At 10:00 on October 8, 2025, China Guardian's "Asian 20th Century and Contemporary Art" auction was held as scheduled in Hong Kong.The total transaction amount of 99 lots in this auction reached HK$68.2902 million, with a total transaction rate of 84%, of which 40% of the lots were sold above the estimated price and 42% of the lots were sold within the estimated price.Zao Wou-Ki's "27.01.83" was sold for HK$17.7 million, becoming the highest-priced painting of the auction.

New Record:
Zeng Yang set a new personal record for an artist;
Li Chen sets a new record for the third highest price paid to an artist;
 

A total of 2 million-level auction items were bornAmong them, Zao Wou-Ki's "27.01.83" was sold for HK$17.7 million and Li Chen's "Master Riding a Dragon" was sold for HK$11.148 million.

A total of 9 million-level auction items were producedAmong them, Marc Chagall's "My Home" was sold for HK$7.755 million, Ding Yanyong's "Beautiful Woman" was sold for HK$3.12 million, and Xie Jinglan's "Blue Moon" was sold for HK$2.88 million.

TOP1 transaction in this session:

Zao Wou-Ki's "27.01.83" was sold for HK$15 million, plus HK$17.7 million in commission.

Zao Wou-Ki, a giant of Chinese abstract art, mastered the language of modern art throughout his career spanning over 70 years. He revitalized and revitalized the highly developed Western Abstract Expressionism by connecting it with the essence of traditional Chinese culture, philosophy, and calligraphy. Within the previously Western-centric context of abstract art, he forged a new path, writing his own immortal legacy.

Former French President Jacques René Chirac said of his works: "A treasure from both the East and the West, the truth within them is endless, leading directly to the kingdom of dreams and mysterious illusions"; the writer Cheng Baoyi further pointed out: "Zao Wou-Ki's artistic destiny is not just personal, he is closely related to the development and evolution of Chinese painting art for thousands of years... Thanks to his works, the long expectation that Chinese painting has been stuck in for a century seems to have come to an end, and the true symbiosis between China and the West that should have occurred long ago has appeared for the first time.

Zao Wou-Ki held more than 100 solo exhibitions during his lifetime. His works have been collected by more than 150 major art museums around the world and are widely loved by collectors in Europe, America and Asia. For example, his works are collected by the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Tate Modern in London, the National Museum of Modern Art in Paris, the Louvre, the Pompidou Center, the Cramé Foundation in Geneva, the Ishibashi Museum of Art in Tokyo, the Deji Art Museum in Nanjing, the Fubon Museum of Art in Taipei, and Chen Taiming, the head of the Yageo Foundation who was listed as one of the "Top 200 Collectors in the World" by Artnews in 2024. The works will be included in the "Chronological Collection of Zao Wou-Ki's Works - Volume 3 1975-2008" which is being compiled by Vansva Marquet and Jan Hendgen (Information provided by Zao Wou-Ki Foundation)

TOP2 transactions in this session:

Li Chen's "Master Riding a Dragon" was sold for HK$9.4 million, plus commission for HK$11.148 million.

TOP3 transactions in this session:

Marc Chagall's "My Home" was sold for HK$6.5 million, plus commission for HK$7.755 million.

Several artists set new auction records

Other lots sold:

In addition to the top three most expensive lots, the auction also included many excellent works by Chinese and Western artists, including Ding Yanyong, Xie Jinglan, Ding Yi, Wang Yidong, Wu Guanzhong, and Yayoi Kusama.

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For more details on the auction items, please click on the special session