睜眼看世界: 國外拍賣界爭奪中國市場大綱
Christie’s seemed to have lost pace against Sotheby’s in the race to get into the Chinese market. But it has powered back and now obtained a licence to operate auctions in the mainland; the first sale will be held this autumn in Shanghai. Unlike Sotheby’s, which is in partnership with the government entity GeHua, it has an independent “comprehensive auction licence”. But what the firm will not be selling is “cultural relics” – there are tight controls on antiques and antiquities such as jade, ceramics and ink paintings – which are the most high-priced works in the market.
在昔日進軍中國市場的競爭中，佳士得(Christie’s)的步伐似乎落後於蘇富比(Sotheby’s)。但如今它已然強勢迴歸，獲得了在中國大陸獨立舉辦拍賣會的執照。首場拍賣會將於今秋在上海舉行。與入股中國國有企業歌華集團(GeHua)的蘇富比不一樣的是，佳士得獲得的是單獨“拍賣綜合執照”。但公司不會競拍“文化遺產”——中國嚴格控制玉器、陶瓷以及水墨畫等文物與古董的拍賣——它們是目前市場上價位最高的藝術品。
However, international works of art, wine and jewellery will be offered and, says Asian president François Curiel, “We will also be able to make private sales ... We are hoping to access Chinese collectors who do not necessarily travel abroad so much.” Asked whether this means the end of Hong Kong as a sales centre, he says: “Not at all, I don’t think it will cannibalise it at all, the market is big enough for everyone.”
但是，國際藝術品、洋酒以及珠寶將會進入拍賣名錄，佳士得亞洲區總裁高逸龍(François Curiel)說：“我們也有能力舉辦私人拍賣會……希望能夠接洽到中國藏家，他們不太出國旅遊。”當被問到這是否意味着香港作爲拍賣中心地位的終結，高逸龍答道：“完全不是，我覺得上海根本不會擠佔香港的中心地位，如今的市場規模特別龐大，每家都有生存空間。”
Still in Asia, Sotheby’s spring sales season in Hong Kong concluded with a solid grand total of US$280m, against expectations of US$220m-US$295m (pre-sale estimates don’t include commission; results do). These figures are far from the record of US$447m set for the same series in 2011, but since then the Chinese market has cooled quite dramatically, due to a slowdown in the Chinese economy.
還是在亞洲市場，香港蘇富比今春拍季完全出乎之前2.2億美元-2.95億美元的預估（競拍前的預估成交額並不包括佣金，但最終成交額中包括相應的佣金），最終的總成交額爲2.8億美元，遠低於2011年同期創下的4.47億美元記錄。2011年以後，由於中國經濟減速，中國拍賣市場行情急劇萎縮。
At Sotheby’s, the traditional fields did well, with a tiny 17th-century ruby-red tea bowl, sold by the collector Alice Cheng, making a tidy US$9.6m. However there were some hiccups in the sale of contemporary Asian art, which made US$16.7m. According to the local art dealer Jean-Marc Decrop, “In some cases estimates were too high, and because the market has been weaker, vendors were holding off consigning. But the good things did very well: as an example, a Fang Lijun painting, “Series 1, No 4” (1990-91) made US$2.3m, despite being black-and-white, so not necessarily as immediately appealing as his more colourful works.”
在蘇富比，傳統物件的拍賣行情仍然不錯，藏家張永珍(Alice Cheng)雅藏的一隻17世紀寶石紅小茶碗，依然拍出了960萬美元的高價。但在總成交額1670萬美元的亞洲當代藝術拍賣會上，小問題不斷。香港本地藝術商讓•馬克•德克洛普(Jean-Marc Decrop)說：“某些拍品的預估價過高，因爲行情持續走低，各大賣家都在拖延委託代售。但上乘拍品的行情十分火爆：舉個例子，方力鈞(Fang Lijun)創作於1990-1991年的畫作“Series 1, No 4”,成交價高達230萬美元， 儘管只是一幅黑白色作品，當初，這幅作品與他所創作的那些色彩豔麗的作品相比，並不被各路藏家追捧。
Still on the subject of Chinese art, a new website is being launched on Monday: . It will focus exclusively on modern and contemporary Asian art, and each month will present a curated exhibition of 10 works: the first will feature paintings by, among others, Yu Youhan (US$200,000) and Li Shan (US$150,000). An influential advisory committee includes Johnson Chang of Hanart TZ gallery, Pearl Lam and collectors Dominique and Sylvain Levy. China specialist Philip Dodd, who is also on the committee, says that the site “should plug into a global constituency of collectors who can’t get to Beijing.” Prices start at US$10,000 and there is a “private sales avenue” for transactions above US$100,000.
還是說說中國藝術這個話題。新網站正式上線，它將專注於現當代亞洲藝術，每個月將策展10幅作品：除了其他畫家外，第一個月將專門展出餘友涵（Yu Youhan，價位20萬美元）與李山（Li Shan，價位15萬美元）的作品。大名鼎鼎的諮詢委員會中，就包括了香港漢雅軒畫廊(Hanart TZ Gallery)老闆張頌仁(Johnson Chang)、林明珠(Pearl Lam)以及收藏家西爾萬勒維夫婦(Dominique and Sylvain Levy)等衆多大腕。中國藝術方面的專家菲利蒲•多德(Philip Dodd)同樣是委員會成員，他說該網站“應該深入接洽那些無法親臨北京的國際藏家。”網站的拍品起價1萬美元，此外還設有一個“私人買賣區”，交易的藝術品起價爲10萬美元。
Speaking of private sales, Christie’s has a new wheeze – a nomadic “sculpture garden” to display works outside real estate developments in New York. The first is close to the firm’s Rockefeller Center headquarters at Madison and 54th Street, where the firm has placed Claes Oldenburg’s huge “Typewriter Eraser” (1976), which is being sold by private treaty. I thought the point of these transactions was confidentiality, but not so here – the piece is being touted very publicly. Christie’s explains that some transactions “we don’t communicate” and others are “open to the public”. The price is also confidential – Alexis Klein of Christie’s assures me this is legal – but hints that it is above $2.2m, which is what the piece fetched when it last sold in 2009.
談及私人交易，佳士得推出的新舉措匠心獨運——在紐約各大地產建築（經常更換展場）外設立 “雕塑園”，以展出相關雕塑作品。首次“雕塑園”活動就設在佳士得公司總部大樓外，展出克拉斯•奧爾登堡(Claes Oldenburg)創作於1976年的巨幅雕塑“打字機橡皮擦”(Typewriter Eraser，見右圖)，如今該作品正通過私下協議進行銷售。佳士得公司總部位於麥迪遜(Madison)與54大街(54th Street)交匯處的洛克菲勒中心(Rockefeller Center)內。我覺得這類交易的關鍵是信息保密，但在此處並非如此——該雕塑作品在大庭廣衆之下兜售。佳士得解釋說有些交易內幕“不能透露”，但有些交易會“向公衆公開”。具體成交價也是祕而不宣——佳士得的阿歷克斯•克萊恩(Alexis Klein)一再向我保證這合乎法律——但暗示說“打字機橡皮擦”的價位肯定超過220萬美元，這是2009年它上次拍賣時的價位。This week sees Christie’s latest sale of Modern and Contemporary Arab, Iranian and Turkish art in Dubai, held on Tuesday and Wednesday. The market for Iranian artists has been hit by trade sanctions against the country and the plunging rial, which has fallen by some 60 per cent in the past year. Its Part I sale is the smallest ever, with just 29 lots expecting up to $3.5m, while the high estimate for Part II falls just short of $2m. “Inevitably, the supply diminishes with time, as some of the artists have passed away,” says a Christie’s spokesperson, noting that the firm is “very happy” with the level of the sale. Top lot is a glittery fairytale painting by the Iranian Farhad Moshiri, “Secret Garden” (2009), estimated at $300,000-$500,000.
不久前，佳士得剛在迪拜舉辦了阿拉伯、伊朗以及土耳其現當代藝術拍賣會(Modern and Contemporary Arab, Iranian and Turkish Art Sale )。由於聯合國貿易禁運以及該國貨幣里亞爾的大幅貶值（去年一年，里亞爾的幣值大約貶了60%），伊朗藝術家的市場行情大受影響。拍賣會首場拍賣成交額成爲史上最低，只有29件拍賣品的成交價有望達到350萬美元，而樂觀估計第二場拍賣會成交額也不會超過200萬美元。“由於有些藝術家已經作古，拍品供應必然是與日俱減，”佳士得某發言人如是說，並指出公司對拍品的價位“相當滿意”。最高成交價的拍品是伊朗畫家法爾哈德•莫欣(Farhad Moshiri)創作於2009年的作品——“祕密花園”(Secret Garden)，這是一幅反映童話故事的豔麗畫作，預估價爲30萬-50萬美元之間。
In Paris, Sarti gallery has just unveiled a show of 22 paintings in the Caravaggesque tradition, which it has been patiently accumulating over the past 10 years. “While we are principally known for gold ground paintings,” says Giovanni Sarti, “we wanted to show that our interests extend beyond that, into the 17th century and beyond.” While Caravaggio himself did not have students nor did he found a school, his influence was immense, and the exhibition includes works by his closest followers – Bartolomeo Manfredi, Giovanni Battista Caracciolo, Bartolomeo Cavarozzi – to more distant admirers such as Giuseppe Ribera, Luca Giordano, Artemisia Gentileschi, Bernardo Strozzi, Daniele Crespi and Guido Reni. Prices range from 250,000 to 2.2m; the show runs until July 12.
在巴黎，薩爾蒂畫廊(Sarti gallery)剛剛展出了傳統卡拉瓦喬風格(Caravaggesque)的22幅畫作，它們是過去10年時間裏持之以恆收藏的結果。“我們畫廊以收藏金地畫而著稱於世，”畫廊老闆吉奧瓦尼•薩爾蒂(Giovanni Sarti)說，“我們想展示自己的關注焦點並不止於此，希望延伸至17世紀甚至更晚期的作品。”儘管卡拉瓦喬本人沒有任何弟子，也未創立任何畫派，但他的影響深遠，此次展覽包括了他最親密的追隨者以及一般擁躉的作品。最親密的追隨者包括了巴託洛米奧•曼弗雷迪(Bartolomeo Manfredi)、喬瓦尼•巴蒂斯塔•卡拉喬洛(Giovanni Battista Caracciolo)、巴託洛米奧•卡拉羅齊(Bartolomeo Cavarozzi)等著名畫家，而一般擁躉也包括了裏貝拉(Giuseppe Ribera)、盧卡•焦爾達諾(Luca Giordano)、阿特米西亞•簡提列斯基(Artemisia Gentileschi)、貝爾納多•斯特羅齊(Bernardo Strozzi)、丹尼爾•克雷斯波(Daniele Crespi)及圭多•雷尼(Guido Reni)等畫家。他們作品的成交價從25萬美元至220萬美元不等，本次展覽的截止日期爲6月22日。
London galleries are expanding and moving: Victoria Miro is returning to the West End, taking on an extra space in St George’s Street, right behind Sotheby’s. The gallery said that it was “waiting to tie up things” before making an announcement. Stuart Shave has left his Eastcastle Street premises for 6 Fitzroy Square, and is opening a second space in Clerkenwell at the end of the year. And Sadie Coles is leaving her New Burlington Place gallery for a bigger space in Kingly Street, just on the other side of Regent Street. “We have been looking for over a year. We’re delighted with the quite grand building we found, which gives us much more space,” says Coles. The gallery will hold a couple of “guerrilla” soft openings in August, before launching in September with a show by the US artist Ryan Sullivan.
倫敦畫廊也不斷擴張、忙於變換展場：維多利亞•米羅畫廊(Victoria Miro)重回倫敦西區(West End)，在蘇富比拍賣行正後面的聖喬治街(St George’s Street)上另外開設了展場。米羅畫廊說“把一切事情安排妥當後”方會正式公佈開張消息。Stuart Shave畫廊已從東堡街(Eastcastle Street)舊址搬至菲茨羅伊廣場6號(6 Fitzroy Square)，並計劃於年底在克勒肯維爾(Clerkenwell)開設第二個展場。薩迪•科爾斯(Sadie Coles)則正搬離自己位於新伯林頓廣場(New Burlington Place)的畫廊，轉而在攝政王街(Regent Street)另一邊的金利街(Kingly Street)尋找更大的展場。“我們已經淘了一年多時間，能找到這麼宏偉的大樓，我們感到非常高興，因爲它能提供面積更大的展場，”科爾斯說。她的畫廊還將在八月份舉辦幾場非正式的試營業展覽，然後在九月份舉辦美國畫家瑞恩•沙利文(Ryan Sullivan)的作品專場展。
