At a time when auction markets everywhere are facing a downturn, three international auction giants — Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips — have reiterated their confidence in Hong Kong by opening swank new gallery-showrooms in the city. Amy Mullins reports. 

London-based data analyst ArtTactic calculates that this past spring, the evening sales at Christie’s, Phillips and Sotheby’s in Hong Kong took a tumble by almost 40 percent year-on-year; which makes all three houses moving into swank new gallery-showrooms within the last 18 months a bit of a mystery. With sales falling so drastically, this seems hardly a great time to make such significant investments.

However, Sotheby’s is pushing back on the idea that Hong Kong is in choppy waters. Its Hong Kong Spring Marquee Sales week in April posted two white-glove sales in jewelry and Chinese art, while its evening modern-art auction posted a 98 percent sell-through, owed mostly to Asian buyers. Sotheby’s data note that Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Un Jardin à Sorrente was sold to a Hong Kong-based collector for HK$24.3 million ($3.13 million) and is now the second-most valuable work by the artist ever sold in Asia. Even with a downturn in volume, China still accounts for as much as 75 percent of the sales registered by the three major international auction houses in Asia, and Hong Kong is the nexus.

READ MORE: The timeless allure of lavish clocks

According to Daphne King, director of Alisan Fine Arts, one of Hong Kong’s oldest galleries, those figures are a testament to pivoting toward the future and to Hong Kong’s continued evolution as an art hub. The region’s fundamentals — growing economies, rising wealth, young, well-connected populations — remain solid, though art dealers are recognizing fundamental shifts.

“I think people are betting on the future and the critical role Hong Kong can play in the region,” King says. “Coincidentally, Alisan Fine Arts is also in the midst of an expansion. We opened our first international gallery in New York in November and on Oct 26 we will officially open Alisan Atelier in Aberdeen.”

Francis Belin, president of Christie’s Asia-Pacific, agrees that Hong Kong’s art circuit is experiencing a general vibe of optimism. “The market is not short of buyers. In fact, there has been a critical influx of new collectors in Asia, which took our numbers last year to the high-20s of global buying. Hong Kong has been our home for almost 40 years, and it’s simply the best place to transact art.”

He argues that the free flow of capital, merchandise and people, plus the rule of law and a large catchment area make Hong Kong’s art ecosystem an ideal one. “No other city in Asia came even close to where we should place our headquarters.” Unveiled on Sept 20, a week ahead of Christie’s autumn sale, Christie’s new showroom-office in the Zaha Hadid Architects-designed The Henderson spans 50,000 square feet (4,645 square meters) across four floors, put together by local design studio Collective. Sleek and ultramodern, the showroom’s panoramic windows face Hong Kong’s core business district. “This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I’m quite confident it’s the right decision,” Belin says of the new venue.

Christie’s inaugural auction in its new home on Sept 26 and 27 was a success, with the sales totaling HK$1.3 billion. Under the gavel alongside 20th and 21st Century art — anchored by Van Gogh and Monet pieces — were ceramics by Au Bak-ling. In the coming weeks, Phillips and Sotheby’s too will host high-profile sales. Phillips’ New Now: Modern and Contemporary Art sale is on today, followed by a similar event on Nov 25. Sotheby’s Modern and Contemporary Art auction is set for Nov 8. Highlights include Sanyu, Claire Tabouret and Mark Rothko, with Zhang Daqian on display.

Creating a cultural space

Phillips was the first auctioneer to cast its vote of confidence in favor of Hong Kong when it moved into its new LAAB Architects-designed space in the WKCDA Tower in the West Kowloon Cultural District in March 2023. Spanning six floors and 52,000 square feet, Phillips’ Asia headquarters is home to a sales room, showroom and offices, with three gallery floors open to the public. Sitting across the courtyard from the M+ museum, Phillips’ approachable, semi-industrial, youthful vibe is in step with its active engagement with artists on a primary-sales level. Lee Meiling, head of Modern and Contemporary Art and senior director, Asia at Phillips, sees the location as a natural fit for the auction house, as “we’re not just selling artworks for money. We often curate our auctions and exhibitions with special themes, which helps differentiate us from other sellers. Being in a cultural district made sense for us”.

Sotheby’s Maison and the complementing retail-forward salons in Chater House in Central opened in July and total 24,000 square feet on two floors, designed by Rotterdam-based architecture studio MVRDV. The salon spaces are designed to be accessible and visible in a way Sotheby’s old space in Pacific Place was not. Footfall at Chater House averages over 1 million people per month, and that’s part of the reason why the auctioneer wanted to be there.

Nathan Drahi, managing director of Sotheby’s Asia, says that the auctioneer has complete confidence in the prospects of Hong Kong as a long-term hub for the art and luxury market. “Since the Maison’s opening, we have acquired a record number of new clients. Hong Kong has been our home in Asia for half a century, and its growing importance in our global sales is evident. The city offers businesses many advantages including its tax-free status, established primary and secondary art markets, and the growth of a diverse museum footprint.”

Wooing the young collector

The new auction homes all boast the kind of casual cafes that encourage dwell time, private VIP lounges, state-of-the-art gallery space with moveable walls and flexible lighting rigs, and all are open to the public year-round for either special exhibitions or sale previews. The constant churn is part of the formula for maintaining and growing a robust art scene. It’s the new generation of buyers that is expected to buoy Hong Kong’s art sector going forward. Belin notes that millennial buyers currently make up over 60 percent of Christie’s clients. “We’re seeing new clients, younger clients and Asian collectors embracing new categories.”

Phillips’ Lee mentions that a number of young clients collect via Dropshop — a digital platform offering limited-edition releases of new works by artists. “They have their own concepts of collecting, and prefer works by artists from their generation.”

Current market trends seem to suggest that Hong Kong is an outlier among the major art hubs — New York, Paris, and London. In Hong Kong, the big three auction houses nudge up alongside Hong Kong’s three major art fair brands — Art Basel, Art Central, and the newly launched Art021 — catering to the Asia-Pacific region, though the bulk of the buyers come from China. Asia-Pacific accounted for over 40 percent of global luxury sales in the first half of 2024.

ALSO READ: Legends of the fall

“Like any business, the auction houses and galleries need to grow new audiences to be sustainable and adapt to new market realities,” says Alisan’s King. “While we continue to cement our leadership in promoting established masters such as Lui Shou-kwan and Walasse Ting, the new Alisan Atelier will showcase emerging talents, welcome experimentation and attract a younger and broader audience as a result. In that sense, Hong Kong is perhaps not an ‘outlier’ but a resilient and fast mover in the market.”