Although it didn’t have an art auction market until 2008, Hong Kong is now one of the world’s leading centres for the trade of artworks. Some subsets of the art market, such as ultra-contemporary, have grown as active in Hong Kong as in New York.
While New York brought in $41 million from 688 lots sold in 2023, Hong Kong brought in $39 million from 239 Ultra-contemporary pieces, putting them right behind New York in this area. Hong Kong, not New York, is seeing the most thrilling bidding wars for works by young Western artists, which is a significant change from the market’s traditional dominance.
When it comes to the ultra-contemporary market’s three hubs, Hong Kong has been the most resilient in the face of the downturn of the luxury market. Its sales turnover fell by 11% instead of -42% in the US and -52% in the UK; nevertheless, most of the 7-digit figures in this segment are currently being pounded in Hong Kong. Hong Kong had seven million-plus results for musicians under 40 in the first half of 2023, whereas New York and London only managed four and two, respectively.
When it comes to Western art, Hong Kong has emerged as a testing ground for upcoming stars; the city’s performance in this area is comparable to, if not better than, that of the US and the UK combined.
The new Western art stars are being introduced to the auction market in Hong Kong as a test market. Think about the 34-year-old artist Camilla ENGSTROM; she credits Instagram with catapulting her to superstardom (she has over 120,000 followers today). In 2022, her pieces were showcased by the König Gallery in Germany, and one of them was put up for auction at Christie’s Hong Kong office. The 2020 season of Her Love Tastes Delicious grossed about $73,000, much above the $15,000 high forecast. This sudden appreciation in value exemplifies the preference of Asian collectors for surrealist-influenced, colourful paintings. Phillips used a similar tactic in the spring of 2023 when she decided to sell Purple Lake (2020) in Hong Kong. Its final price of $48,500 was well over the high estimate of $19,000, and the artwork was slightly smaller than the one sold at Christie’s.
Most of the most expensive artworks sold in Hong Kong are by artists from outside of Asia. With over a million views, Matthew Wong, Avery Singer, Lucy Bull, and Jadé Fadojutimi have topped the charts this year.
Hong Kong is rapidly becoming the site of the most intensely impassioned purchasing, in addition to being an “accelerator” for the “prodigies” of Western art. Because Asians are such excellent clients, Phillips, Sotheby’s, and Christie’s are actively working to expand their presence in the Asian market. A new auction room, exhibition area, and headquarters are all in the works for that location at Sotheby’s. In a few months, the architectural firm of Zaha Hadid will have completed a new office for Christie’s in Hong Kong. The building will be almost as big as the company’s headquarters in London. The new Phillips headquarters, which was built by Herzog & de Meuron, was launched in March 2023. The complex includes offices, a café, a VIP lounge, exhibition rooms, an auction room, and more. With an eye on reaching the lucrative Asian market, the three businesses are concentrating heavily on the city of Hong Kong.
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