Christie’s Rebecca Wei Says Asian Bidder Was In the Salvator Mundi Hunt: The Inimitable Enid Tsui gets some good color in the South China Morning Post from Christie’s Rebecca Wei who says “at least one Asian collector bid for Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi in New York last November.”
- “We are seeing new buyers from mainland China, mostly, who skip the day sales and pick up masterpieces from evening sales as their first purchases […] buyers who don’t look at US$1 million works. They just go for the top pieces valued at US$10 million and above. All are successful Chinese entrepreneurs between the age of 40 and 60, which means that China is still the main engine of growth. No new mega clients are emerging in Southeast Asia.” …
The Indian Art Fair Has a New Director: The fair is celebrating its 10th anniversary on Feb 10 when it opens under the direction of Jagdip Jagpal who arrived from the Tate where she was responsible for international programming. She gave an interview to LiveMint:
- “Of course, there should be international galleries, but they should be limited and there should be a mix of them. And they shouldn’t be bringing artworks that have been put up for sale before. […] The art fair should be more about people getting a unique experience. So, the first time you get to see something new, it should be at the fair. Going forward, that would be a key concern—the majority of space will always be reserved for Indian galleries. Obviously, there will be a quality level at which the galleries will be allowed at the fair and they’ve got to be able to afford the space as well, because we are a commercial entity.
- “We’ve got some new works from Ravinder Reddy and it’s always intriguing to see in what way they are “new”. We have also got Imran Qureshi, and what I am also really looking forward to is Photoink—it will be showing works by Amit Madheshiya, Ketaki Sheth, and many others.” …
Noguchi Museum Gets New Director: The New York Times reports that Brett Littman is leaving New York Drawing Center to become the new director of the Isamu Noguchi Museum:
- “In a phone interview on Monday, Mr. Littman said one of his main goals was to use his new position to augment the legacy of Noguchi, who died in 1988 at age 84, within the contemporary art world. ‘My dream would be to see Noguchi in the next Venice Biennale,’ he said. But he also placed an emphasis on making room in the museum for other artists: ‘He was always interacting and working alongside many different kinds of practitioners. I think the development of that program alongside the permanent installation is absolutely essential.'”