Seoul Auction, Korea’s leading art auction house, will hold its 2012 Spring Hong Kong Sale on 3 April, 2012 at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong. The estimated value of the 2012 Spring Hong Kong Sale lots is HK$64.3 million (US$8.25 million).

Seoul Auction will present around 70 outstanding works by leading artists from the East and West including Zeng Fanzhi, Zhang Xiaogang, Kim Tschang Yeul, Kim Whan Ki, Robert Indiana, Dan Flavin, Julian Schnabel and more.  For the first time in its Hong Kong history, Seoul Auction will present a selection of contemporary art furniture including Arne Jacobson’s iconic Egg Chair and Yves Klein’s Table d'or.

The 2012 Seoul Auction Spring Hong Kong Sale is drawing considerable attention in Korea and overseas because Seoul Auction has beenappointed by Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) as their agent in auctioning confiscated art works from Busan Savings Bank in South Korea last year.

Highlights of the spring sale from the KDIC collection include Zhang Xiaogang’s Bloodline Series, Zeng Fanzhi’s Trauma & Portrait and Julian Schnabel’s Untitled-Chinese Painting. The total estimated value of KDIC confiscated art works collection is KRW 200 billion (US$172 million).

A preview will be held on the 1-2 April, 2012 at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong and a special lecture series will also be held:
·         The Art World of Oh Chi Kyun by Myung-Sun Kim (Senior Specialist at Seoul Auction) on April 1 (Sun) at 5pm     
·         Korean Artists in the Global Art Scene by Ji Yoon Lee (Founding Director of SUUM Contemporary Art Project) on April 2 (Mon) at 2:30pm

Chinese Highlights
The top lot of the Chinese contemporary art world is Trauma (2009) by leading contemporary Chinese artist Zeng Fanzhi (b.1964) (estimate: HK$5,700,000-8,500,000), which showcases the artist’s distinct way of depicting human figures. In the painting, a male figure is painted with rough contours amid a blank background. This is the way Zeng reveals the tragedy and psychology of human beings overshadowed by the severity and cruelty of modern society.

Korean Highlights
The star attraction in the Korea series is Garden (1956) by Kim Whan Ki(1913-1974) (estimate: HK$9,000,000-11,000,000), which is taken from the artist’s Paris period in the mid ‘50s, where he painted Korean ephemera such as pots and traditional wall decoration in an abstract manner. After returning to Korea in 1959, the artist drew inspiration from nature, painting mountains, clouds and the moon, while the New York period (1963-1974) saw the artist creating his famed series of dot paintings.

Western Highlights
The Western section highlight at the auction is Love (1966-2002) byRobert Indiana (b. 1928) (estimate: HK$4,800,000-5,500,000), a striking, optimistic sculpture that comprises the word ‘love’ in upper case letters with ‘1966-2002 R Indiana’ stamped on the lower edge of the letter ‘E’. It is the best-known example from the artist’s series of bold, iconic images, which often incorporate short letters and numbers.