Zhang Xiaogang, Bloodlines, Big Family, 1998, oil on canvas, 80 x 100 cm. Estimate US$812, 500 - US$1, 500, 000

Ravenel Art is anticipating strong interest in its Taipei auction on December 7, notwithstanding the recent turmoil in credit and stock markets. Taiwanese collectors have a strong sense of the aesthetic and are led more by interest in individual works rather than seeing them as investment opportunities.

Ravenel Art Group Taipei will hold its Taipei auction of Modern and Contemporary Chinese, Korean and Japanese Art on Sunday December 7, 2008. 147 lots will be offered covering a wide variety of artists and categories.

Taiwan collectors have been the strongest movers in the Asian art market over the last 10 years, and have developed a reputation for seeking high

quality works by both leading and emerging artists. As the Taiwan economy developed and matured in the 1990s, a new sensitivity to aesthetics arose and art became a major part of life. With more than 100 art galleries and several auction houses, Taipei is one of the foremost centers for art in Asia.

Ravenel Art has been a major part of the growth in the modern and contemporary art market over the last 10 years with two annual sales in spring and autumn. These auctions have continuously broken total sales records as well as setting numerous records for individual artists. With a keen awareness of what appeals to its collectors, Ravenel Art has always offered exceptional works.

The December 7 auction will present works in four key categories. In Modern Chinese Art, paintings by artists influenced by Western oil painting including Zao Wu-ki, Sanyu and Chen Baoyi will be offered. Zao Wu-ki, who settled in France, is famous for his dramatic abstracts combining Chinese sensibilities with Western painting methods. Sanyu, who also moved to Paris, is appreciated for his still-lifes, which combine elements of traditional Chinese painting with Western oil techniques. Chen Baoyi, who studied Western painting in Japan and who was one of the leaders in bringing Western styles to China, is acknowledged for his outstanding still-lifes. Other artists included in this section are Wang Huaiqing, Liao Chi-chun and Chu Teh-chun.

In the Taiwanese Art section key works by many renowned artists will be offered. Taiwanese Modern and Contemporary Art is defined by the unique voices developed by its artists as they engaged with their personal concerns and particularly with the major changes that have taken place in Taiwanese society over the last 30 years. Sculptures by the world-renowned artist Ju Ming will be on offer. He is most famous for his ‘Tai-chi Boxing' series. Works by Lien Chien-hsin will also be featured. His paintings of Taiwanese localities, now touched by the effects of industrialization are always much sought after. Kuo Wei-kun, whose intensely personal works often combining Chinese mythology will also be represented. Other artists included in this section are Michelle Hwang, Chiu Ya-tsai and Liu Kuo-song.

Contemporary Chinese art has been top of the market for the last five years. Ravenel will offer works by many of the top artists of this new generation. Cai Guo-qiang, famous for his gunpowder drawings, which he literally explodes onto paper, will be featured. Zhang Xiao-gang will be represented by his ‘Big Family - Bloodline' series. Taking his inspiration from old family photographs, Zhang was one of the first Chinese artists to present the Chinese person in an entirely new way. New works from Zeng Fanzhi's ‘Wild Grass' serious will be on offer. Zeng has always been concerned with the inner world of his subjects and their relationship to the outside world. Other artists included are Zhou Chunya, Zhang Linhai, Ma Liuming (Photography) and Luo Zhongli.

New interest has arisen in Korean and Japanese art and works by leading artists in these countries will be featured. Japanese artists will include Nara Yoshitomo, famous for his characters with big eyes and a bewildered look on their faces as they face a modern technological society. Hiroyuki Matsuura will also have a lot. Korean art will be represented by Bahk Seonghi and Kwon Ki-soo.

The auction will be held in the Fubon National Conference Center, B2, No 108, Section 1, Tun-Hwa South Road, Taipei on Sunday December 7. A Preview will be held in Hong Kong on Friday, November 28, 1:00pm-7:30pm; Saturday, November 29, 10:00am-7:30pm, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong-Residence, 1 Harbour Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong. Previews will also be held in Taichung on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 November and in Taipei, Fubon National Conference Centre on Friday 5 and Saturday 6 December. Full details are available at en.ravenelart.com, or by calling +886 2 2708 9868 ext 183. Catalogue details are also available on our website.

Ravenel Art was founded in 1999 and it holds two annual spring and autumn auctions in Taipei. It will hold its first auction of Modern and Contemporary Asian Art in Hong Kong on Monday December 1, 2008. Ravenel Art specializes in Modern and Contemporary Chinese Art, Korean, Japanese, S. E. Asian and Indian Contemporary Art. Ravenel Art has offices in Taipei, Hong Kong and Beijing.