Hong Kong's importance as international arts hub grows
City remains key centre for sale of Chinese art even as its importance to Western art increases
Hong Kong still has a while to go before it becomes an international arts hub, with local interest in Western art still nascent despite its increased visibility in the market.
"It's not like people are flocking to Western art," said Sotheby's Asia chairwoman Patti Wong.
Sotheby's Hong Kong will host its inaugural sale of Asian and Western contemporary art in Asia. It will feature more than 80 works, including some big Western names like Roy Lichtenstein, Fernando Botero and Andy Warhol.
The sale, called Boundless: Contemporary Art, will take place at Sotheby's gallery in Admiralty on Monday. It is expected to fetch between HK$47 million and HK$68 million.
Wong said that London and New York were still the centres for Western contemporary art, and that the Hong Kong market was dominated by Chinese works.
But Western contemporary art is becoming more visible in Hong Kong, with the Museum of Art hosting a large Warhol exhibition in December and a Picasso exhibition at the Heritage Museum in May.
Wong said that the latest auction was aimed at attracting younger collectors, by offering a combination of Asian and Western contemporary works that "you can live with".
