A mid a full and energetic saleroom with auctioneer Alex Branczik on the rostrum, Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction (29 March) kicked off to a strong start with Li Hei Di’s Drifted Petals on Her Lifted Mound which sold for HK$1,397,000 – setting a new artist record.

Chinese contemporary art saw renewed interest with a refreshed eye, with all lots sold, among them, Zeng Fanzhi’s Mask Series 1995 no.12 and Zhang Xiaogang’s Bloodline: The Big Family. Aside from Li, Ji Xin’s Dawn – whose composition draws inspiration from the sleeping guards of Piero della Francesca's Resurrection (1460) – also set a new artist record with a final sold price of HK$2,540,000.

Paintings by Southeast Asian artists saw fierce bidding. Indonesian artist Christine Ay Tjoe’s Freezing 01 doubled its estimate and sold for HK$4,500,000, while bidders battled it out over the phone and online for two paintings by Vietnamese Modern master Mai Trung Thu. While Joie de vivre II sold for HK$6,985,000, Instant musical more than tripled its estimate and reached $10,135,000.

The top four lots of the evening all belong to Western modern masters — respectively, Chagall, Renoir, Moore, and Picasso. The most valuable lot of the auction, Chagall’s Fleurs de printemps (La Cruche aux fleurs de printemps) achieved a new Asia benchmark at HK$34,535,000. Moore’s bronze cast of a reclining woman, Working Model for Reclining Figure: Prop set a new Asia record for the artist at HK$20,505,000. Meanwhile among contemporary offerings, Untitled by Günther Förg, which sold for HK$8,890,000, also reached a new Asia benchmark for the artist.

The momentum for Chinese contemporary art and Southeast Asian bidding remained strong on Sunday morning in the Modern & Contemporary Day Auction (30 March). Vietnamese modern art was a particular standout with all works hammering at or above high estimates. Noteworthy is an untitled painting by Le Thi Luu which achieved HK$2,921,000 – nearly five times its low estimate.

Other highlights include Tetsuya Ishida’s Conquered which soared past its HK$1.5 million estimate to reach HK$3,810,000. Making the artist’s auction debut at Sotheby’s in Asia, La profonde pensée or Intimité by French sculptor Camille Claudel set a new Asia record at HK$3,048,000.

The Hong Kong Sales realised a combined total of HK$366,505,900 across both sales, and achieved a spectacular 94.2 percent sell-through rate with more than 40 percent of lots sold above high estimates.

A s the flagship of Sotheby’s in Asia, this two-storey, 24,000 square foot multifaceted space designed by Rotterdam-based architecture studio MVRDV presents a groundbreaking dual concept: the ground floor houses a dramatic state-of-the-art space designed for immersive experiences and moments of profound contemplation, where museum-grade exhibitions and performances will be staged, alongside Sotheby’s signature auction exhibitions spread throughout the year. The first floor features our concept store, a uniquely curated retail experience exploring an array of cross-category art, luxury and collectibles spanning 80 million years of history and offered for instant purchase.

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Photos by Stefan Ruiz