by Robert A. Hefner, July 16, 2007
As we all know, Asian art sales are booming and prices have skyrocketed. At Christie’s May 27, 2007, Hong Kong sale Wu Guanzhong set a new record for his 1973 oil painting Scenery of Northern China, selling for $4.1 million USD. Although Wu Guanzhong’s works have skyrocketed from a few hundred thousand into the millions, it is my thought that prices for his art have a long way to go. 2007 has set new records in the world of oil painting and the market is only recently becoming a global market. I personally rank Wu Guanzhong with such outstanding artists of the 20th Century as Van Gogh, Picasso, Matisse, Rothko and Warhol. As matter of fact, I would put him toward the top of that list. So, with these artists selling anywhere from $25 million to the potential of $100 million for a painting, it seems likely that Wu Guanzhong will continue to have market appreciation.