Strengt h in Diversity

A UNIQUE MIX OF EXPERTISE IS THE SECRET OF FINE ART ASIA’S SUCCESS

WHEN FINE ART ASIA WAS BORN IN 2006 AS THE ART & ANTIQUE INTERNATIONAL FAIR, IT WAS ALONE IN ITS FIELD, BUT IT’S SINCE BEEN JOINED BY ART BASEL IN HONG KONG AND A HOST OF SMALLER FAIRS. CALVIN HUI SEES THE BOOM AS A GOOD THING. “THERE ARE MORE PEOPLE WHO APPRECIATE ART AND THEY ARE BECOMING MORE DIVERSE IN THEIR TASTE,” HE SAYS.

HUI JOINED AS CO-CHAIRMAN IN 2010, REBRANDING THE FAIR AND WIDENING ITS FOCUS FROM MOSTLY ANTIQUES. “THERE WERE A LOT OF THINGS ON THE MARKET THAT WERE NOT BEING REPRESENTED IN ASIA,” HE SAYS. “THE PRIORITY IS TO SELECT FIRST-TIER GALLERIES WITH REALLY HIGH REPUTATIONS AND HIGH-QUALITY WORKS. WE DELIBERATELY MIX THE BOOTHS SO THERE’S A LOT OF SYNERGY. PEOPLE ALWAYS SAY THERE IS A LOT OF CONTRAST, LIKE A CONTEMPORARY ART BOOTH NEXT TO ONE SELLING TIFFANY LAMPS.”

MUCH OF THE FAIR’S SUCCESS STEMS FROM THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HUI AND CO-CHAIRMAN ANDY HEI, WHOSE RESPECTIVE FIELDS OF EXPERTISE, ART AND ANTIQUES, GIVE THEM A UNIQUE SET OF REFERENCES. “WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT ART YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO TALK ABOUT HISTORY AND TRADITION; YOU SEE THE INFLUENCE OF THE PAST,” SAYS HUI. THE DUO’S GRASP OF ASIAN AND EUROPEAN TRADITIONS GIVES THEM INSIGHT INTO WHAT COLLECTORS WANT, HE SAYS. THOUGH GALLERISTS SOMETIMES WANT TO STOCK THEIR BOOTHS WITH WESTERN RELIGIOUS WORKS, HUI WARNS THEM NOT TO BECAUSE IT TENDS TO ALIENATE CHINESE COLLECTORS. “ART COLLECTING IS SOMETHING REALLY PERSONAL,” HE SAYS. “YOU HAVE TO FIND A CONNECTION WITH YOUR OWN EXPERIENCE AND CULTURAL BACKGROUND.”

MOST OF THE FAIR’S COLLECTORS COME FROM HONG KONG AND THE MAINLAND, BUT HUI SAYS MORE AND MORE ARE FROM TAIWAN AND SOUTHEAST ASIA—“INDONESIAN COLLECTORS ESPECIALLY; THEY LOVE FINE JEWELLERY.” HE THINKS IT’S THE FAIR’S DIVERSITY THAT DRAWS THEM. “THAT’S WHY WE HAVE SMALL OBJECTS THAT ARE NOT TOO EXPENSIVE ALONGSIDE MASTERPIECES BY PICASSO AND MONET.”