On May 20, 2021, two evening auctions of contemporary art earned a total of RMB 403 million and 46 lots were sold. Artists such as Leng Jun, Geng Jianyi, Qiu Xiaofei and Wu Jianan set new auction records. According to the age of artists, they are divided into artists who born before 1930s, born in 1930-40s, born in 1950-60s and 1970-80s. Among them, artists in the 1950s and 1960s, 70s and 80s are the main force of contemporary art transactions, accounting for 82%. Although artists entered the market for a short time in the 1970s and 1980s, the transaction rate of their works were the highest, and young artists attracted the attention of collectors.

The experts of market interpret the causes behind the historic outbreak of contemporary art

Lin Song, the senior art expert and deputy secretary general of the Beijing Gallery Association, said in an exclusive interview with ArtPro:
 

• An overall observation of the contemporary art section of Guardian auction:

Today is the launch of six special shows, and for the first time opened the all-day auction mode, the total number of lots reached more than 400, this is also the first time in Guardian's history that such a large number of works have been auctioned for the contemporary art works. I think Guardian's strategy for contemporary art this year has been very successful, and tonight's sales will play a very positive and effective exemplary role for the entire art market.
 

• An observation of the collectors on the scene:

First, the collectors at the scene were very enthusiastic, and second, many modern collectors and antique collectors also entered the special show of contemporary art tonight. When communicating with these collectors, they thought that the contemporary art is a new direction worthy of attention in the market. Third, there were some new capital and new faces entering the market, which had injected some new energy into the contemporary art market.

• An observation of the artist who made a deal at the scene:

First, the key works of important artists, that is, the top goods in the market, have been sold smoothly. Whether by Leng Jun or Geng Jianyi, these important works have been sold at very high personal prices, which is very encouraging. Second, Western art masters have also created a very important high price in the Chinese Guardian and Chinese mainland market, which is also very noteworthy. Third, the transaction proportion of young artists in the last section should be more than 90%. We can see that many young artists have set personal records. This shows that the younger generation of artists have been recognized by the market, and they have successfully entered the secondary market steadily. Their future is worth to looking forward to.

After seeing the smooth sale of Leng Jun's Mona Lisa - The Design Of A Smile, Mr. Tang Ju, a collector, said:

The collection of a work bears witness to the rapid development of China's comprehensive national power, and is sincerely gratified that such a work can enter China's most important art world in the foreseeable future.

The first contemporary art night auction

China Guardian's Contemporary art night auction presented a total of 29 lots, with a turnover rate of 75.9% and a total turnover of 373 million RMB, of which 8 lots exceeded RMB 10 million, 13 lots exceeded RMB 1 million, and one lot sold for RMB 970000. Leng Jun’s National Art Exhibition award-winning work Mona Lisa - The Design Of A Smile and Gerhard Richter's Columns were juxtaposed as Top1. Two artists, Leng Jun and Geng Jianyi, set new auction records.

The Top1 of this auction:

Leng Jun's Mona Lisa - The Design Of A Smile sold for RMB 70 million, and the customer on the phone 1925 received a fee of RMB 80.5 million, which greatly set a new auction record for an artist.

The Top2 of this auction:

Columns is estimated to be RMB 60 million-80 million, starting at RMB 50 million. After fierce bidding at the scene, the online customer 6856 finally offered RMB 70 million, added a commission of RMB 80.5 million, making it the most expensive Western art work sold on Chinese mainland. This is the second auction of Columns, which was sold at Sotheby’s London in October 2016 for $3.63 million, while China Guardian was sold for 80.5 million, three times in five years.

The Top3 of this auction:

Geng Jianyi's Two People Under The Light, as the second work in this auction, which started at RMB 29 million. After a fierce auction, it was finally sold at RMB 65 million, added a commission of RMB 74.75 million, tripled in ten years, and was commissioned by telephone 987. Two People Under The Light is the third auction, which sold at Sotheby's in Hong Kong in 2011 for RMB 15.6 million, and Guardian Beijing in November 2016, with an estimated price of RMB 16 million-22 million, and finally sold for RMB 18.4 million, setting a new personal auction record.

Other wonderful lots:

The second contemporary art night auction

China Guardian's second contemporary art night auction showed a total of 25 lots, with a turnover rate of 96%, with a total turnover of RMB 29.22 million, of which 9 lots were sold more than RMB one million, and 15 lots were sold between RMB 300000 and 1 million.

The Top1 of this auction:

The Top2 of this auction:
 

The Top3 of this auction: