Art Basel Hong Kong 2024 roundup
From a Sophie Ellis-Bextor performance, to a $9 million de Kooning: Heres everything worth knowing about Art Basel Hong Kong 2024
Happy Monday! Its officially spring, the start of a new month and the end of Art Basel Hong Kong, so let’s kick back and dissect the whirlwind that unfolded in art fair land last week.
Vibe check:
This years fair was back to its pre-pandemic capacity, up more than a third from last year, but despite this, many galleries reported a slower sales pace than in previous years.
Sales were steady but a general caution could be felt amongst collectors perhaps fuelled by economic uncertainty and the passing of Article 23 in Hong Kong on Tuesday afternoon, the same day the fair opened its doors for the First Choice VIP preview. Article 23, is a supplement to the national security law which prompted mass protests to erupt in the city in 2020. It has reared fresh concerns about Hong Kong’s creative limitations, swirling potential censorship fears amongst local artists and institutions.
Whilst a spokesperson for Art Basel claimed: “We have never faced any censorship issues at our shows, nor have we been asked to do anything differently since the introduction of the National Security Law”, this fails to account for the self-censorship that galleries and artists may now feel is necessary to be included in major art fairs in China.
Read more about the art worlds reaction to Article 23 here
The art that found new owners:
Reportedly, the highest-priced artwork sold was said to be Hauser & Wirth's consignment of Willem de Kooning's Untitled III (1986) for US$9 million.
Other notable sales included:
Hauser & Wirth
Philip Guston, The Desire (1978) for US$8.5 million, to an undisclosed buyer
Mark Bradford, May the Lord be the first one in the car...and the last out. (2023) for US$3.5 million, to a private Asian collection
Ed Clark, Homage to the Sands of Springtime (2009), for US$1.1 million, to a foundation in mainland China
Lehmann Maupin
Three works by Kim Yun Shin
Lee Bul, Perdu CXCIV (2024) for US$190,000
Marylin Minter, Red White and Blue (2022–23) for US$175,000
David Salle, Tree of Life, Split (2024) for between US$120,000 and US$130,000
Pace
Adam Pendleton, Black Dada (D) (2014) for US$275,000
Thaddaeus Ropac
Tony Cragg, Incident Solo (2023) for US$785,000
Martha Jungwirth, Ohne Titel (2023) for US$487,000
Victoria Miro
Three works by Yayoi Kusama, including an Infinity Mirror Room, for a combined total of US$11 million
White Cube sold 10 works on the opening day
An Anselm Kiefer work for US$1.25 million
Lynne Drexler, Plumed Bloom (1967) for US$1.2 million
Christine Ay Tjoe, 3->2 #05 (2010) for US$750,000
Gagosian cited sales of work by Carol Bove, Hao Liang, Tetsuya Ishida, Sarah Sze, Nathaniel Mary Quinn, Mary Weatherford, and Stanley Whitney.
David Zwirner cited sales of work by Michaël Borremans, Rose Wylie, and Oscar Murillo.
Young collectors and 2000’s throwbacks:
This years Art Basel Hong Kong drew many young, keen and ambitious collectors. There was specific recognition of the strong presence of Taiwanese collectors by David Zwirner’s Senior Director, Patricia Crockett.
Many of the collectors in China have made their fortunes in the finance and tech sectors. It is thought that generally they seemed to be looking for pieces that have personal resonance rather than an immediate resale value, and they were on the look out for pieces by Asian artists, emerging artists and works at lower price points.
On March 25th many of these collectors could be found at Harbour House, Rosewood Hong Kong’s new 3,100-square-foot penthouse. In conjunction with the opening of Art Basel Hong Kong, art world crowds gathered to celebrate the hotel’s fifth anniversary and the launch of their RWD Front Row culture series. The event was co-organised by Serpentine Gallery, London, who held a panel discussion earlier that day with Minsuk Cho (Architect of the Serpentine Pavilion 2024), Bettina Korek (Serpentine CEO), Trish Luyckx (Chief Design and Project Services Officer at the Rosewood Hotel Group) and the youngest recipient of the Serpentine Pavilion commission, Sumayya Vally. The night unfolded with Sophie Ellis-Bextor performing her Saltburn-revived, 2001 hit Murder on the Dance Floor, against the backdrop of the dazzling Hong Kong skyline.
Highlights from the March 25th event here
The art everyone was talking about:
Artnet gave a pretty good round up of the 10 best booths at the fair: Artnet’s 10 best booths at Art Basel Hong Kong but here are two presentations that were on everyone’s lips.
Mak2, Copy of Copy of Copy of Copy (2024)
Found in ABHK’s Encounters section, the fairs hallmark sector for large-scale projects, De Sarthe Gallery presented Mak2’s Copy of Copy of Copy of Copy (2024). Mak2’s extension of the booth offers a Stranger Things ‘The Upsidedown’-esq reflection of the pristine booth below. The polished booth features works from her Home Sweet Home series, whilst the dystopian booth atop renders her works as though they are decaying 200 years into the future. The installation comments on copy-cat culture and the art worlds infinite structures of reference.
Fuyuhiko Takata, Cut Pieces (2023)
In ABHK’s Discoveries section, which spotlights solo presentations by emerging artists, Waitingroom, Tokyo presented the film work Cut Pieces (2023) by Fuyuhiko Takata. In a nod to Yoko Ono’s Cut Piece performance in 1965, Takata filmed male models dressed like Japanese businessmen cutting fabric off each other’s suits in a homoerotic play on male masculinity. It prompts uncomfortable implications about gender and agency in contrast to Ono’s feminist original.
On the topic of the Discoveries section. ABHK has announced that next years fair will award the MGM Discoveries Art Prize to support emerging artists. Further details will be announced later this year.
Hong Kong hypothesis:
Thanks to its favourable tax and regulatory environment, which includes tariff-free imports on art, Hong Kong has solidified its position as a leading hub for the art market. The debut of M+ in 2021, often likened to Asia's answer to London's Tate Modern, has further enhanced Hong Kong's reputation as a cultural heavyweight in the region.
The city's capacity to effortlessly handle high volumes of art sales has enticed major players in the art world to establish a presence. Last year Phillips supposedly became the first international auction house to establish a purpose-built salesroom and gallery space in the city. Additionally, 2024 will witness the unveiling of expansive new spaces by Christie's and Sotheby's, further solidifying Hong Kong's status as a vibrant cultural epicenter.
Thanks for joining us for this years ABHK roundup - we can’t wait to do it all again next year!