Ravenel’s Taipei 2016 Spring Auction has successfully closed at the height of summer. Although the spring auction atmosphere in Hong Kong has been calm, the year’s Spring Auction in Taipei closed with satisfactory results and greatly encouraged the cooling auction market.
From the start of this year’s bidding, contemporary Japanese artworks attracted enthusiastic bids from many collectors. Successfully sold, the first lot by Takashi Murakami boosted this year’s Spring Auction. Then, one after another, several contemporary artworks found their collectors. Among them, the statue “Sleepless Night Sitting” by Yoshitomo Nara was sold for US$48,030, breaking the lot’s current world record. Another piece by Nara, “Untitled”, color pencil on paper, also fetched US$35,099. In addition, two statues, “Companion Karimoku Version” and “Companion (Gray)” by contemporary American artist KAWS were respectively sold for US$24,015 and US$35,099, which indicated Ravenel’s keen nose for sensing the direction of the auction market.
The highest bid of this year’s Spring Auction was Zao Wou-ki’s remarkable 1980s work “01.11.86,” sold for US$1,320,197, a value close to the high estimate. “Touches Orangées” and “Rebondissement,” two attractive pieces by Chu Teh-chun, respectively yielded US$960,591 and US$258,621. The exquisite “Lady Playing Moon Guitar” by grand master of modern art education Lin Fengmian sold for US$332,512, proving that classic artworks are still highly acclaimed among the collectors. Contemporary Chinese artworks also delivered brilliant results. Among them, “Red Rock” by Zhou Chunya in 1999 was sold for US$849,754, the third highest value of this auction. “Appearance of Crosses 2008-23” by Ding Yi fetched US$162,562, a value close to the high estimate. “Amber - Dragon” by contemporary Chinese sculptor Li Hui was also sold for US$133,005. These results showed that Ravenel’s discerning eye for contemporary Chinese artworks has received recognition from collectors.
The category of modern / contemporary Taiwanese art also brought another climax to this year’s Spring Auction. Five lots by Liu Kuo-sung caused around 10 competitive bids, both in person and by phone. They were all sold, reaching 173% sold by value. Beginning with US$46,000, “Rhythm of the Moon” eventually fetched US$110,837 after 20 competitive bids. “Deep in the Verdant Twilight” also aroused bidders’ enthusiasm, and eventually sold for US$88,670 after 13 bids. The results indicated that Ravenel has grasped the best opportunities for purchasing and collecting fine artworks with reasonable estimates.
The estimates lower than the current market price attracted numerous collectors to bid for the artworks, showing Ravenel not only held strong strength in the local auction market but also saw subtle changes in the auction market, offering collectors a great opportunity to purchase exquisite artworks in advance of market trends. President of Art Department, Ravenel Taipei, Flora Fu said, “In the future, we will provide an even more diverse array of art, extending our scope from China and Taiwan, Japan and Korea, to contemporary Western art, in order to serve our diverse collectors with more precise estimates and reasonable values.”