Seoul Auction has been responsible for introducing Hirst’s work to the Asian market where it has fetched high prices. Interest in his work remains very strong in Asia, not only at auction but as witnessed also by the exhibition of his works at the ART HK art fair in May 2010, where The Inescapable Truth fetched £1.75 million (approximately HK$19.88 million).

Among the most respected and influential designers working today, Ron Arad is celebrated for his versatility and inventive but challenging design concepts. On offer this season are his Bodyguard, a unique piece (Est. HK$2-3 million) and Blo-Void 3 (Est. HK$1.1-1.5 million). Both are fluid and sensuous chair sculptures made of painted aluminum in Arad’s characteristically free and curvaceous style. They represent the artist’s innovative approach of using both cutting-edge technology and hands-on craftsmanship.

A representative member of YBA (Young British Artists), Jason Martin has created a wide array of eye-catching monochrome paintings. Using an aluminum brush or cardboard, he spreads out the monochromatic medium to create swirly striated patterns. In Cinder (Est. HK$200,000-300,000) and Thrasso (Est. HK$200,000-300,000), both completed in 2007, the flowing pattern of different hues of colour appears to be reflected on a stainless steel surface. The curvy lines have various depth and they look especially striking under the light. The surface is transformed into a sublime space for contemplation, and viewers are invited to experience a spiritual and sensual perception in an infinite universe.

JAPANESE ART
Yayoi Kusama has been suffering from hallucinations since the age of ten. Throughout her life, her obsessive neurosis and fragile mental condition have continued to haunt her, driving her to create canvases covered with dots and lines. Such repeated images give her work a unique visual impact. Infinity Nets (Est. HK$2.2-2.8 million), from her first painting series, represents her infinite world covered by golden nets. Also on offer is her Beyond Love and Hate (Est. HK$1.3-1.8 million).

Endless dots can also be found on Kusama’s other pieces such as Pumpkin (Est. HK$860,000-950,000). In some of her paintings and sculptures, her favorite objects including hats, flowers and shoes are also covered with the same pattern, exemplified by On The Table (Est. HK$550,000-600,000) and Hat (Est. HK$460,000-500,000).

Superflat Monogram (Est. HK$1.8-2.2 million) is a classic example of Takashi Murakami’s works which, in the same way as Warhol’s, transcends the boundary between art and popular commercial culture. His signature style, characterized by flat planes of colour and graphic images, is a combination of his Western predecessors Warhol, Oldenberg and Roy Lichtenstein, as well as Japanese contemporary anime and manga.

An avant-garde artist who uses his body as an artistic medium, Kazuo Shiraga is an important figure in the contemporary Japanese art scene. He pours paint on the canvas on the floor, then makes strokes with his feet while swinging from ropes suspended from the ceiling. In Cloud of Sand (Est. HK$1.3-1.8 million), Shiraga displays the dramatic and energetic traces of his performance in a dynamic mixture of red, black and yellow colours bursting with energy.

KOREAN ART
Lee Ufan composes his unique art universe by applying dots and lines on the canvas. In From point (Est. HK$1.6-1.8 million), the blue dots record the traces of actions, visualizing the process in which physical marks are left on a particular surface. By varying the amount of paint and the vigour of his brushstrokes, Lee creates dots that look homogeneous but in fact vary in texture when viewed upclose. As such, the motifs enable the viewer to delve into the world of imagination.

One of the first generation of Korean abstract artists, Kim Whanki creates a range of alluring works imbued with Korean lyricism. Until his Paris period, he conveyed this through subtle and delicate artistic expressions. However, during his New York
period in the 1960s, Kim started using elements such as dots and lines to express more explicitly his profound ideas and thoughts. VI-VII-66 (Est. HK$1.4-1.8 million) is an excellent work completed during this period. Against the blue-grey background, repeated regular dots cross and turn upside down in rhythm.

Kim TschangYeul is a leading artist of the Korean abstract painting movement in the 1950s. After moving to Paris in the 1970s, he started depicting crystal-clear water droplets on the canvas in a surrealistic manner. This intriguing motif has since become a major theme of his works in the past forty years of his career. In Water Drops (Est. HK$1.3-1.6 million), countless water droplets seem to be rolling down, soaking into the paper or holding on the surface of the canvas. The entire composition creates a visual tension and captures the beauty of an instant. The light and shadow further create an illusory effect that adds to this exquisite piece.

CHINESE ART
In the early stage of his career, Liu Ye found inspiration in works by Mondrian, a master of geometric abstraction. Liu has since adapted Mondrian’s geometric forms and primary colours in his own paintings. In Mondrian and Me (Est. HK$2.4-3.2 million), the boy, who represents the artist himself, faces the viewer with an oversized head and blushing face. This fairy-tale like, cartoon figure is derived from imaginary characters that Liu created for illustrations in children’s books written by his father.

The details and pictorial structure of this work are influenced by the aesthetics of Mondrian. In addition, the boy’s stiff posture, flat eyebrows, arms and hair closely mirror the composition of Mondrian’s piece placed right next to him. Liu also attempts to express his homage to Mondrian by depicting himself as a shy boy.

After graduating from Hubei Academy of Fine Arts, Zeng Fanzhi moved to Beijing to develop his career. The rapid social and urban development of the capital city was a source of inspiration for his Mask series. Zeng depicted figures with masks to parody the phenomenon that city dwellers are hiding their emotion and covering up their true expressions behind their masks, while attempting to look smart to display a fake attitude. Class One Series (Est. HK$1.6-2.2 million) is one of such outstanding works in which the red scarf worn by the figure, a symbol of political loyalty especially during the Cultural Revolution, serves as an emblem and reminder of the trauma in Zeng's childhood.

In 1997, Zhou Chun Ya started painting his dog ‘Hagen’ in naturalistic yellow and brown tones like any other ordinary German Shepherd in his early works. Later, he added green to portray its fur under reflecting light. This motif subsequently evolved as Zhou gradually spread the green over a wider area of the dog’s body and eventually, he painted Hagen in pure green. Influenced by German Expressionism while using traditional Chinese ink and brush in the manner of a literati artist, Zhou’s Green Dog series shows well his artistic talent and Green Dog (Est. HK$1.8-2.3 million) on offer is a superb example.

Seoul Auction is also delighted offer to collectors a selection of seminal pieces by 20th Century Chinese masters. The star lot is Alentours Verdoyants II by Zhu Dequn (Est. HK$1-1.5 million). Zhu was strongly influenced by both Western abstract art that captures the essence of objects in a non-representational way, and Chinese Expressionism that expresses a great poetic energy. To realize his creativity through lyrical abstraction, Chu often applied a diverse set of colours on the canvas, as well as calligraphic lines and brushstrokes derived from traditional Chinese painting.

In Alentours Verdoyants II, the canvas is dominated by deep blue blended with white and bright yellow, creating an enchanting light that illuminates the magnificent landscape. The geometrical forms, the vibrant colour patches balanced by the broad brushstrokes and the glittering images altogether create a mystical atmosphere.

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