Art & Finance Newsletter #8
Just back from a week in Hong Kong spent meeting with a variety of trustees, private client lawyers & fund managers. I do enjoy the consistent contact with my business network in HK. Not only because of the great people living and working there, but also for the first hand information on market trends.
The big takeaways from this week: Mainland Chinese clients are increasingly inclined to bypass Hong Kong looking to Singapore or beyond for domiciling and placing assets. There was also a noticeable increase in interest from private client intermediary firms in offering fine art services to their clients.
On to the art market...
Beijing Gallery District Demolished
On Wednesday, July 18th, the Beijing location of de Sarthe Gallery received an abrupt eviction notice stating that the gallery would have to vacate the premises by the end of July. The space’s exhibition, a solo show of works by Hong Kong-based artist Mak Ying Tung 2, will be the last at this location. In an email announcing the news, the gallery’s founder, Vincent de Sarthe, is quoted commenting: “We wish all of our neighbors the best in relocating.”
Forced evictions and last minute demolitions are an unfortunately all to common occurrence in Mainland China. I'm sure these galleries will be be able to find suitable locations for their future exhibitions. Resilience is a valuable virtue in this environment.
Artsy - Beijing Galleries Given 13 Days to Relocate
Missing for Four Decades Painting Turns Up
Sometime in 1978 a huge piece by Robert Motherwell, the modernist painter, vanished from a Manhattan warehouse, one of dozens that were lost and thought stolen when Motherwell hired a moving company to help him switch his works from one storage site to another.
On Thursday, four decades after it had disappeared, the 1967 work, “Untitled,” now valued at $1 million, was returned to the foundation dedicated to preserving Motherwell’s legacy. It was found in a garage in upstate New York by the son of a man who used to work for the movers.
Brilliant example of why you should work with fine art professionals at every level.
New York Times - Missing for Four Decades Painting Turns Up
Asia's Newest Wealth Flock To Fine Art
In the Philippines, where a fifth of the country lives beneath the poverty line, locals have a new obsession: fine art.
An outsourcing boom, record remittances from overseas workers and low interest rates have kept Philippine economic growth above 6 percent for most of the past six years. High net-worth individuals -- those possessing at least $5 million -- are tipped to increase more than 80 percent in the five years through 2022, the third-fastest pace in the world.
“Manila’s a sellers’ market, so for the wealthy it’s becoming a good idea to go out of the country for property,” said Toby Miranda, residential sales manager at Santos Knight Frank, the London-based brokerage’s Philippine affiliate. “They’re either looking for a good place to invest in or preparing for the time they’ll send their kids abroad to study.”
Bloomberg - Asia's Newest Wealth Flocks To Fine Art
In the next edition we'll focus on some big news coming out of the Singaporean art world. Massive opportunity for all of you private client service folks in Singapore and surrounding regions.
Friendly reminder to mention tell your associates and colleagues about this newsletter!
Until next time,
Blake