Hurun Global Art List 2022

German artist Gerhard Richter, 90, stormed to the top of the Hurun Global Art List, with sales of his works at public auction more than doubling to US$256mn, and displacing two-time world Number One David Hockney, 85, who dropped down to 5th. Yayoi Kusama, 93, broke into the Top 3 for the first time, and is the only woman artist in the Top 10. Banksy at 48 is the youngest of the Top 10.  Pierre Soulages, 103, and Peter Doig, 63, broke into the Top 10 at the expense of American artists Ed Ruscha and Wayne Thiebaud, who passed away last year aged 101.

German artist Gerhard Richter, 90, topped the list with US$265mn in sales, up two places from last year and up 134% from the previous year. A total of 308 Richter works were sold last year, including his 1993 abstract painting Abstraktes Bild, which sold by Sotheby's in New York. His works vary in style, including romanticism, photorealism, abstract expressionism, minimalism and pop art.

British street artist Banksy, 48, was second with US$214mn in sales, up 4 places from last year and triple the value of his sales last year. Banksy is the youngest artist in the Top 10. A total of 1,699 Banksy works were sold last year, with his classic work Love is in the Bin (formerly known as Girl with Balloon, which was self-destructed at auction) selling at Sotheby's in London. Known for his satirical art style, Banksy's works are seen on streets around the world.

Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, 93, ranked third with US$185mn in sales, up two places from last year and up 162% from the previous year. Kusama is the only female artist in the Top 10. A total of 802 of her works were sold last year.

Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara, 63, was fourth with US$143mn, the same as last year, with sales up 91%. A total of 632 works by Nara were sold last year, with his 2000 painting Whereabouts Unknown selling at the Phillips and Poly auction. Nara's iconic painting of a cute, lonely little girl conveys a sentiment that resonates with young people around the world.

Cui Ruzhuo, a 78-year-old Chinese painter, was 5th with US$95mn in sales, down three places and 22% lower than last year. A group of works by Cui in 2020 became the world's highest-paid work by a living artist last year, sold by Yongle Auction.

Top of the list for the past two years, the British artist David Hockney, 85, ranked 6th with US$85mn, down 40% from the previous year. Of the 755 Hockney works sold last year, the most expensive was his 2000 landscape Guest House Garden, which sold at Christie's in London. Hockney lives in Yorkshire, London and California.

American surrealist artist George Condo, 65, ranked 7 with US$80mn, the same as last year, with a 45% increase in sales. A total of 143 Condo’s works were sold last year, with the most expensive being Reclining Blue Form, which sold at Sotheby's in New York. Kondo's signature style was "mutant surrealism," often featuring squeezed cartoonish faces and a dash of improvisational cubism.

French abstract artist Pierre Soulages, 103, ranked 8th with sales of US$70mn, up 7 places from last year and an increase of 122%. A total of 172 works sold last year. The most expensive work was Peinture 195 x 130 cm, 4 août 1961, which sold for US$20mn at Sotheby's in New York.

British artist Peter Doig, 63, ranked 9th with US$57mn, increase 158% and up 13 places. A total of 62 works were sold last year. The most expensive work was Swamped, worked in 1990, which sold for US$40mn at Christie's in New York. His works emphasize the abstractness of everyday things and construct vast and dreamy scenes.

Chinese artist Zeng Fanzhi, 58, increase 26% to US$53mn ranked 10th, the same as last year. An oil painting Zeng painted in 2012 was sold by Poly last year for US$5.3mn.

There were 13 new faces this year, up one from last year, led by Jeff Koons. 5 were from the US, 4 from China and 1 from each of South Korea, Spain, UK and Italy.

The Hurun Global Rich List 2022 ranked just under 3400 dollar billionaires from and 69 countries. These reflect where potential collectors reside.

Shanghai International Commodity Auction Co., Ltd (SICA) is a comprehensive auction company authorized by Shanghai Municipal People’s Government and the former National Internal Trading Ministry. It is the Vice President Company of China Association of Auctioneers, “AAA” grade auction enterprise in China auction industry and “5A” grade credit enterprise in Shanghai auction industry.

SICA is a professional auction agency providing the disposal of assets, assets realization, relevant assets management and consultation service. Recognized as the leading company in Chinese auction industry, SICA is one of the comprehensive auction companies featured with the most diversified products, the strongest marketing capability and the broadest lines of business including real estates, vehicles, supplies, equipment, cultural relics, artworks, collections and intangible assets, etc. It is the asset disposal platform for lots of financial institutions and state-owned groups, as well as the CIIE “6 days+365 days” perennial display trading platform. It is also a “Shanghai Brand” certified company, and was once elected to be a China Well-known trademark and Shanghai Famous Trademark.

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