The cast of HOME during a photocall in the Water of Leith, Edinburgh. The show highlights the climate crisis and how flooding is affecting the Fens in East Anglia and is being performed at the Edinburgh festival fringe
Photograph: Jane Barlow/PA
A decade ago, Liu Yiqian, a Chinese taxi driver-turned-billionaire, began turning heads in the art market by paying tens of millions of dollars for Chinese art with his credit card. As the Long Museum in Shanghai, which he co-founded with his wife Wang Wei, transformed into China’s leading private institution, the power couple became market makers at the highest level in Western art as well. In 2015, the two acquired Amedeo Modigliani’s Nu couché (Reclining Nude) for a record $170.4 million at a Christie’s sale in New York.
Now the couple is poised to send shock waves through the art market again—but this time as major sellers.
Liu and Wang asked Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Phillips to pitch for a group of Western modern, postwar, and contemporary art valued at about $150 million (in excess of HK$1 billion), according to people familiar with their plans. Sotheby’s won the bid, the people said.
The group included some works that have been featured in the Long Museum’s recent two-part exhibition celebrating its 10th anniversary, including Modigliani’s Paulette Jourdain, originally from A. Alfred Taubman’s collection, as well as significant works by Jenny Saville and Kerry James Marshall, according to people familiar with the pitch.
Many details remain unclear, including whether the sale will feature the couple’s impressive collection of Chinese painting and antiques. The museum is not closing its doors, sources told Artnet News.
“Sotheby’s is honored to be bringing to its Hong Kong sale rooms a truly outstanding group of works from the legendary collection of Liu Yiqian and Wang Wei—two of the greatest collectors of our time,” Sotheby’s said in a statement on Tuesday in response to Artnet News‘s request for comments. The house’s Hong Kong sales usually take place in October. The spokesperson added that “proceeds from the forthcoming sales [are] destined to further key initiatives at the Long Museum, while also funding future acquisitions and the continued fostering of cultural dialogues between different artists, geographies and generations.”
The auction house did not elaborate on what works will be included, but noted that the offering “spans everything from works by the greatest names in art history to newer pieces by today’s rising stars.”
The Long Museum has not responded to Artnet News‘s request for comments by the publication time.
Amedeo Modigliani, Nu couché, 1917–18. Courtesy of Christie’s New York.
Liu built his fortune investing in the stock market as China’s economy began to take off in the early 1990s. The chairman of Shanghai-based investment company Sunline Group, which has a portfolio ranging from pharmaceuticals, financial services, and properties, ventured into art collecting and bid at auction for the first time in 1994 in Beijing, acquiring a Chinese calligraphy work by Guo Moruo and a Chinese painting by Li Keran.
Together with his wife Wang, the couple became the best-known Chinese collectors in the West with high-profile purchases at auction that included the 500-year-old Ming dynasty Meiyintang “chicken cup” that fetched $36.6 million (including fees) at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in 2014, setting a new record. After the sale, Liu was photographed drinking from the cup while swiping his American Express card 24 times to pay for his winning bid.
At the time, his flamboyant behavior drew criticism, but he said in his defence that he needed to pull such stunts to generate publicity for his collection.
“I have a museum opening to the public. If I don’t tell people I have acquired these works, then no one would know, and no one will come to my museum to see them,” Liu said in an interview with the South China Morning Post in 2015. He also took pride in placing world class artworks in his museum in China.
Liu Yiqian drinks from his $36.3 million Meiyintang chicken cup. The record he set may be broken in October. Photo: courtesy Sotheby’s.
In the Hurun China Rich List 2022, Liu and his family was ranked at 131st with an estimated accumulated wealth of 37 billion yuan ($5 billion), up 33 places from the previous year. His wealth has reportedly grown to 38 billion yuan ($5.2 billion) according to Hurun Global Rich List 2023, which ranked him at 513rd.
But the couple has been keeping a relatively low profile in recent years and their art purchases have slowed down, according to people familiar with their activity.
That coincides with the slowdown in China’s economy, which is struggling to recover from the prolonged Covid lockdown. While major economies are tackling inflation by raising interest rates, China’s central bank, People’s Bank of China, announced on Monday that it has lowered its one-year loan prime rate, a key interest rate in the country, for the second time in three months from 3.55 percent to 3.45 percent, according to the BBC.
China’s property market has also been hit with an unprecedented crisis. Embattled property giant Evergrande, which was revealed to be the world’s most indebted property developer (it accumulated more than $300 billion debts), filed for U.S. bankruptcy protection in New York last Thursday, August 17. Country Garden, once China’s largest property developer, is suffering from a cash crunch and is said to be removed from Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index. Reuters reported property developers accounting for 40 percent of home sales in the country have defaulted since mid-2021 when the sector’s debt crisis began to deepen.
The group that Liu and Wang asked the three auction houses to evaluate included Marshall’s painting Plunge (1992). It last appeared at auction at Christie’s in 2016, fetching $2.2 million, then an auction record for the African American artist.
Another work was Saville’s large-scale painting Shift (1996-1998), which sold for 6.8 million pounds (about $9 million at the time), also in 2016, and a record for the British painter at the time.
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Photography is art, but it first needs to become a passion… Only with passion can one create art. Wildlife photography is my passion. However, just being in nature changes my creativity for the better. The creativity generated by the surroundings of nature flows right back into other areas of my photography, such as landscape and cityscape photography. I try as much as possible to make use of other photography genres, which forces me to become even more creative.
“Sometimes I do get to places just when God’s ready to have somebody click the shutter.” Ansel Adams
Although I am not a full-time professional photographer, photography is my passion. There is no doubt about it. Second to photography but just as important is my passion for nature, wildlife and conservation. I was fortunate to have visited many places during my lifetime and even more fortunate to have had the opportunity to capture those moments and memories in my photographs.
Is This a Fest? – photography days in Bucharest, a special event aimed at promoting the art of photography, will take place between August 28 – September 3 with a program comprising workshops, masterclasses, talks with artists, portfolio review sessions, and photography exhibitions.
The event will be held at the Resource Center in Photography (CdRF) and is aimed at both amateurs and people passionate about photography, as well as those who want to become professionals in the field.
Through workshops supported by well-known and active photographers such as Andrei Păcuraru (PAC), Cornel Lazia, Adi Bulboacă and Sorin Florea, participants will be able to focus on specific categories of photography, such as portraiture, composition, aesthetics, or niche services such as product photography with the phone.
Meanwhile, the portfolio review sessions, supported by advertising professionals and photographers, will bring the best advice on selecting and arranging photos in the portfolio and their stories.
At the same time, specialists such as Ellen K. Willas – founder and director of WILLAS contemporary, and Wiktoria Michalkiewicz – founder, talent agent, strategist and artistic consultant of Rezo Agency, will share their experience during online masterclasses.
A photography exhibition of the graduates of the CdRF workshops will await visitors in the CdRF space from September 1 to 8, while the show signed by Cornel Lazia, which will have its opening on September 1 at the Is This Art? gallery, will be available until September 30. Access to exhibitions is free.
Further details are available here.
irina.marica@romania-insider.com
(Photo source: the organizers)
NMIMS Global offers a diverse selection of certificate programs in digital marketing, equipping individuals with the expertise needed to thrive in the dynamic realm of digital marketing. These programs are thoughtfully crafted to furnish participants with hands-on skills and practical insights directly applicable to real-world scenarios. The courses are facilitated by industry experts, ensuring top-notch instruction. Conveniently delivered online, these programs are accessible to individuals globally. Upon program completion, participants will amass invaluable insights and applicable knowledge to adeptly manoeuvre through the intricacies of digital marketing, thereby driving organizational success.
| Offering College | Course | Website |
|---|---|---|
| Indian School of Business | ISB Digital Marketing and Analytics | Visit |
| Indian School of Business | ISB Professional Certificate in Digital Marketing | Visit |
| Northwestern University | Kellogg Post Graduate Certificate in Digital Marketing | Visit |
The Professional Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing online course can be used to learn search engine marketing tools.
The NMIMS Global Access School For Continuing Education, which is supported by Stukent, is offering a 9-month online course called the Professional Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing. With this course, students might be able to engage in hands-on learning using one of the top simulation programmes in the world. For everyone in the class who wants to comprehend the various practical facets of digital marketing, this course will be sufficient.
Located in Mumbai, Maharashtra, the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) is a private deemed-to-be university that was founded in 1981. Two postgraduate programmes and one postgraduate diploma programme are available in the management and business administration stream at the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies. The P.G.D.M. in Business Analytics, M.B.A. in Business Analytics, and M.B.A. in Digital Transformation are all offered at NMIMS Mumbai. The NMAT score is used to determine admission to the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies.
The NMIMS Mumbai placements effort is managed by a placement unit that is fully operational. A hostel, library, sports facilities, canteen, auditorium, medical facilities, IT infrastructure, classrooms, labs, and many other amenities are available at NMIMS Mumbai.
Students can apply the theory they learn in the Professional Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing course to their actual situations. Every participant has the right to use the appropriate resources and technologies to obtain an advantage over their colleagues and stabilise their careers in this area of digital marketing. Additionally, there are numerous hiring partners who provide the graduates of this online programme with the correct opportunities after they have successfully completed it.
| Particulars |
Details |
| Course Name | Certificate Program in Digital Marketing |
| Course offered by | Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), Mumbai |
| Medium of Instructions | English |
| Course Type | Part-time, Online |
| Course Duration | 9 Months |
| Course Fees | Rs. 78,000 |
The cost of the Professional Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing is Rs. 78,000, but members of the special armed forces receive a 20% discount. The candidates have the option of paying either online or with a demand draft drawn in the name of NMIMS. The use of credit cards from several banks, including AXIS, ICICI, HDFC, Standard Chartered, and more, enables the use of EMI options for 3, 6, 9, and 12 months.
| Eligibility Criteria | Eligibility Conditions |
| Educational Qualifications | Students must have completed their HSC/10+2 as well as their SSC from an accredited board in order to join this particular programme. |
| Work Experience | Two years of job experience. |
| Certificates Qualifications | The NMIMS Professional Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing will be made available after the students have paid their tuition and passed the quarterly test requirements. |
The students will learn the following after completing the professional certificate programme in digital marketing:
Students must choose this programme if they want to become one of the following:
The following procedures must be taken in order to enrol in the Professional Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing classes:
The students do have to complete some of their information on the NMIMS portal in order to register as new candidates. The specifics include personal data, address information, programme information, academic information, and lastly work experience information.
1: What is NMIMS’s phone number?
Ans: The NMIMS phone number to call for questions about admission is 1800 1025 136.
2: How many quarters are there in the online curriculum for the Professional Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing?
Ans: The syllabus for the course lists three quarters.
3. Are loans available to students without a credit card?
Ans: Yes, loans can be given out without having a credit card.
4: Does NMIMS work with any employment companies?
Ans: Yes, NMIMS has business partners who employ accomplished students.
Disclaimer: This content was authored by the content team of ET Spotlight team. The news and editorial staff of ET had no role in the creation of this article.
“Marcus Aurelius” (2021-22), stippled black ink, 140 x 100 centimeters. All images © Xavier Casalta, shared with permission
It took Xavier Casalta a phenomenal 2,300 hours over the course of 15 months to complete his largest work to date. Featuring numerous blooms surrounding a marble bust of Marcus Aurelius—one of ancient Rome’s most celebrated emperors and philosophers—the artist (previously) estimates that the illustration contains about 48 million dots of meticulously stippled black ink.
Known for his remarkably detailed depictions of flowers, architecture, and antiquities, Casalta applies China ink to paper one speck at a time. Densely clustered areas produce darker features that contrast more minimally inked highlights. He often depicts individual historical objects, like a Penny Black stamp or impressions of people and animals on early coins. He also fills entire sheets of paper with florals or geometry, like an intricate Roman mosaic or his Four Seasons series, created in collaboration with florist Swallows & Damsons.
Casalta is currently working a new, large-scale architectural piece–he’s spent 1,200 hours on it so far–which he plans to reveal in October. In 2024, that work will also become available as a limited-edition print. You can stay tuned to the artist’s Instagram for updates, and find more information on his website.
Left: Naxos Tetradrachm with Dionysus. Right: Penny Black stamp
“Summer,” part of ‘Four Seasons’ in collaboration with Swallows & Damsons, stippled black ink, 56 x 56 centimeters
Tetradrachm featuring a lion’s head from Cyzicus, Mysia
“Winter,” part of ‘Four Seasons’ in collaboration with Swallows & Damsons, stippled black ink, 56 x 56 centimeters
Detail of “Winter”
Detail of “Marcus Aurelius” in progress
Detail of a mosaic in progress
Detail of a work in progress
Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article Tens of Millions of Ink Dots Fill Xavier Casalta’s Remarkably Detailed Stipple Illustrations appeared first on Colossal.
