Christie's Hong Kong: Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction Analysis

June 3, 2015

M Felix

On the last day of May, Christies Hong Kong held its Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction, a part of the Christie’s 2015 Hong Kong Spring Auctions. It was a very good auction at Christie's and we have seen some serious numbers. Out of 215 lots offered, 154 lots were sold. Auction gathered $6.762.444, staying under the sum of high estimates of all sold lots for $130.000 or 1.9 percent. The absolute surprise and the highlight of this auction, and let us underline this again, was seen in the sale of lot 248 or Mao Lizi's Untitled from 1989 which scored three records: the highest hammer price of $412.627, the highest hammer high estimate difference of astronomical 2566.6 percent, and a personal record for the artist at an auction.

Three Auction Records In The Pocket Of Mao Lizi

We have seen three impressive records achieved by Mao Lizi at Christie's Hong Kong: Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction and we feel the need to introduce him. Mao Lizi is a Chinese artist born in 1950 in Shan Xi and three years later his family moved to Beijing. Mao Lizi is a partially self-taught painter and member of the rusticated youth generation. he simplicity of painting is the most distinctive feature in Mao Lizi’s artworks. The composition conveys the idea that less is better than more, emphasizing the vastness of space and exploration among the void. In his paintings, some are simple, gentle, and elegant; some possess the rhythmic musicality, while some delineate the reality and unreality grow out of each other, and the vacant is fine scenery. Studying from the details of the painting, we may derive that Mao Lizi is deeply inspired by traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy. He incorporates the structure and rhythm of calligraphy into abstractness - simple strokes are thus the essential quality of his abstract paintings. Mao Lizi properly manipulates the linear flow and casual spill, showing the status of being subtle yet rhythmic, implicit yet explicit. Between the omitted and submergence, aggregation and convergence, aurora and lines, the artist has intrigued viewers to realize a natural but abstract poetic imagery.

The Overview Of Christie's Hong Kong: Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction

As already mentioned, Christie's Hong Kong: Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction can be seen as a successful one with 154 lots sold, or 71. percent of total number of lots offered at the auction. Forty-four lots, or 28.6 percent, were sold for a price larger than the high estimate, as opposed to 25 lots, or 16.2 percent, sold under the low estimate. Most of the lots, precisely 85, were sold in the range of estimated values. The highest hammer price was seen in the sale of previously mentioned Mao Lizi's Untitled from 1989 which was sold for $412.627. The average hammer price of these 154 sold lots was at $43.912. Hammer price median was $19.342 (this means that the same number of lots were sold for more than $19.342 and for less than $19.342). The difference between average hammer price and median was -56 percent.

The second highest hammer price was seen in the sale of lot 166 - Yan Pei-Ming's Black Selfportrait which was sold for $335.260. Both Choi So-Young's Food Alley II and I Nyoman Masriadi's Chicken Dance were sold for the same price of $283.681. The highest hammer high estimate differences were achieved with the sales of Lin Jingjing's My Promise For Your Happiness No 6, Zhou Changjiang's Complementation Series No994 and with one more lot from Mao Lizi.

Scroll down to see the best and the worst performing lots of Christie’s Hong Kong: Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Li Chen - Float To Sukhavati, 2002, (lot 130) Estimated from $90.262 to $116.051. With hammer price of $257.892 this lot topped high estimate for 122.2 percent.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Left: Yan Pei Ming - Black Self Portrait, 2007, (lot 166) Estimated from $232.103 to $309.470. The hammer price of $335.260 is the second largest of this auction. / Right: Suh Do Ho - Gate-Small, 2003, (lot 108) Estimated from $257.892 to $386.838. With hammer price of $283.681 this lot achieved the third highest hammer price of this auction.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Zhou Changjiang - Complementation Series No994, 1999, (lot 252) Estimated from $7.737 to $15.474. With the final price of $51.578 this lot surpassed high estimate for 233.3 percent.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Left: Tomoya Tsukamoto - Circle 3, 2014, (lot 189) Estimated from $25.789 to $38.684. Sold for $103.157 this lot achieved 166.7 percent hammer high estimate difference. / Right: Yoshitomo Nara - Untitled, 1988, (lot 241) Estimated from $15.474 to $20.631. This lot achieved hammer price of $12.250.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Left: Jane Lee - Fetish P8, 2009, (lot 155) Estimated from $19.342 to $32.237. It achieved hammer high estimate difference of 140 percent since it was sold for $77.368. / Right: Keisuke Tanaka - Tento, 2007, (lot 137) Estimated from $19.342 to $25.789. Sold for 10.316.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Left: Mao Lizi - Untitled, late 1980's, (lot 250) Estimated from $7.737 to $12.895 and sold for $45.131. Hammer high estimate difference of great 250 percent. / Right: I Nyoman Masriadi - Chicken Dance, 2010, (lot 119) Estimated from $257.892 to $386.838. With hammer price of $283.681 this lot achieved the third highest hammer price of this auction.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Left: Mao Lizi - Untitled, 1989, (lot 248) Estimated from $10.316 to $15.474. This lot is the absolute highlight of Christie’s auction with its hammer price of $412.627 and hammer high estimate difference of staggering 2566.6 percent. / Right: Xu Bing - Bird Language, 2003, (lot 139) Estimated from $51.578 to $77.368. With hammer price of 38.684 this lot achieved 25 percent lower price than the low estimate.

christie's hong kong auction analysis
Left: Lin Jingjing - My Promise For Your Happiness No 6, 2012, (lot 283) Estimated from $9.026 to $11.605. This lot achieved its hammer price at $38.684. / Right: Yoshimoto Nara - Sleepless Night (Sitting), 2007, (lot 238) Estimated from $10.316 to $15.474. Sold for $38.684.

Christie's Hong Kong: Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction In Details

Please, scroll down to find out more about each lot that was auctioned at Christie's Hong Kong: Asian Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction – find out their estimated values, hammer prices and find out which lots weren’t sold.


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All images are courtesy of Christie’s Hong Kong.

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