The art market downturn continued to play out at Christie’s, Phillips and Sotheby’s in Hong Kong this past weekend, with the auctions turnover achieving an eight-year low.
A handful of auction records helped inject some vigour into the sales room during the marquee modern and contemporary art evening sales, which saw around 100 high-value artworks go under the hammer across the three venues.
A record was set at Christie’s when Pablo Picasso’s Buste de femme (1944) was sold for HK$197 million, making it the most expensive Picasso sold in Asia.
Despite some positive signs, overall auction volume remained at its lowest point since 2016 and was sharply down from the Covid-19 pandemic boom, during which the three houses all announced aggressive expansion plans and year-round sales in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong’s share of the modern and contemporary art auction market fell to 11.9 per cent in 2024, according to The Mishcon de Reya x ArtTactic – China Art Market Report 2025.
“Collectors do not buy compulsively any more in the current geopolitical climate, and they go for quality,” says Catherine Kwai, owner of Kwai Fung Hin Gallery and a veteran dealer in the secondary market. “That’s why demand for Picasso is strong – you can sell it anywhere for money, in case there’s war.”