STYLE Edit: Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst, Renoir and Barry Flanagan’s hares among the top draws at Sotheby’s Hong Kong this October
World-renowned auction house presents an ‘unprecedented’ collection of art – from the Italian Renaissance to modern Chinese art, and masterpieces of Impressionism, surrealism and pop art – in Hong Kong
Sotheby’s Hong Kong is presenting an “unprecedented” selection of coveted art pieces this October, spread throughout four selling exhibitions of outstanding artworks, hosted at both the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and its own gallery in Admiralty’s Pacific Place.
And because of the shows’ combined aesthetic and chronological breadth – featuring a diverse range of sculptures and paintings spanning seven centuries– the auction house is billing this as its most expansive series ever hosted in Asia. Running alongside Sotheby’s autumn bidding sessions, all works displayed will be available for immediate purchase.
Barry Flanagan is one of two individual artists with an entire show to himself. Although he was bestowed with several honours during his lifetime, the Welsh sculptor’s reputation has been gathering force since his death in 2009. Playful and subversive, his bronzes allude to animals – hares in particular – as well as human figures and mythical creatures. New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and London’s Tate Gallery are among public collections holding his work today.
This will be the sculptor’s largest ever solo exhibition in Hong Kong. In contrast to Flanagan’s figurative pieces, the Chinese artist Hsiao Chin developed his own unique abstract style, albeit one that is no less admired in the Western art world. Sotheby’s show of his work is titled “Infinite Universe”, and features 26 pieces from the 1960s through to the present day, including the debut showing of a complete series of his glass mosaics.
Some seven centuries ago, the Italian Renaissance saw the rebirth of art in the West, giving Italy a unique position in global cultural heritage. “A Brush with Italy” presents more than 30 works dating from that period through to the 19th century; from small religious panels made for private devotion in the 15th century, to sensational Baroque cityscapes, or “vedute” (landscapes) painted three centuries later.
Lastly, “Panorama: A New Perspective” presents works by some of the most influential artists of the 19th and 20th centuries. From seminal movements such as Impressionism, surrealism and pop art, the curated collection lists blockbuster names Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Marc Chagall, René Magritte, Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst.
“Spanning East to West, classic to contemporary, the exhibitions will take our audience on a journey through centuries of art history,” says Sotheby’s Hong Kong gallery director Jonathan Wong. “In response to the ever-expanding taste for art collecting in the region, the breadth and depth of the works showcased is unprecedented.”
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