Of the 52 lots offered for sale, 49 found buyers – a 94 percent sale rate – who paid a total of HK$673.4 million (US$86 million). Six works were drawn from the Modern & Contemporary section of the sale and two from the Now section prior to the auction.
of Pablo Picasso The artist (1963), highly publicized before the auction, sold for a bargain price of HK$66 million, equaling the lowest preliminary estimate. The lot was guaranteed with an irrevocable offer. Including commission, the auction price was HK$78.7 million.
According to research firm ArtTactic, global sales of artworks produced after 2000 fell 17 percent in 2023 from a year earlier, but this market segment remains more resilient than older ones works of art, which fell 22 percent over the same period.
The best result in the Now section was achieved by George Condo’s Green eyed lady (2016), which sold for HK$13.5 million and was also backed by an irrevocable offer.
Although the majority of lots sold reached prices right in the middle of their estimates, total sales were just 61 percent of the HK$1.1 billion figure for Sotheby’s April 2023 Modern and Contemporary Art Evening Sales.
Richard Zhang Teng, an art economist in Shanghai, says the results of this year’s early spring sales suggest there is cautious optimism in the market.
“Compared to last year’s 50th anniversary sales in Hong Kong, which were packed with a wider selection of works and more big names, this year’s auction reflects a more conservative approach from both buyers and the auction house. But with Sotheby’s lower commissions, the results were quite positive given the market conditions,” says Zhang.
Zhang, founder of research firm Economics on Art Market, says the market is unlikely to recover in the near term, citing the International Monetary Fund’s February forecast of a potential 30-60 percent drop in real estate investment in China compared to with 2022 levels.
“The art market is a very passive market. It cannot simply improve by self-regulation; it is always subject to the volatility of the wider macroeconomic situation,” he says.
