As luxury living becomes ever more de rigueur, the demand for fine art continues to grow. It should be no surprise then that Waddington’s, Canada’s largest and most diversified auction house, has posted ground-breaking results – including five new records being set within three hours – during its recent sale of fine Asian art.
This is the second offering of Chinese artworks from the highly distinguished collection of Doctor David Lin. The sale attracted buyers from Asia and New York, underlining the growing significance of the Canadian auction scene.
The sale came following an exhaustive three-month selection process, with representatives of the auction house extensively assessing and evaluating the works of art to be included in the auction. Among the many star lots uncovered were a series of Japanese woodblock prints, as well as a fine selection of jade and porcelain snuff bottles, all created by the country’s foremost masters.
Other highlights included such rare and previously little-known gems as the Copper Red Lotus Ewer from the Hongwu period (AD1328 – 1398), which eventually sold for a truly mammoth $2,992,500.
With the level of pre-auction interest unusually high, the bidding was exceptionally tense throughout the entire evening. Overall, the success of the event exceeded all estimation. Speaking after the sale, Duncan McLean, Waddington’s president, said the price paid for the Ewer represented the highest amount bid for any item of fine art auctioned in Canada this year.