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Arts & Communication 1980s: A turning point in the Chinese art market

million yuan. Rongbaozhai expanded internationally,
with sales offices in the United States, Japan, Singapore,
and a branch in Hong Kong. A Beijing-based import-
export company specializing in handicrafts experienced
significant revenue growth, with revenues surpassing USD
300,000 after 1985 and an overall profit of USD 1.6 million.
The calligraphy and painting industries have been boosted
by the enormous revenues made by these businesses.
Individuals and corporate collectives in calligraphy and
painting collaborated similarly to other popular sectors.
Although only eight art stores in Beijing were allowed to
Figure 5. Keran Li’s Five Cows was priced at 4,000 yuan in foreign export, they could act as agents and ship up to 50 pieces,
exchange certificates, which later increased to 5,000 yuan.
effectively creating an unrestricted avenue for the export of
paintings and calligraphy.
typically acquire very few contemporary art pieces, as
the buyers are primarily general overseas collectors and State-owned antique stores were gradually
enthusiasts. Businesses related to calligraphy and paintings marginalized in the market-oriented industry compared
were largely influenced and dominated by international to the thriving collective and individual calligraphy and
trade policies rather than cultural policies. painting industries. Companies that dealt with cultural
relics, both domestically and internationally, purchased
With the growth of international trade around 1972,
replicas of paintings by renowned artists and historical higher quality artworks at a premium price and resold
them for a profit in major cities hosting art exhibitions
canvases produced by arts and crafts factories began to and international marketplaces. As the price mechanism
be sold overseas. At that time, buying paintings directly gradually compressed their acquisition channels, sales of
from painters came with minimal compensation — a state-owned antique firms also decreased. In 1990, there
famous painting would only cost a few tens of yuan. were 97 antique stores and their branches permitted
However, this marked the beginning of a significant shift to operate in China, including the China Cultural
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in commercialization in the art market. The painting
market underwent significant changes in the 1980s due to Logistics Coordination Center and others. However,
only a handful of these stores (in Beijing, Shanghai,
reform and opening-up policies, leading to the formation and Guangzhou) could be sustained, with the majority
of an export-oriented painting market driven by external failing altogether.
demand. The public’s perception of commodity paintings
also shifted when the concept of selling paintings became Following the significant expansion of the market
more common. Moreover, the pricing of artworks for economy in 1992, large antique stores and a plethora of
sale highlighted the ambiguity regarding the definition of stores and galleries established by individual merchants
“commercial painting.” proliferated across the nation, dispelling the previous
cluster advantages and monopoly of the antique store
4. The Chinese art market in the 1990s system. The heyday of historic stores ended in the 1990s
4.1. New transformation with the rise of the auction sector.
The art market was booming in the 1990s, fueled by flexible 4.2. The hastily assembled auction industry
policies that allowed dealers to compete by offering higher The 1992 Beijing International Art Auction marked a
prices and vying for artists’ business. Beijing saw a rising successful milestone in China’s cultural relics and works
number of galleries and painting stores, with artworks of art auction industry (Figure 6). Thereafter, Shanghai
being sold in practically all of the foreign-themed hotels. Duoyunxuan Art Auction Co., Ltd. (now Shanghai
The Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture recognized Duoyunxuan Auction Co., Ltd.), the first professional
calligraphy and painting galleries, with over 200 painting auction company of cultural relics and works of art, was
shops, approximately 50 of which were located on established. In 1993, Guardian Auctions was founded,
Liulichang Cultural Street. which launched a special contemporary oil painting
The Yanjing Calligraphy and Painting Association auction the following year. In 1994, the Hanhai Auction
expanded rapidly, adding 26 branches in a short period, and Roebo Auction were also established. Despite a
and its annual profit increased at an average rate of 15 – late start, China’s art auction companies rapidly gained
20%. In 1988, the organization recorded a profit of 10.6 momentum. The country witnessed the establishment of
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Volume 2 Issue 2 (2024) 9 doi: 10.36922/ac.2028