Markets around the world are looking to China to buoy their financial prospects. So are art auction houses.
After a dismal year, Sotheby’s and Christie’s International PLC are set to begin a major round of art auctions in London on Tuesday, and experts say Chinese collectors may emerge as the latest power players to bid up Western icons they once ignored, from Pablo Picasso to Pierre-Auguste Renoir.

Paul Cézanne’s “Pichet et Fruits Sur Une Table”. Estimate – $16.1 million – $24.2 million
Auction houses are hoping the coming sales will build on a number of successful offerings— including a $48 million Raphael sold in December—that appear to indicate an art market turnaround. The coming two weeks could thus be a crucial period for re-establishing price levels that have dropped amid a global recession, dealers said.
Continue reading — Chinese Loom as Art-Sale Players
