Most spectacularly, Artcurial have also announced plans to stage auctions there, too — the first in December, devoted to Chinese Modern & Contemporary Art and featuring a 1999 work by Chen Yifei (1946-2005): Artist with Beauties (estimate on request).
This is the first time any member of France’s notoriously parochial auction fraternity has set up a permanent auction venue abroad. The move has been engineered by Hadrien de Montferrand, Artcurial’s former marketing manager in Paris, who relocated permanently to Shanghai in April to launch “Artcurial China” (as the firm will be known). Artcurial describes the project as a “joint-venture” with Chinese media mogul Bruno Wu, boss of Sun Media (one of the country’s leading private media groups), who will be chairman of the board.
Paris looks to Shanghai auction scene
Shanghai seems all the rage these days. Hot on the heels of the launch of two new international fairs — ShContemporary in early September, and the Shanghai Antiques & Jewellery Fair (October 13-21) — Artcurial are opening premises on Yongjia Lu, in the French Concession district of Shanghai, to stage lectures and exhibitions, as well as hosting an art bookshop — much along the lines of the firm’s Paris HQ at the Hôtel Dassault on the Champs-Elysées.
