Rival art houses Christie’s, Sotheby’s show off flashy new Hong Kong showrooms

For its revamped showpiece, Sotheby’s chose a two-storey, 24,000 sq ft space in Hongkong Land’s Landmark Chater building in Central. It features a range of immersive experiences and museum-quality exhibitions. The ground floor will host year-round exhibitions, performances and auctions, while the first floor provides a more curated retail experience for seasoned buyers.

Spanning 50,000 sq ft from the sixth to the ninth floor, the new Christie’s space allows it to stage an ambitious slate of art sales and experiences, serving global collectors and others with galleries, salerooms, dedicated client spaces and offices.

The auction houses’ new glammed up spaces are a reflection of their desire to change the way they conduct business, allowing for more events.

“Previously, galleries and art houses used to lease hotels or exhibition centres for their auctions or exhibitions,” said Poon Kin-pong, senior director of project and development services at JLL in Hong Kong. “However, they now prefer to hold these events in their own office spaces. This shift allows them to hold exhibitions and auctions more frequently and regularly.”

Poon said these firms put a premium on the quality of a building and its management services, adding that doing more business in-house allows them greater flexibility in customising the look and feel of their spaces.