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Chinese Art Could Fuel Sotheby's February Sales

by Zoe Strimpel
Tue, 12 Feb 2008 at 6:27 PM

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Chinese art is back with a bang at Sotheby's Contemporary art sales on February 27. At the October Contemporary sales in London, the Chinese pieces caused the most notable fireworks, regularly going for many times their estimates. Yue Minjun's "Execution" sold for a record £2,932,500, making it "the most valuable single work of Chinese Contemporary art sold at auction," a Sotheby's press release states.

Here there will be a good showing by solid favorites, who are by now the faces of Chinese contemporary art in the West. Zhang Xiaogang and Yue Minjun as well as Yan Pei-Ming and Liu Ye will have works for sale. Highlights include Mr. Zhang's "Big Family No. 1" (2001), which depicts an expressionless family of three staring out with unsettling pinprick eyes. This is the largest work by this artist ever to come under the hammer, Sotheby's says, and is estimated at between £1.5 million and £2 million. "Fools in the Night" by Mr. Yue (1997-98) shows a row of 11 men, grinning maniacally in what has become Mr. Yue's trademark expression, betraying a sinister time and place. It is estimated at between £750,000 and £950,000. And Mr. Ming's unique, impressionistic painting standing 3 meters high, showing kung fu king Bruce Lee, is up for between £500,000 and £700,000. February looks set to eclipse October.

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