Caution reigns in Hong Kong 2024 spring art auctions, with US$12.2 million Yoshitomo Nara painting the top lot

Sotheby’s sells a painting by Japanese artist Nara for HK$96 million at its spring contemporary art sale, but total sales were down notably from last year

The number of lots offered there and at Poly Auction’s spring sale was down on 2023 too. While records were set for several artists’ work, the mood was cautious

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Yoshitomo Nara’s 2017 painting I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, seen here during Sotheby’s spring auction preview, sold for HK$96 million including fees during the Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction on April 5, 2024, making it the highest priced lot. Photo: courtesy of Sotheby’s

Published: 2:07pm, 8 Apr 2024

Following the modest success of Art Basel Hong Kong, tightly managed auctions in Hong Kong over the weekend saw collectors dig deep for works by some of the biggest names in art, even if the high number of withdrawn lots and conservative pricing indicate that a full rebound in the art market remains elusive.

The most-watched of the first round of spring art auctions – Christie’s will lead the next round in May – was Sotheby’s combined Modern & Contemporary and Now evening sales on April 5 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, which a week earlier had been the venue for the Art Basel fair.

According to the auction house, the sales attracted bidders from 21 countries and regions, with strong participation from Greater China and North America.

Of the 52 lots offered for sale, 49 found buyers – a sell-through rate of 94 per cent – who paid a combined HK$673.4 million (US$86 million). Six works were withdrawn from the Modern & Contemporary section of the sale and two from the Now section before the auction.

As was the case at Sotheby’s April 2023 evening sale, the highest price was fetched by a painting by Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara. His I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight (2017) was sold to a phone bidder through a senior director at Sotheby’s London at a hammer price of HK$81 million, just above the lowest presale estimate of HK$80 million; including commission, the buyer paid HK$96 million (US$12.26 million).

Pablo Picasso’s Le Peintre (1963), heavily promoted before the auction, was sold at a hammer price of HK$66 million, equalling the lowest presale estimate. The lot was guaranteed by an irrevocable bid. Including commission, the auction price was HK$78.7 million.