With growing confidence among Chinese contemporary art buyers, Sotheby’s will heavily feature work from the Asian state in its June 26th and 27th contemporary sales in London. Works by Zhang Xiaogang, Shi Xinning, Yue Minjun, and Zhang Huan will feature prominently in the sales, with a series of works expected to sell anywhere between £120,000 and £450,000. (more…)
Outside View, Art Basel 2013, Photograph Courtesy of Art Basel
The city of Basel, situated at the border between Switzerland, France and Germany, will be transformed into a contemporary arts hub this week for the 44th annual Art Basel. Anticipating record attendence, the fair will look to top its record of over 65,000 visitors at the marathon art event this year. With over 300 top galleries from all over the world flocking to the city to display over 4,000 artists’ work, the fair is commonly referred to as the “Olympics of the art world.” and features a similarly brimming schedule of events and claustrophobic crowds of eager spectators. Each day boasts its own full agenda, including film screenings, artist talks, and performances, and joined by the vast number of peripheral art exhibitions and events hosted by cultural institutions of Basel throughout the entire region, held in obscure and romantic venues amidst the Swiss lakes and mountains.
Ai Weiwei, S.A.C.R.E.D. (Installation View inside steel diorama) (2013)
Since his 2011 detention for alleged tax evasion by the Chinese government, artist and political dissident Ai Weiwei has taken the world by storm, with exhibitions and retrospectives around the world, alongside documentary profiles, constant press coverage, and a notably enigmatic heavy metal album. His ubiquity in the artworld, set in contrast to his physical restriction from leaving China, is clear, and consistent at the 55th Venice Biennale, where the artist is holding two separate solo installations.
Ai Weiwei, S.A.C.R.E.D. (Installation View) (2013)
Ai Weiwei, Straight (Installation View) (2008-2012) (more…)
The late Chinese artist Zhang Daiqian saw impressive auction results this week during both Christie’s and Sotheby’s auctions of contemporary Asian art in Hong Kong. Daiqian’s Lotus work, consisting of four painted scrolls more than five feet high, sold for five times its estimate at $10.4 million during Christie’s auction yesterday. In addition, an auction dedicated solely to works by Daiqian reached $42 Million in sales at Sotheby’s on Monday. Zhang currently stands as one of the top-selling artists at auction worldwide. (more…)
Hong Kong Convention Center, site of the Art Basel Hong Kong Art Fair, via Forbes
With the closing of the doors at the Hong Kong Convention Center this past Sunday, the first edition of Art Basel Hong Kong was brought to a conclusion after a flourish of strong sales, critical praise, and notable attention for the art fair giant’s first foray into the Asian continent.
Every two years, the floating city of Venice floods with with the multitudes of art visitors, customers, gallerists and exhibitions that are all a part of the Venice Biennale. This year, marking the 55th edition of the world’s largest art fair, sees the continuation of an event that first began in 1896. Between June 1st and November 24th over 300,000 visitors will travel to Venice for the expansive installations of exhibitions of work from artists in 88 nations, at both official and fringe sites. Art Observed will be on-site this week, with photos from variety of events around the city.
Hong Kong Convention Center, via Art in America
Tomorrow, Art Basel Hong Kong will open its doors to the public, inaugurating the expansion of the company’s impressive range of art fairs into the Far East. Situated at the Hong Kong Convention Center, the fair has brought collectors and galleries from the world over to the heart of this bustling metropolis, for a week of art sales, talks and special projects, all with a particular focus on the contemporary art world of the Asia-Pacific region.
Hong Kong’s Inflatable Rubber Duck, via CNN
Artist Ai Weiwei was on hand last week to film and upload a large fight on Beijng’s Ghost Street between ethnic Tibetan and ethnic Han Chinese street vendors. The video quickly went viral, gaining the attention of viewers worldwide. “I had arrived in the middle of the fight,” he said later. “I saw someone lying on the ground with blood.” (more…)
On top of his widely recognized work as an artist and political activist, Ai Weiwei is also apparently a skilled barber. Weiwei was recently documented giving haircuts to several fellow diners at a Chinese restaurant by Beijing Cream. “I’ve given hundreds,” the artist said. “I could make a book out of it.” (more…)
A giant, inflatable rubber duck sculpture by artist Florentijn Hofman has been installed in the port of Hong Kong, bringing residents out in droves to see it floating in the harbor. While the duck has traveled to a number of cities around the world, the fervent response to its arrival in Hong Kong has bordered on cultural phenomenon, with restaurants making special rubber-duck themed foods and politicians praising the sculpture for the “limitless amounts of joy” it has brought to the city. (more…)
The Two Zodiac Heads to be Returned to China, via China Radio International
French president François Hollande has embarked on his first visit to China, accompanied by a number of high-profile French business heads. Among them is François-Henri Pinault, the Kering CEO and Christie’s head who has brought a gift of two bronze statues looted from the Beijing Summer Palace in 1860. (more…)
Artist Paul McCarthy’s Complex Pile has been damaged in southern China following an unexpected rainfall. The work, which was on view as part of a show on inflatable art in West Kowloon, was deflated to avoid further damage. “A small hole was discovered on the surface of the piece. We are doing our best to fix it and hopefully we can inflate the artwork as soon as possible,” a spokeswoman said. (more…)
Zhang Xiaogang (Installation View), via Pace Gallery
Currently featured at Pace Gallery’s space at 510 West 25th Street, is the first series of Zhang Xiaogang‘s painted bronze sculptures. At first glance it appears simply as a 3 dimensional representation of Xiaogang’s famous Bloodline characters, however there are in fact numerous dialogues in the works as well as the artist’s practise, that deepen and darken the situation.
This December, collectors Mera and Don Rubell will present Year of the Artist, a showcase of contemporary Chinese art at the 2013 edition of Art Basel Miami Beach. Featuring 20 artists, including Ai Weiwei and Zhang Huang, the show will look to bring a major focus to the Chinese nation’s vibrant arts scene. “There’s a new generation of Chinese artists that is interesting to us,” said Mera Rubell in a telephone interview. “They have the world view and they are also dealing with the transformation of China itself.” (more…)
Christie’s has been granted a license to operate without government oversight in mainland China, becoming the first independent auction house in the country. The agreement comes in the wake of a reported dip in auction sales for the country last year, and some suspect the move comes as a way to introduce higher standards of authentication to the proceedings of auctions in mainland China. “In recent years we have seen phenomenal developments take place in the global art market, particularly in China, where the market has grown at an unprecedented rate,” said Christie’s CEO Steven P. Murphy. “Today’s announcement further solidifies Christie’s position and commitment in a market which possesses a strong heritage and deep appreciation of art.” (more…)
Chinese artist and dissident Ai Weiwei will create a new installation this summer along the Emscher River in Germany’s Ruhr Region for the Emscherkunst triennial arts festival. The artist plans to erect 1,000 small tents along the river, allowing festival-goers to stay in the tents for a small fee. “The idea is to let normal people participate” says festival curator Florian Matzner. (more…)
The Guggenheim Museum has received a $10 million grant from the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation in Hong Kong to comission new works from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. The move comes as the museum continues to expand its global view of contemporary art. “This is all part of our global narrative,” says Richard Armstrong, director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. “For years people have asked what we are doing about China. This is a crucial next step.” (more…)
TEFAF is currently in talks with Sotheby’s and Beijing GeHua Group (China’s state-owned development company) over a new art fair in China. “TEFAF Beijing 2014” would place a new edition of the world’s largest art and antiques fair in the world’s second-largest art market. “We feel now is the time to further develop our presence in China, one of the most important art markets,” said TEFAF Executive Ben Janssens. “Tefaf is committed to contributing to the further growth of the market for European art in China.” (more…)
Chinese artist and dissident Ai Weiwei has announced plans to release an album of heavy metal, inspired by his 81 days in detention in 2011, and his political stance towards the Chinese government. Called “Divina Commedia,” the title is a comic play on the nickname “Ai God” that he has earned among his supporters. “You know, I’m a person that’s furthest away from music, I never sing,” Ai said. “But you’ll be surprised. You’ll like it.” (more…)
Zhang Xiaogang, Beijing Voice (Installation View), Courtesy of PACE Beijing
PACE Beijing is currently exhibiting a selection new works by Chinese painter Zhang Xiaogang, showcasing the artist’s interpretations of Chinese identity, memory and relation. The exhibition, part of PACE’s annual Beijing Voice’s event, is the first stop on the artist’s work in a global tour which will also include PACE exhibitions at their locations in New York and London. (more…)
China is currently considering legislation that would guarantee artists royalty payments anytime their art is resold at auction. These rights to a percentage of an artist’s resale price, referred to as “droit de suite” rights, are part of a new copyright law proposal that would bring China closer to European copyright standards, and is already causing fierce debate in the Chinese art market. “Droit de suite may stifle the development of the market,” wrote Ji Tao, an auction industry expert at China Culture Daily, but: “From the point of view of the artists and authors, droit de suite is a good thing, because every transaction means gains.” (more…)
Song Dong, Facing the Wall (1999), via PACE Gallery
On view at both of Pace Gallery’s New York exhibition spaces is an exhibition of work by Chinese artist Song Dong, compiling the artist’s recent work from dOCUMENTA 13 and the Kiev Biennial, as well as older work.
Song Dong, Doing Nothing Mountains (2011-2012), via PACE Gallery (more…)
Total sales at China’s largest auctions houses more than halved last year, showing major instability in what was by some reports the world’s largest art market. The slowdown in sales may not augur well for the global market, which has looked to China to mask reduced buying in the Western hemisphere. “Certain factors, including political uncertainty, did see buyers press the pause button.” says Steven Murphy, the chief executive of Christie’s. (more…)
The National Museum of China has opened a new exhibition, featuring a large collection of works from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Earth, Sea and Sky: Nature in Western Art is the first large-scale collaboration between the two major arts institutions, and pulls from the American museum’s vast collection. “Never before has an exhibition of this scope and theme, drawn entirely from the Met’s holdings, traveled to China.” Says Met director Thomas Campbell. (more…)
