Artist Cai Guo-Qiang has broken all records for Chinese contemporary art, as his set of 14 gunpowder paintings sold for $9.5 million at an auction in Hong Kong to an anonymous bidder on Nov. 25 as part of a mammoth auction of contemporary South and Southeast Asian art in Hong Kong. On the first day auction itself, Christie’s auction house took in $107 million, more than four times its estimate, with buyers that flocked from India, mainland China, Europe and the United States all competing for the works.

Cai’s 14 screens, done in gunpowder and ink, that sold for double their estimated value of between $3.5 million-$4.6 million, made him the world’s most expensive contemporary Chinese artist.

Eric Chang, Christie’s international director of Chinese 20th century and Asian contemporary art, said:

The creative vision of Cai’s unique work captivated the imagination of collectors around the world. This piece presented a powerful combination of traditional and contemporary elements that appealed to both East and West, and drew bidding from Asia, Europe and America.

The previous record for the most expensive contemporary Chinese painting was set by Yue Minjun, whose ‘Execution’ sold for $5.9 million. Yue also represented at the Christie’s auction in Hong Kong where “Life,” an installation of 15 separate paintings each depicting his self-image in different, contorted and absurdist positions, sold for $2.78 million.

Via: Azcentral
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