Old Masters sale in London stirs interest from Chinese buyers

A work by British landscape painter John Constable with a high estimate of 3 million pounds ($3.9 million) will be offered at auction for the first time in Christie's Old Masters Evening Sale in London on Tuesday.

The painting, Salisbury Cathedral from the Bishop's Grounds, is just one of the highlights during Classic Week in London, which specialists hope will attract the attention of Chinese collectors of Old Masters paintings.

There has been a steady growth of collectors from China who invest in works by Old Masters, and John Stainton, deputy chairman of Christie's Old Masters Paintings department, said the genre continues to attract buyers and collectors from the Chinese mainland.

Engaging with clients and opening up communication is key in introducing Chinese collectors to Old Masters, he said.

"We've had various exhibitions over the years in the Chinese mainland and what we've witnessed is a steady growth in interest which has translated into active bidding as well," he continued.

"A lot is about engagement, often on an educational level. Many clients, very understandably, do not necessarily know very much about this field, and one of the things we as specialists who travel to the region most enjoy is discussions with clients and having that dialogue of cultures between east and west."

Another highlight of the same sale stirring interest from Chinese buyers is Pieter Brueghel's poignant interpretation of the Massacre of the Innocents, which is expected to fetch 1.5 million pounds.

An early masterpiece by El Greco leads a group of three exceptional works restituted to the heirs to the collection of Julius and Camilla Priester, which will also be offered for sale.

The three pieces include one of the artist's earliest surviving portraits, and one of the last to remain in private hands.

El Greco's Portrait of a Gentleman (1570) will go under the hammer for 1.2 million pounds.

Stainton, who also leads the Old Master department's work in Asia, said he has noticed a cross-category of buyers, such as some Chinese clients will collect Chinese works of art and Old Masters.

"There are often so many cross influences and affinities between styles and different types of painting and works of art," he said.

"What we find each time we go (to China) is interest growing. We have an important and growing pool of clients in Hong Kong, which has been established for many years, but what has been exciting is some very significant interest coming from the Chinese mainland in the last five to six years."

Stainton noted that while post-war, contemporary and abstract works also have a strong market in China, with Old Masters, "there is often a natural affinity with the craftsmanship and the history and perhaps slightly instinctive reverence for these things. Clients recognize how well painted these works are".

Provenance is also important for collectors, Stainton said, as well as the underlying quality of a piece, and its condition.

"It helps if there is a story where people can buy into what is going on in a picture and why it's important and its influences. If you look at many modern western and eastern artists, they were influenced by European old master painters, so when you get into these conversations it's such a rich seam of interest," he added.