Beijing auction house takes on rivals in Hong Kong

When Beijing Poly International Auction announced on its website in late summer that it would hold its first sales in Hong Kong this year, many in the art world wondered whether it was for real. "I heard they are still waiting to see how China Guardian fares in its [Hong Kong debut]," a senior executive of an international auction house said in September.

If so, Poly certainly received a positive signal when China Guardian Auctions, its main rival on the mainland, raked in HK$354 million for its Chinese ink paintings and calligraphy sales - in one single afternoon on October 7. Poly will hold its inaugural auction in Hong Kong on November 24 and 25 - on the same weekend of Christie's major autumn sales.

Zhao Xu, executive director of Beijing Poly International Auction, says the company has been planning its "landing" here for two years; the timing is purely coincidental. "We are confident in competition with Christie's and Sotheby's," Zhao says. "We believe our presence in Hong Kong means a lot to collectors of Chinese artefacts outside the mainland."

Arguably the largest auctioneer on the mainland, Poly is pulling out all stops for its Hong Kong debut. The sale at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong will feature 300 works ranging from Chinese ink painting and oils to porcelain and jewellery. Highlights include a 1944 painting, , by Chinese ink master Chang Dai-chien, also known as Zhang Daqian, with an estimate of HK$7.2 million to HK$8 million; a 1959 oil painting, , by Chinese-French abstract art master Chu Teh-chun, expected to be sold for between HK$8 million and HK$16 million; and a Qing dynasty blue-and-white porcelain, between HK$12 million and HK$18 million.

In total, Zhao expects the sale to bring in between HK$400 million and HK$500 million. "All the items are sourced from collectors overseas," he says. "Some were acquired from original collectors during our 18 public soliciting trips to North America."

Poly International Auction has been plagued by suspicions about its origins as an offshoot of enterprises owned by the Chinese military. Established in 2005, it is a subsidiary of Poly Culture Group, whose parent, the China Poly Group, is engaged in five core businesses. These include import and export of defence equipment for military and civilian use, real estate, culture, mining and explosives equipment production.