama on display, a selection of Infinity Dot paintings of varying dimensions and quality also populated the fair), six figure sales were being transacted at many booths, and the first Georg Baselitz on display at Thaddeus Ropac sold for €1,200,000 ($1.3 million), and was replaced a day or so later, with an equally stunning Baselitz.

Installation, Yayoi Kusama @ David Zwirner, Frieze Seoul

Collector and institutional Interest in George Condo’s Picasso-inspired paintings has been strong across Asia, and in 2021, Condo was the subject of an extensive survey show at the Long Museum in Shanghai; in 2020, one of his paintings sold for $6.58 million at a Christie’s Hong Kong auction, setting an auction record for him.  This market traction no doubt proved salient during Frieze Seoul, with several galleries exhibiting and indeed selling, works by Condo.   

Hauser &Wirth had a choice “Picasso-inspired” painting occupying its own dedicated wall; Spruth Magers had a strong 2022 work on paper, Almine Rech included an earlier 2008/2009 small oil on linen, on their stand; and David Zwirner’s large, calligraphic mixed media work on linen attracted interest.

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Fair favourite (at both Freize and KIAF), Park Seo Bo’s sublime paintings and works on paper punctuated the booths, and drew the crowds, especially during the ‘happening’ at White Cube’s stand where ebullient director Jay Jopling observed the frantic adulation surrounding the now frail 91 year artist.  Along with leading internationalist Seoul gallery, Kukje, both sold works by the father of the 'Dansaekhwa' movement for around the $500k mark. 

The fervour bodes well for White Cube’s forthcoming, major solo exhibition for Park Seo Bo, scheduled for autumn 2024 at the gallery’s upcoming New York space on Madison Avenue (which is set to open in October this year). Jopling is also planning for a local project with a South Korean institution.

Installation view of White Cube’s booth at Frieze Seoul, 2023.
Photo by Lets Studio. Courtesy of Lets Studio and Frieze.

With the inclusion of Frieze Masters into the same trade hall space, there was some fairly serious blue-chip work on display. As the days progressed and foot traffic multiplied, extra security contract staff and carefully placed stanchions were starting to be installed; the latter was definitely required for the Instagram worthy sculpture by Jeff Koons at European Masters gallery, Robilant & Voena.

Julian Opie @ Cristea Roberts Gallery, KIAF Seoul

KIAF

With two decades of editions behind it, this year’s KIAF comprising 210 exhibiting galleries, and more than 130 were from Korea should have been better.  Enthusiastic foot traffic aside, the purported “range of art on view is broad in scope, scale, and price point” noted by one commentator really translated into a miscellany of quality, and unfortunately, compromised the other well curated booths from an unfortunately, much smaller percentage of exhibitors.

Indeed, one European gallery with an exemplary inventory on display – think Chagall, Picasso and Fontana - was clearly dissatisfied, voicing his grievance to a patient Fair staff member. 

The frequent public service announcements requesting visitors not to take photos unless granted permission and not touch the artworks, did not help matters, invading conversations and infantilising visitors. 

However apart from these disappointments, there were some established Seoul-based galleries with a thoughtful array of works by some key Korean artists.

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Chun Kwangyoung’s recognisable “Aggregate” series perhaps more akin to freestanding sculptures and wall hangings and composed of hundreds of tiny polystyrene triangles, which the artist then wraps in coloured Korean mulberry paper, was being shown by several galleries, as too was proponent of the Korean Art Informel movement of the 1950s and 60, Kim Tschang-Yeul, whose oil and graphite on linen paintings hover somewhere between abstraction and hyper-realism.

The burnt umber and raw canvas of one of the leading figures of the Korean Dansaekhwa art movement Yun Hyong Keun, was also a Fair favourite across both Frieze and Seoul, with quite a number of works on display at galleries’ respective booths.

Many of the exhibiting galleries at KIAF reported good productive engagement with visitors, with many reporting good sales.  One exhibitor noted his observance of  the “different accents and languages [which] can be heard across the fair concourse, solidifying the fact that this fair—and Seoul as a whole—is now a bona fide hub of international art. “

To view more artworks from the fairs visit https://www.instagram.com/catherineasquithart/

©Catherine Asquith 2023 

Art Basel Hong Kong – back with a bang!

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By all accounts ‘palpable excitement’ circumscribed the return of Art Basel Hong Kong and was clearly welcomed by the city, regional and international collectors, and the exhibiting galleries and artists. 

Proudly espousing some stats, media releases noted that 177 galleries were taking part in this year’s iteration, up from the 130 exhibitors in 2022, making ABHK the “largest fair in Hong Kong since 2019”.

Early indications suggested a plethora of healthy sales during the VIP day.  Selected notable sales were several acquisitions by Asian museums: “Birdcage Man”, Yinka Shonibare at £200,000, from Stephen Friedman; “Truffaut” by Elizabeth Peyton at $2.2m from David Zwirner. The George Condo 2011 work on Hauser & Wirth’s stand, “Purple Compression” sold for $4.75m to a private collector, and the large-scale abstraction by Mark Bradford, “A Straight Line” also sold for $3.5m.  White Cube enjoyed some solid sales of works by Anslem Kiefer (EUR1m), Damien Hirst (USD525K), Antony Gormley (GBP500K) and three works by Park Seo-Bo.

Strong, buoyant attendance was also evident, although there was a visible difference in numbers between the VIP and Public days, with the latter becoming painfully congested.

Mainland Chinese collectors accounted for “a big chunk” of attendees; Korean, Japanese, and Taiwanese collectors were also highly visible at the fair, especially younger collectors.  European collectors were in the minority.

Whilst there has been speculation that Hong Kong’s formerly draconian measures regarding the pandemic would have a negative impact on the international position of Hong Kong, as a global city, and it is certainly a changed city now, the tax advantages are driving the market and maintaining its position.

Additionally, substantial investment in the city’s cultural infrastructure is a factor: M+ Museum finally ‘fully’ opened to the public with a major survey show by the ubiquitous Yayoi Kusama alongside showcasing the 1500-strong Uli Sigg collection.  The West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) precinct, which ‘houses’ the Museum will likely become a destination arts hub, with the addition of Phillips new Asian headquarters, also based in the WKCD.

Art Basel & UBS Art Market Report 2022

Art Basel Hong Kong, 2022

Key findings as follows:

Global Sales: Following its biggest recession in 10 years in 2020, the global art market recovered strongly in 2021, with aggregate sales of art and antiques by dealers and auction houses reaching an estimated $65.1 billion, up 29% from 2020, with values also surpassing pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

Leading Markets: The US market retained its leading position, shifting up slightly to 43% of worldwide sales by value. The Chinese art market was the second largest art market with 20%, while the UK slipped back to third place and 17%.

Dealer Figures: After a decline of 20% in 2020, aggregate sales reached an estimated $34.7 billion in 2021, increasing 18% year-on-year but still below the level of 2019. Across all dealers, a majority (61%) reported an increase in sales values year-on-year from 2020, 13% were stable, and 26% experienced a decline.

Auction Figures: Sales at public auction of fine and decorative art and antiques (excluding auction house private sales) reached an estimated $26.3 billion in 2021, an increase of 47% on 2020 driven by the supply of high-quality works coming onto the market, as well as an influx of new buyers.

NFTs: In 2021, 74% of HNW collectors surveyed by Arts Economics and UBS Investor Watch, had purchased art-based NFTs, with a median expenditure in this category of NFTs totaling $9,000 each. NFT sales also entered the traditional art market’s auction sector in 2021, but at limited values thus far.

Online Sales: The online market continued to expand, growing by a more moderate 7% in 2021 to reach an estimated $13.3 billion. Top-tier auction houses continued to introduce new formats and invested substantially in the quality and delivery of live-streamed and online-only auction platforms – the former producing some of the most successful live sales of the year – enabling a more continuous, year-round schedule rather than the traditional seasonal cycle of sales.

Art Fairs: In 2021, as the fair calendar resumed, even with a reduced number of fairs and limited capacity in some, art fair sales advanced to 29% (including OVRs) of dealer sales, up 7% in share year-on-year, but still nowhere close to the 43% reported in 2019.

HNW Collectors: Surveys of 2,339 HNW collectors conducted by Arts Economics and UBS Investor Watch across ten markets showed increased spending at high levels in 2021, with collectors having purchased more art and antiques in 2021 on average than they did in 2019 and 2020, reinforcing their importance in maintaining the strength of the art market during the pandemic.

Extract from Report by Dr Clare McAndrews

Melbourne Art Fair / VIP Fair Tours

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Delighted to be hosting Melbourne Art Fair’s selected VIP Fair Tours for the 2022 iteration, in which the Melbourne Art Fair will harness the monumental exhibition spaces of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre to present solo presentations and works of scale and significance by 53 of the region’s leading galleries.

Partnering with Melbourne’s leading institutions, private museums and independent art spaces, the Melbourne Art Fair VIP Program celebrates the vibrancy of Victoria’s cultural landscape. The program engages an international network of collectors through invitation-only dinners, studio visits, private collection tours, exhibition openings, and private events. Melbourne Art Fair allows collectors to discover artists, galleries and artworld figures at the forefront of contemporary art, and experience the best of our host city, Melbourne.

Tickets and more information here.

Images:

Jonny Niesche
Total Vibration (Stardust Blue), 2021
Voile, powder coated aluminium, mirror polished brass
180 x 330 x 5 cm
Showing @ 1301SW

Matt Arbuckle
Recto Verso, 2020
acrylic on knitted polyester voile and acrylic on timber
190 x 5000 cm
Showing @ Daine Singer

Tomislav Nikolic
“Initiation of Intuition”, 2020
Synthetic polymer, marble dust, 22ct gold leaf and copper leaf on linen, gesso compound & wood, 236 x 292 x 11cm
Showing @ Fox Jensen & Fox Jensen McCrory

Andre Hémer
Scenes from an Infinite Sky (October 10, 16:23 CEST), 2021
Acrylic and pigment on canvas
165 x 120cm
Showing @ Yavuz Gallery

ARCO MADRID

ARCOmadrid is the international contemporary art fair in Spain that, since 1982, has been one of the main platforms for the art market, as well as having become one of the essential art fairs on the international calendar.

For this year’s edition, having commenced 7 July, the fair will comprise a number of programs including the ARCOmadrid Forum, a series of talks, and ArtsLibris which hosts editions.

As would be expected in this ‘new normal’ covid-era, the fair has implemented a number of health and safety protocols, including monitoring visitation and traffic through the enclosure.  Approximately 130 galleries will be participating, which equates with approximately half of the visitation last seen in February 2020.

Read Ocula’s highlights of the Fair here.

InTouch Edition - 5

InTouch is an online digital exhibition, bringing together galleries from the Middle East and South East Asia. It aims to create an organised and synergistic platform for the galleries to collaborate, and challenge traditional formats of engaging with art.

Provocative works which caught my eye:

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The collages of Maya Varadaraj use vintage images drawn from popular culture of India, to manipulate them into concentricity.

This particular piece represents a woman, questioning her status and history. The centrifugal quality adds a hypnotic character to the piece, transporting the viewer to an alternate universe. Its composition is minimalistic as compared to other Varadaraj pieces exhibited, with the subject’s face as a clear focal point. What is interesting is the subject’s Madonna-like character. She has her head covered with a dark robe; gold embellishments framing her face. She expels a pious, divine nature. She stands as a symbol of life, royalty and purity. 

Dhruvi Acharya is a well-known artist within the industry fabric of India. She is known to be a familiar face represented by one of the most recognised gallery of the country, Chemould Prescott Road in Mumbai. The exhibition, Elusive Recesses, showcases her ink and watercolour works which were made in isolation during the COVID pandemic. They confront the unrest that 2020 brought to the world, including natural disasters, political upheaval in addition to crimes against minorities and women.

The composition of ‘Fifth Elusive Recess’ has a strong textural and compositional quality, drawing the viewer’s eye to the right. While the backdrop balances the image. Presumably, this work points at the patriarchal society prominent in India, with the subject’s defeated heart interlinked with partition of her hair, which holds a sacred place (for vermillion) within Indian culture.

Latif Al Ani’s photographs shed light on ‘heritage lost'. Much of modern Iraq is either lost or is known to the world as a product of conflict. Ani, from the late 1950s to the late 70s, captured the vanishing pageant of Iraqi society. He focussed on not just beauty of his land but also the culture of his people, touching base on the architecture, landscapes and streetscapes. His exhibit of these images is a result of the protection given by the Arab Image Foundation. He ceased shooting from 1979 as Saddam Hussein came to power which led to an invasion by the USA within Iraqi turf.

This particular piece is a quintessential Ani, as it reflects a sense of calm before the country was struck by violence; capturing local architectural ruins as well as natural beauty of the countryside, with the sheep grazing with ease.

For more details regarding this innovative platform please click here

©Shristi Sainani
December 2020

Australian Business Tax Break:Instant Asset Write-Off

As part of the recently announced budget stimulus packages, the Australian Government has increased the instant asset write-off (IAWO) threshold from $30,000 to $150,000 and has expanded access to include all businesses with an aggregated turnover of less than $500m, until 30 June 2020.  This higher IAWO threshold will provide cash flow benefits for businesses that will be able to immediately deduct purchases of eligible assets each costing less than $150,000.

Artworks are both investments and depreciating assets according to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), and as such, art qualifies as an allowable asset write-off measure. The instant asset write-off is generally claimed back via your business tax return.

Now would be an ideal time to take advantage of this tax benefit.  Contact us today for a consultation.

Image: Tony Cragg sculptures, Sydney Contemporary, September 2019