Indonesians seek finery despite economic crisis
Indonesians seek finery despite economic crisis
By Alicia Seow
SINGAPORE (Reuters): Rocked by political and economic crises
at home, wealthy Indonesians still find time to appreciate the
finer things in life.
Indonesians are among the most active auction-goers, bidding
top dollar for fine art and jewels, auctioneers say.
"They are the strongest buyers. Almost 50 percent of my buyers
are Indonesian," Irene Lee, managing director of Christie's in
Singapore, told Reuters.
Top auction house Christie's and rivals Sotheby's and Bonham's
held spring sales in Singapore earlier this month, and all noted
a strong Indonesian presence.
"The (Indonesian) turnout was very good, considering the
situation, but we have also seen new (Indonesian) buyers and new
collectors who have not been collecting Southeast Asian (art)
before," said Lee.
Auction houses had feared the absence of Indonesian buyers in
the days leading up to the sales as they traditionally fueled the
market for regional fine art.
However, hundreds of Indonesians had fled to Singapore to
escape escalating violence from demonstrations against the 32-
year rule of President Soeharto, who resigned on Thursday.
Their presence helped fill the salesrooms and eased concerns
that buyers would be in short supply in a market that has grown
more cautious since the autumn 1997 sales some eight months ago.
Auctions then generated more than Sin.$20 million, but were
off their 1996 peak, when Asian artists fetched record prices and
individual works broke the magic million-dollar mark.
Christie's, for example, had cut its estimates on the 193
paintings on offer by an average of 20 to 30 percent, reflecting
the poor buying sentiment expected because of the deepening
regional economic crisis.
The 10-month crisis has cut billions from corporate balance
sheets and seen personal fortunes wiped out as regional
currencies plunged in value against the U.S. dollar and Asian
stock portfolios plummeted.
Despite the grim outlook, Sotheby's and Christie's took
Sin.$2.85 million and Sin.$3.54 million respectively for their
fine art sales -- in line with their estimates.
Christie's also offered a private jewel collection that
fetched Sin.$1.96 million, exceeding its Sin.$1.5 million
estimate.
"It's more than what we expected," said Christie's Lee, adding
the collector base appeared to have broadened and greater
interest was being seen for Southeast Asian art.
More Singaporean and international buyers were in evidence,
said auctioneers, taking advantage of the lower prices
anticipated at the sales.
"We have seen more international support, many people were on
the phone and we have had collectors from America, Philippines as
well as European collectors," Lee said.
"It's most encouraging to witness the active participation and
keen bidding throughout the sale," said Quek Chin Yeow,
auctioneer and managing director of Sotheby's Singapore, which
showcased 196 paintings.
"Amid the economic uncertainty in the region, we are happy to
see the strong participation by Europeans and local
Singaporeans," he said.
But Bonham's said its sale of 160 paintings failed to reach
house expectations, fetching only Sin.$1 million.
"The market is clearly under the influence of the currency
trouble," Rob Mulders, Bonham's paintings expert, told Reuters.