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About The Asian reporter. (Portland, Or.) 1991-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2014)
April 21, 2014 ASIA / PACIFIC In China, a jar of French mountain air fetches $860 By Didi Tang The Associated Press EIJING — Beijing artist Liang Kegang returned from a business trip in southern France with well-rested lungs and a small item of protest against his home city’s choking pollution: a glass jar of clean, Provence air. He put it up for auction before a group of about 100 Chinese artists and collectors in late March and it fetched 5,250 yuan ($860). “Air should be the most valueless commodity, free to breathe for any vagrant or beggar,” Liang said in an interview. “This is my way to question China’s foul air and express my dissatisfaction.” Liang’s work is part of a gust of recent artistic protests — and entrepreneurial gimmickry — reflecting wide- spread dissatisfaction about air quality in China, where cities often are immersed days on end in harmful pollutants at levels many times what is considered safe by the World Health Organization. The chronic problem has spurred brisk markets for dust masks and home air purifiers. China’s senior leaders have pledged to clean the air, partly in response to a citizenry increasingly vocal about environmental issues. But it is a daunting task that must be balanced with demands for economic development and employment crucial to maintaining stability. In February, 20 artists wearing dust masks lay on the ground and played dead in front of an altar at the Temple of Heaven park in a performance art protest in Beijing. In March, independent artists in the southern city of Changsha held a mock funeral for what they imagined would be the death of the city’s last citizen because of smog. “If smog cannot be effectively cleaned up, what it will leave us is death and cities of death,” artist Shao Jiajun said. Liang’s contribution is a short, ordinary glass preserves jar with a rubber seal and a flip-top. It has three small, handwritten paper labels: one with the name and coordinates of the French village, Forcalquier, where he closed the jar; one saying “Air in Provence, France” in French; and one with his signature in Chinese and the date — March 29. The auction closed on the night of March 30, and Chengdu-based artist and entrepreneur Li Yongzheng was the highest bidder. “I have always been appreciative of Kegang’s conceptual art, and this piece was very timely,” Li said in a B Mowing - Edging Maintenance - Pressure Washing Gutter Cleaning - Fall Leaf Clean-up Weed & Debris Removal - Trimming & Hauling Seasonal Yard Clean-up - Bark Dusting Mulching - Thatching Lawns State Farm ® Providing Insurance and Financial Services Home Office, Bloomington, Illinois 61710 Liane Nishimura Ins. Agency Inc. Liane B. Nishimura, Agent POLLUTION PROTEST. Beijing artist Liang Kegang collects fresh air in the commune of Forcalquier in Provence, France. The jar of air is a piece of conceptual art to protest his home city’s choking pollution. It fetched $860 in a small auction. (AP Photo/Liang Kegang) telephone interview. “This past year, whether it was Beijing, Chengdu, or most Chinese cities, air pollution has been a serious problem. This piece of work really suits the occasion.” Liang is not the only one to make money from China’s air-pollution angst. Entrepreneurs also see the potential, and so do tourism officials in parts of the country where skies are clear. Chinese President Xi Jinping joked to Guizhou province delegates during last month’s National People’s Congress that the scenic southwestern province could put its air up for sale. Days later, the province’s tourism bureau an- nounced plans to sell canned air as souvenirs for tourists. “Canned air will force us to stay committed to environmental protection,” provincial tourism director Fu Yingchun said recently. In central Henan province, local tourism authorities promoting a resort scooped up mountain air and gave away bags of it in downtown Zhengzhou, the provincial capital. City dwellers greedily inhaled the air, and some said they planned to visit the mountain resort to get more than a lungful. Chen Guangbiao, a recycling tycoon who briefly made headlines with his abortive plan to purchase The New York Times, has been selling fresh air in cans under his “Good Person” brand. Want one? They sell for $3 each on China’s online bazaar of Taobao. By Kelvin Chan AP Business Writer ONG KONG — A Shanghai collector has paid a record $36 million for a rare Ming Dynasty cup that’s touted as the “holy grail” of China’s art world. Several records have been set at Sotheby’s spring sales in Hong Kong, continuing a trend of sky-high prices in the art world driven by the newly super-rich buyers in China and developing countries. The dainty, white cup from the 15th century measures just 3.1 inches in diameter and is known as a “chicken cup” because it’s decorated with a rooster and hen tending to their chicks. Sotheby’s describes the cup as having flawless translucent sides with its lively scene painted continuously around them. It was made during the reign of the Ming Dynasty’s Chenghua Emperor, who ruled from 1465 to 1487. Sotheby’s said only 17 such cups exist, with four in private hands and the rest in museums. “There’s no more legendary object in the history of Chinese porcelain,” said Nicholas Chow, Sotheby’s deputy chairman for Asia. “This is really the holy grail when it comes to Chinese art.” The previous record for Chinese porcelain was set in 2010 when a gourd-shaped Qianlong vase sold for $32.4 million, Sotheby’s said. For such a prized item, bidding was limited to a handful of collectors and when the winning bid was hammered down at HK$250 million ($32.2 million), the standing- room-only crowd applauded. The auction house’s commis- sion brought the total to HK$281.2 million ($36.1 million). A pre-sale estimate was a maximum HK$300 million. The auction house’s Hong Kong spring sales show the region’s super-rich are still spending despite fluctuating economic growth. At the sale of modern and contemporary Asian art, Asian collectors bought nine of the top 10 Danh Yard & Garden Service Dien Danh dien_danh@yahoo.com | (503) 810-4454 Ming Dynasty ‘chicken cup’ sells for record $36 million H THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 5 PRICEY PORCELAIN. The Meiyintang “Chicken Cup” from the Chinese Ming Dynasty is displayed during a press conference in Hong Kong. Sotheby’s said Shanghai collector Liu Yiqian won the bidding for the “Chicken Cup,” which is decorated with a rooster, hen, and their chicks. Including the auction house’s commission, the price for the small cup totalled HK$281.2 million ($36.1 million), which Sotheby’s said is a world record price for Chinese porcelain. The previous record for Chinese porcelain was set in 2010 when a gourd-shaped Qianlong vase sold for $32.4 million, according to Sotheby’s. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu) priciest lots. “Definitely the mood in Hong Kong at this moment, in Asia, is buoyant,” said Chow. Sotheby’s identified the buyer as collector Liu Yiqian, and Chow said the cup would likely go on display in Liu’s Long Museum in Shanghai, which he and his wife, Wang Wei, opened in 2012. Liu is a middle-school dropout who drove a cab before becoming a multimillionaire. Forbes estimates his fortune at $900 million, making him the 200th richest person in China. 14780 SW Osprey Drive, Suite 246 Beaverton, OR 97007-8424 Bus.: (503) 579-3005 w Toll-free: 1-800-555-6802 liane.nishimura.gh18@statefarm.com The greatest compliment you can give is a referral.
