This is a year of disruption for Hong Kong’s art world, with Art Basel returning to its pre-pandemic scale in the city, Art Central in its waterfront tents, new pop-up sales shows and an impressive onslaught of exhibitions. and events. However, political and economic headwinds are testing Hong Kong’s reputation as a global hub for art businesses as it prepares to welcome crowds of international collectors and art professionals.
The rise of Hong Kong’s art market has been fueled by mainland China’s collector class and their private museums. But the mainland’s current economic slowdown is having an impact on art buying, according to the Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report. Although China (including the mainland and Hong Kong) overtook the UK as the second largest art market in 2023, accounting for 19% of global sales by value ($12.2 billion), the second half of the year was, in part, “considerably slower”. “permanent challenges in the real estate sector”.
“The property crisis in mainland China is real, there is a more challenging market environment,” Art Basel CEO Noah Horowitz told The Art Newspaper when the report was released in March. “We’ll see what sales look like starting with Art Basel in Hong Kong and the city’s March auctions.”
So Wing Po’s Sword of Damocles (Flow) (2024) commissioned for Henderson Image: Courtesy of the artist
Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s new national security law, known as Article 23, has raised concerns about a hardening of the political climate. Fast-track legislation criminalizing certain crimes including espionage and foreign interference came into force on March 23, expanding a Beijing-imposed national security law passed in 2020 after pro-democracy protests. Statements by the US and UK governments, the European Union (EU) and the United Nations have warned that the new law could further erode freedoms and stifle dissent in Hong Kong. “It also raises questions about Hong Kong’s long-term attractiveness as an international business location,” the EU said. Hong Kong and Chinese government officials responded that the legislation upholds human rights and the rule of law, condemning the “double standards” of Western countries, which also protect national security.
Reports of Hong Kong’s decline have been “grossly exaggerated” in the past, says journalist Enid Tsui, but the post-2020 political crackdown is taking a toll on the city’s vibrant creative community. “There are signs that the old Hong Kong is over,” he says. “We were one of, if not, the freest cities for artists in Asia. Now you can be arrested for saying the wrong thing.’
Tsui, arts editor of the South China Morning Post and author of Art in the New Hong Kong: A City In Between, says that some performing artists sympathetic to the protest movement have been blacklisted, or otherwise “greylisted” as funders. and the stricter ones. over their previous works and social media posts. “This is why the city has lost so much talent in recent years, from local artists and curators to international museum specialists,” he says.
Many artists have remained, however, and are “making great art”. adds Tsui. “It seems that artists have become more serious and focused in recent years. And there are amazing organizations that support them. So this is the new Hong Kong, and Hong Kong is not over.’
Power trading
Hong Kong’s powerful art trade can be somewhat detached from wider cultural trends. “High-end transactions have always had little to do with real-world problems,” says Tsui. According to Hong Kong government data, import and export transactions of art and antiques will total HK$88.4 billion (US$11.3 billion) in 2022, five times the 2017 trade value.
Confidence in Hong Kong remains high among major market players. Hauser & Wirth opened a larger gallery space in January and Phillips expanded its Hong Kong headquarters last year. Meanwhile, Sotheby’s and Christie’s will launch new salesrooms and headquarters in Hong Kong this year. The latter will be located in Henderson, in a new commercial building designed by Zaha Hadid Architects that will open in the fall.
Nicolas Chow, president of Sotheby’s Asia, says that while he acknowledges a “more challenging market context”, the auction house saw “steady demand” among Asian collectors worldwide in 2023, achieving sales of more than $1 billion for the third year in a row. “We’ve also seen an increase in the number of buyers year-on-year, which all indicates that vibrant Asian market centers continue to flourish, with Hong Kong maintaining its position,” he says.
Amanda Hon, managing director of Ben Brown Fine Arts and co-chairman of the Hong Kong Art Gallery Association, says: “Hong Kong and the rest of Asia are certainly closely linked to the economic situation on the mainland. However, fortunately, Hong Kong is not solely dependent on the mainland economy.”
However, as Hon stated, “in art, as in all commercial industries, decisions are made based on emotion, not logic.” High-net-worth individuals may not “feel the confidence to spend on things like art” amid global conflicts or the property crisis and China’s stock market slump, he says.
Sotheby’s is taking over the two-story Landmark Chater, formerly occupied by Armani, to host auctions and exhibitions. Image: Courtesy of Sotheby’s
Where is the red line?
Hon says the political situation in Hong Kong calls for a nuanced response, rather than assuming the worst. So far the galleries have “carried on as usual”. “It’s not there yet [direct] censorship, so we proceed with caution,” he added, noting that in Western democracies there are parallel taboos that limit freedom of expression, such as depicting desecration of the flag. “We all have a level of self-censorship depending on the country we choose to show.” The main concern is the “ambiguity” of national security legislation.
According to Tsui, “the new laws are very broad and involve very severe penalties”. “So of course there are gatekeepers in art galleries, institutions and funding bodies who are very nervous about getting into trouble with the authorities,” he added. “The problem is that no one knows where the red line is. And so there is a risk that good artists will be left out. Or worse, throw him in jail.”
Since 2021, Hong Kong politicians have increased their rhetoric about the need to protect national security from “soft resistance”, a vague term applied to culture in general including the arts and media. Uncertainty about what constitutes soft resistance “is creating a chilling effect in Hong Kong,” says Tsui.
The intentions of the government
Meanwhile, the Hong Kong government’s funding of culture is growing. According to a spokesperson for the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau, HK$7.31 billion ($935 million) is earmarked for creative and cultural industries by 2024-25, up 43% from the HK$5.09 billion ($651 million) spent in 2018-19. . And a new government fund allocated HK$1.1 billion (US$141 million) in the 2024-25 budget to arts and cultural mega events. (This year’s edition of Art Basel Hong Kong received HK$15 million [US$1.9m] from the mega events fund.)
Despite the economic recession and political tensions, art professionals say Hong Kong participates in the wider Asian and global art ecosystem. Hong Kong is “one of the world’s leading art centers, built on strong cultural and commercial foundations,” says Chow, citing its “efficient business infrastructure” and “strategic location” for collectors in mainland China and the Asia-Pacific. An enthusiastic audience for the arts is also expanding locally, following the opening of major museums in the West Kowloon Cultural District. This will “help nurture the broader community and the next generation of collectors,” says Chow.
Hong Kong’s future as a major art center will depend on sales and institutions, but also on a strong core of local artists giving voice to the city’s contradictions. “At a time when open discussions about recent trauma are difficult, art is especially important and necessary,” says Tsui.
