Kusama's Vermilion Dot Work Sold for 2.25 Billion Won

Yayoi Kusama's magenta dot artwork 'Infinity-Dots(AB)'

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] At the final auction of the year conducted by K-Auction, Yayoi Kusama's magenta dot artwork 'Infinity-Dots(AB)' was sold for 2.25 billion KRW.

K-Auction announced on the 23rd that the auction held on the 22nd at its headquarters in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, recorded a total hammer price of 11.5571 billion KRW and a hammer rate of 87.5%.

The highest price was achieved by Yayoi Kusama's 'Infinity-Dots(AB)', which found a new owner at 2.25 billion KRW after fierce competition. This piece is captivating with its large and small magenta dots filling the large canvas. Three signature pumpkin edition works and one 'Gold-Shoes' piece by the artist, all submitted to this auction, were also sold.

Park Seo-bo's 'Myobeop No. 223-85'

Monochrome painting master Park Seo-bo's 1985 work 'Myobeop No. 223-85' was sold for 750 million KRW. A total of seven works from various periods of the Myobeop series were auctioned, all finding new owners. Among them, 'Myobeop No. 071227', one of the most popular red-colored Myobeop series, was auctioned at 470 million KRW and, after intense bidding via written, phone, on-site, and online, was sold for 630 million KRW.

‘Children Playing Gonggi’ by national painter Park Soo-keun, currently exhibited at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Deoksugung branch, was sold for 660 million KRW. This work, painted in 1965, the year the artist passed away, is especially meaningful as one of his final masterpieces.

Kim Chang-yeul, the ‘Water Drop Artist’ who opened the boom in the art market this year, also concluded the auction impressively, raising expectations for the art market’s momentum to continue into 2022. Six works from various periods were auctioned, all sold. The most in-demand piece, 'Water Drop CHS68' created in 1979, found a new owner at 400 million KRW. 'Water Drop ENS 8019' from 1980 was sold for 220 million KRW. Additionally, works from 1991, 1999, and the 2000s also found new owners.

The three masters of Korean experimental art?Kim Ku-rim, Lee Gun-yong, and Lee Kang-so?also saw their works find new owners evenly. Kim Ku-rim’s 'Eumyang 8-S 65' sold for 29 million KRW, Lee Gun-yong’s 'The Method of Drawing 76-1-2012' for 80 million KRW, and Lee Kang-so’s 'From an Island-08014' for 90 million KRW.

Cheongjeon Lee Sang-beom's 'Chugyeongsansu (Autumn Landscape)'

In the Korean painting and antique art category, Cheongjeon Lee Sang-beom’s 'Chugyeong Sansu (Autumn Landscape)' recorded the highest price at 170 million KRW. The 19th-century porcelain piece 'Baekja Cheonghwa Unryungmun Ho (White Porcelain Blue Painted Cloud and Dragon Pattern Jar)' found a new owner at 61 million KRW.

To mark the year-end, a charity section titled ‘Sharing Love with Art’ was also prepared to support cultural and artistic organizations struggling due to COVID-19. This section included five works directly submitted by artists Kim Tae-ho, Choi Young-wook, Backside Works, Kwon Hyun-jin, and Quaya, along with two works contributed by collectors, totaling seven pieces auctioned. All works were sold, recording a total hammer price of 227.2 million KRW. Fifty percent of this amount, 113.6 million KRW, will be donated to the Korea Mecenat Association. Part of the funds will be used through the nonprofit organization 'Our Eyes,' which supports art activities for visually impaired children, to run art programs for visually impaired children.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.