Southeast Asian art auctions all the rage in Singapore

By Amir Sidharta

SINGAPORE (JP): Art at auction was certainly the theme in Singapore last weekend, when two auctions of approximately 330 Southeast Asian paintings were offered by the world's two major auction houses.

Sotheby's auction on Saturday was highlighted by the sale of Le Mayeur's Three Women Weaving in the Garden, which sold at a hammer price of S$300,000, double the estimate of S$120,000- $150,000. It is clear that Sotheby's promotional efforts in Jakarta last September paid off. A second Le Mayeur carried an estimate of S$180,000-$200,000, but only managed to reach $210,000.

Other pieces which reached prices well above their estimates included two small sketches by Roland Strasser, which reached three to four times their estimates of $1,500-$2,000. A Donald Friend depiction of carpenters attracted $34,000, more than double the $12,000-$15,000 estimate. A painting by Austrian artist Emil Rizek surprisingly attracted $125,000, also more than double the estimate.

However, the real "star" of the Sotheby's sale was a painting by Hendra Gunawan. Women at a Waterfall, measuring 248 X 140 cm, is truly a monumental piece. Due to its impressive size and masterful quality, it attracted $220,000, well over its estimate of $80,000-$120,000. This painting, which appeared in a 1979 exhibition of Hendra's work, was featured prominently in the Sotheby's auction catalog. Sotheby's determination to include Indonesian art deserves commendation.

Another Indonesian artist whose works are rising in value is Widayat. His first painting in the auction, Elderly Citizens Chased by Dogs (1996), fetched a record $82,000. The artist's second painting, Adam and Eve (1980) reached $28,000, roughly twice the estimate.

Equally interesting was the appearance of lesser-known artists in Indonesia's history of painting. The interesting works by Agerbeek and van Mens, depicting the life of the Chinese in Jakarta at the turn of the century, fetched twice their estimates.

In the end, Sotheby's is believed to have sold more than 80 percent of the paintings on offer.

Christie's auction the following day was supposed to start with an interesting 1949 Theo Meier, but the lot did not appear. According to sources, the vendor offered a photographic reproduction and failed to present the actual painting.

That was not the only painting withdrawn from the sale. Five other paintings were withdrawn after news of a theft at Indonesia's National Museum. The withdrawn paintings included a Raden Saleh, whose Deer Hunt was sold last March by Christie's for S$2.8 million.

Without the Raden Saleh, the auction focused on Walter Spies. Last year, his Landscape and her Children sold for a hammer price of $900,000. This sale's Sawah Landscape with Gunung Agung perhaps equals the beauty of the painting sold last year, but only managed to fetch $950,000.

Other surprises included the sale of Hugo von Pedersen's paintings. This artist is known mainly for his beautiful illustrations in his own book, Door den Oost-Indische Archipel, published in 1902. His painting of a Wayang Orang performance fetched $80,000, double the estimate of $30,000-$40,000.

Works by famous European artists working in Bali, which have traditionally fetched higher prices, continue to do well. However, their selling prices did not go too far beyond their estimates.

One large painting by Rudolf Bonnet, Resting Grass Cutters, which appeared in Ruud Spruit's Indonesian Impressions and in de Roever-Bonnet's biography of the artist, had a very high estimate of $250,000-$350,000 and failed to sell. It seems clear that people are starting to realize that paintings by Indonesian artists are as strong if not stronger than the works by these so- called European masters.

Philippine artist Fernando Amorsolo continues to attract high prices. His In the Shade of a Mango Tree sold for S$105,000, well over its estimate of $20,000-$30,000.

The Christie's sale paused for a short while due to a blackout which occurred at lot 320. This Basoeki Abdullah painting followed the one that had been stolen from the National Museum and withdrawn from the auction. Many noticed the coincidence and drew superstitious inferences.

A number of pre-war Balinese paintings appeared in this sale. The highlight was a very large Sobrat which was exhibited in the second Pita Maha exhibition held at the Batavischen Kunstkring (Batavia Art Cirle) in 1937. This impressive painting attracted $120,000. The sale ended with a couple of meticulous 19th century paintings about Indonesia by Herwerden. The beautiful paintings painted in 1853 and 1854 offer a glimpse of everyday life in central Java during the time. Most interesting is the depiction of the architecture, which shows a Javanese joglo structure with a thatch roof. Today, such roofs have been replaced with terra- cotta tiles.

The Christie's auction was more successful than Sotheby's, despite the withdrawal of key pieces. It is believed that 90 percent of the items were sold.

Many other events happened around the two auctions on Saturday and Sunday. On Friday, Christie's opened its exhibition of Impressionist and Modern Art, featuring works by Edgar Degas, Marc Chagall, Amedeo Modigliani, Willem de Kooning and Roy Lichtenstein.

Michael Findlay of Christie's New York commented that many people think that they have to spend money when they enter Christie's, when actually the house presents exhibitions free of charge. "The paintings presented are major art works which will probably go into private collections, so this might be the last time that they will be available for public viewing," he added.

Later, auction house Glerum, which held its first Southeast Asian auction last June, officially opened its office at the Shangri-La Singapore. In conjunction with this event, they displayed a selection of paintings from its upcoming second Singapore auction in December.

Later that evening, Sotheby's and Mercury hosted an elegant dinner at Raffles Hotel's East India Room. At the dinner, Alice Lam of Sotheby's reminded guests of the analogy between financial investment and collecting art. Mercury's director summed up the relationship between the two partners. He reiterated that Mercury's role is to place their clients' money in the right investments so that they will be able to purchase the art offered at Sotheby's.

Questioned by a young financial consultant if paintings make a good investment, prominent Indonesian collector Dr. Oei Hong Djien said yes, if the works are strong. But he reminded the young man, "Never buy paintings as an investment! You should buy paintings because you truly like them!" That is certainly sound advice for those planning to bid in the future.