The Hong Kong Sales Achieves White-Glove Evening Auction

O n 29 March, on what would normally have been a quiet Sunday closing out an eventful art week in the city, Sotheby’s Hong Kong welcomed a full saleroom charged with palpable energy for its Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction. All eyes were on Alex Branczik, Sotheby’s Chairman of Modern and Contemporary Art, EMEA & Asia, and auctioneer for the evening.

“You’ve got to amplify everything to make it entertaining,” Branczik said in a recent video about his career at Sotheby’s and his role as an auctioneer – and make it entertaining he did. With confidence and poise, he brought down the hammer on 54 lots over two and a half hours, achieving a white-glove sale as the room erupted into a full round of applause. With 100% of lots sold, the auction realised a total of HK$548,421,200 (US$70,310,410) – up more than 50% from March 2025 – with nearly half of the lots exceeding their high estimates.

The first lot of the evening – Constantium (2014) by Pakistani-American sculptor Huma Bhaba – drew a flurry of bids, driving the work past its HK$1.8M pre-sale high estimate to reach HK$2,816,000 (US$359,491). This was followed by Relief Sculpture (1995), an elegant, minimal work carved from Portland stone by the celebrated Singaporean-British sculptor Kim Lim. The sculpture sold for HK$1,792,000 (US$228,767), setting a new auction record for the artist.

It was the first of several record highs to follow. Among them, Eugène Carrière’s Caresse (circa 1894), a tender portrait of his wife and child executed in his signature monochromatic palette, soared to HK$3,584,000 (US$457,533) – 2.5 times its high estimate. The work achieved a significant new auction record, marking an increase of over 325% on the artist’s previous benchmark. The late 19th-century French artist had been in the global spotlight in recent years, included in several group exhibitions and the subject of solo presentations at major international galleries. In 2025, Sotheby’s Hong Kong presented a dedicated exhibition at its maison. Together with this new record, these milestones underscored Carrière’s rising market profile.

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Headlining the evening was La Grande Vallée VII (1983) by Joan Mitchell, a monumental diptych from the American artist’s highly regarded late-career series. Appearing at auction for the first time, the painting sold to an online bidder for HK$137,350,000 (US$17,608,974), becoming the top lot sold in Asia this season. It also set a new benchmark as the most valuable work by a woman artist sold at auction in Asia, and established a new auction record for the artist in the region.

Three further benchmarks were set over the course of the evening. Mark Rothko’s No. 10 (1949) sold for HK$66,780,000 (US$8,525,135), well above its HK$40M pre-sale high estimate, establishing a new record for a work from the artist’s revered Multiform series. Henri Matisse’s Jeune fille en noir (1919) realised HK$8,320,000 (US$1,062,131), while Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone’s sculpture The Lucid (2017) fetched HK$3,584,000 (US$457,533), both setting new records for works sold at auction in Asia.

Other notable lots of the evening saw deep bidding:

• David Hockney fever continued, as three iPad drawings from his The Arrival of Spring in Woldgate in 2011 series sold to online bidders above their high estimates, bringing a combined total of HK$8,064,000 (US$1,029,451).
• Wu Guanzhong’s Red lotus flowers (2003) drew 32 bids in a bidding war before selling for HK$17,280,000 (US$2,205,965), nearly triple its high estimate.
• Lucy Bull’s market continued to command attention. Fresh to auction, 22:14 (2022) sold for HK$12,160,000 (US$1,552,346), nearly 3.5 times its low estimate.
• Among the handful of ancient works offered, an Amamori kohiki vase from the Joseon dynasty, 15th–16th century, surpassed its estimates after more than 10 bids, fetching HK$6,016,000 (US$768,003).
• Newly discovered, Sanyu’s Beijing Circus sold for HK$47,260,000 (US$6,033,212), above its pre-sale estimates.
• Zao Wou-Ki’s Nuage (1956), from the artist’s renowned Oracle Bone series, sold for HK$40,550,000 (US$5,176,613), while Terre rouge – 16.01.2005 saw 16 bids placed, realising HK$32,010,000 (US$4,086,397).
• Giorgio Morandi’s Natura morta (1942–43) nearly doubled its high estimate, achieving HK$8,320,000 (US$1,062,131).
• Among standout contemporary works, Yu Nishimura’s bug (2021) attracted 19 bids, driving its price to HK$2,816,000 (US$359,491), quadruple its high estimate.
• Works by Li Hei Di continued to see strong collector demand. The Reservoir of Understanding (2022) achieved HK$1,920,000 (US$245,107), nearly triple its high estimate.