[2026 Spring Auction Summary] Yongle Auction's three major modern and contemporary art auctions achieved a total of 146 million yuan, with masterpieces by Chang Yu and Zeng Fanzhi leading the way with items fetching tens of millions of yuan.
On June 21, 2026, Yongle Beijing's 2026 Spring Auction of Modern and Contemporary Art concluded in succession. The daytime session of "Modern and Contemporary Art", the evening session of "A Panorama of Modern and Contemporary Art", and the evening session of "The Present is the Future - New Painting in a Global Perspective" were held in succession. The three sections achieved a total transaction volume of RMB 146 million. The transaction structure and the results of artist cultivation released a clear signal of market recovery.
Three key highlights of overall transaction volume
I. Looking at the auction cycle from 2024 to 2025, the industry underwent two years of contraction and adjustment.The sales volume of the modern and contemporary art section at this Yongle Spring Auction increased significantly by 48.4% compared to 94.3 million yuan in the 2025 Spring Auction.The overall volume recovered to a level similar to 147 million yuan in the Autumn 2024 auction, but the number of top-tier lots exceeding 10 million yuan decreased, and the total transaction amount failed to reach the peak of 180 million yuan in the Spring 2024 auction.This is a structural repair rather than a full-blown rebound..
two,The biggest highlight of this contemporary art auction was the full realization of the value of Wang Fanseng, an artist whom Yongle has nurtured for five seasons.Many of his representative works have repeatedly broken his personal auction records at various levels.
artistAll 11 of Wang Fanseng's works were successfully sold today.With no items failing to sell, the three core creative series—New World, Qi Xie Shan Zhi, and Tales of the Strange—have collectively unleashed strong market purchasing power.
The large-scale work "Five Lucky Stars (New World Series)" (200cm) sold for 1.8 million yuan, or 2.07 million yuan including commission, significantly raising the ceiling for the artist's prices; the new work "Feast (New World Series)" sold for 1.23 million yuan, or 1.4145 million yuan including commission, following closely behind. These two surreal color works entered the high-priced tier of this auction.
Up to this spring auctionThere are a total of 27 publicly auctioned items by Wang Fanseng, 23 of which were sold by Yongle Auction.Only four early works were diverted to other auction houses, demonstrating Yongle's firm control over the main channels for the circulation of artists' works and its ability to maintain stable price trends over the long term.
In the current environment of increasing polarization in the contemporary art market and greater difficulty in nurturing new talent,Yongle's long-term cultivation model for Wang Fanseng, which involves "series, sessions, and cycles".It gained market attention. Relying on a full-chain system of academic research, tiered release of goods, all-media promotion, and segmented customer group operation, it opened up two collection tracks: the Eastern classical cultural heritage and young artists, and ultimately achieved a market performance of full-line transactions and the creation of multiple records.
three,Classic and rare original works possess the characteristic of long-term resistance to price drops; works by artists such as Chang Yu, Wu Guanzhong, and Zeng Fanzhi...Masterpieces by modern and contemporary blue-chip artists continued to fetch high prices, with scarcity being the core guarantee for navigating market cycles. Among them, Chang Yu's "Pink Roses in a White Porcelain Vase" started at 15 million yuan and eventually sold for 21.16 million yuan, leading the auction. Zeng Fanzhi's masterpiece "Wheat Field" from the "Random Brushstrokes" series sold for 15.065 million yuan; Jia Aili's "Holiday in Montauk" sold for 8.165 million yuan; and Wu Guanzhong's "Dragon Beard Island," Zhou Chunya's "Spring Scarlet Reflecting Green," and Liu Wei's "No Smoking" all sold for 5.75 million yuan.
The following are the highlights and sales data for each special session.
On June 21, 2026, at 7:00 PM, Yongle Auction will hold the "Scenic Views - Modern and Contemporary Art Evening Sale".The auction featured 41 lots, achieving a total sales volume of 94.8945 million yuan and a 90% sell-through rate. Among these lots, 49% sold above their estimated prices, and 41% sold within their estimated prices. A total of 2 lots sold for over 10 million yuan and 18 lots sold for over 1 million yuan were auctioned.Among them, Chang Yu's "Pink Roses in a White Porcelain Vase" topped the list at 21.16 million yuan, while Zeng Fanzhi's "Wheat Field" sold for 15.065 million yuan.
New record:
Sang Huoyao broke the artist's personal record;
Fan Cungang sets a new record for the second-highest price ever paid by an artist;
Top-selling item in this session:
Sanyu's "Pink Roses in a White Porcelain Vase" was hammered down at 18.4 million yuan, and sold for 21.16 million yuan including commission.
Top 2 in sales this session:
Zeng Fanzhi's "Wheat Field" was hammered down at 13.1 million yuan, and sold for 15.065 million yuan including commission.
Top 3 transactions in this session:
Cui Ruzhuo's "Crows Gathering on Ancient Trees; Cold Green; Winter Plum Blossoms Announcing Spring; Longevity (a set of four pieces)" was hammered down at 6.5 million yuan, and sold for 7.475 million yuan including commission.
Several artists broke auction records
Other items sold at auction:
Besides the top three most expensive lots, the auction also includes masterpieces by numerous artists, including Zhou Chunya, Liu Wei, Wu Guanzhong, Jin Shangyi, Chen Yifei, Zhang Enli, and Guan Liang.
At 8:00 PM on June 21, 2026, Yongle Auction's "The Present is the Future - New Paintings in a Global Perspective" auction was held as scheduled in Beijing.The auction featured 61 lots, achieving a total sales volume of RMB 45,676,900 and a 92% sell-through rate. 36% of the lots sold above their estimates, while 54% sold within their estimates. A total of 10 million-dollar lots were auctioned.Jia Aili's "Holiday in Montauc" sold for 8.165 million yuan, becoming the top-selling item at the auction.
New record:
Wang Fanseng, Jiang Zheng, and many other artists broke their personal records;
Li Ran and several other artists set new records for the second-highest prices ever paid for an artist's work;
Su Yuxin and several other artists set new records for the third-highest prices ever paid for an artist's work;
Top-selling item in this session:
Jia Aili's "Holiday in Montauk" was hammered down at 7.1 million yuan, and sold for 8.165 million yuan including commission.
Top 2 in sales this session:
Qiu Xiaofei's "Houhai" was hammered down at 2.35 million yuan, and sold for 2.7025 million yuan including commission.
Several artists broke auction records
Other items sold at auction:
Besides the top three most expensive lots, the auction also includes masterpieces by numerous artists, including Kohei Nawa, Yu-Hsing Huang, Yi-Tien Sun, Loewe Hollowell, Fan-Seng Wang, Xiao-Hui Liu, and Bing Yan.
At 2:00 PM on June 21, 2026, Yongle Auction's "Modern and Contemporary Art" auction was held as scheduled in Beijing.The auction featured 76 lots, achieving a total sales volume of 6.9788 million yuan and a total sell-through rate of 80%. Among these lots, 55% sold above their estimated prices, and 22% sold within their estimated prices.Wang Fanseng's "Ten Thousand Ravines; Lonely Tree Peak; Past Life Fate; River Life (Qixie Mountain Chronicles Series)" sold for 517,500 yuan, becoming the top-selling item in this auction.
New record:
Wang Fanseng, Wang Yuanyuan and many other artists broke their personal records;
Several artists, including Zhang Xuerui and Deng Lin, have set new records for the third-highest prices ever paid for an artist's work.
Top-selling item in this session:
Wang Fanseng's "Ten Thousand Ravines; Lonely Tree Peak; Past Life Fate; River Life (Qixie Mountain Chronicles Series)" was hammered down at 450,000 yuan, and sold for 517,500 yuan including commission.
Top 2 in sales this session:
Wang Yuanyuan's "Grand Landscape 4 (Diptych)" was hammered down at 420,000 yuan, and sold for 483,000 yuan including commission.
Top 3 transactions in this session:
Sun Xun's "The Book of the Hermit, Part One" was hammered down at 400,000 yuan, and sold for 460,000 yuan including commission.
Other items sold at auction:
Besides the top three most expensive lots, the auction also includes masterpieces by numerous artists, including Zhou Chunya, Song Kun, Yan Bingqing, Yin Zhaoyang, Tan Yongqing, Qin Qi, and Chen Fei.
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