The art market in Asia continues to redefine global balances and strategies, among new cultural spaces, international fairs, and biennials that consolidate networks and opportunities.
How the art market in Asia is transforming
In 2024, total art sales in Japan reached 692 million dollars, marking a 2 percent increase compared to 2023. This data emerges from the latest Japanese Art Market report, prepared by economist Clare McAndrew, who was previously responsible for studies for Art Basel and UBS. The results for 2025 will be released at a later stage.
The report, commissioned by the Japanese government, highlights a market structure primarily based on mid-to-low range transactions: about 93 percent of exchanges involve works priced at or below 10,000 dollars. Additionally, it reveals that galleries and dealers represent the dominant channel, covering about 71 percent of sales, while auction houses handle the remaining 30 percent.
This resilience is particularly significant when compared to the global picture. In the same period, the international art market recorded a contraction of about 12 percent, underscoring the relative resilience of the Japanese context compared to other established hubs.
What role do fairs play between the United States and Asia?
From April 16 to 19, the San Francisco Art Fair will present its 14th edition at Fort Mason. The event, now a staple in the North American calendar, will this year dedicate a specific focus to Asian American and Pacific Islander artists, thus consolidating the cultural and market connection with Asia.
The fair will collaborate with key institutions such as the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, the Asian American Art Initiative at the Cantor Arts Center of Stanford University, and the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco. Together, these entities will build shared programs and projects, strengthening the institutional infrastructure for artists of Asian descent in the United States.
In a context where new geographical areas seek international visibility, such partnerships offer concrete opportunities for collectors and operators interested in exploring transnational artistic practices, often underrepresented in traditional circuits.
What are the latest developments in the art market in Asia between Hong Kong and Berlin?
In Hong Kong, the Blindspot Gallery will open on March 21 the first Asian solo exhibition of Stockholm-based artist Lap-See Lam, titled “Bamboo Palace, Revisited”. Additionally, the exhibition will feature the immersive video installation Floating Sea Palace (2024), alongside new works in glass and neon that expand the artist’s exploration of memory and the aesthetics of the Chinese diaspora.
In May, the Gallery Weekend Berlin will offer a particularly vibrant presence of artists with Asian roots. Among the names on the program are Chinese artist Vivian Zhang, based in London and represented by Galerie Max Hetzler, and Korean artist Anne Duk Hee Jordan, active in Berlin and presented by Alexander Levy.
During the same weekend, Chinese artist from Xi’an Qiu Ruixiang will exhibit at Hua International and Korean artist Shinoh Nam, who lives in Berlin and is represented by Mountains. Overall, these presences confirm Berlin’s role as a central platform for global artistic practices with strong Asian ties.
How are museums and biennials moving between Europe and the Middle East?
The Museo d’Arte della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano will open the 2026 exhibition season with “K-NOW! Korean Video Art Today”, a showcase dedicated to the contemporary South Korean art scene through the language of video art. The exhibition is part of a growing European interest in the visual production of the Korean peninsula.
Meanwhile, the Japan Society in New York will host “Kawai Kanjirō: House to House”, the first museum retrospective in the United States dedicated to the renowned potter and modern artist Kawai Kanjirō (1890–1966). The exhibition, scheduled from March 10 to May 10, will analyze Kawai’s crucial role in 20th-century ceramics, highlighting lesser-known aspects of his multidisciplinary practice.
Looking to Venice, the Japanese pavilion at the 2026 edition of the Biennale will present a project by Ei Arakawa-Nash. Additionally, commissioned projects with the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Kestner Gesellschaft, and the Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum have been announced, confirming a broad and strategic institutional network.
For the Philippines, Manila-based artist and filmmaker Jon Cuyson will represent the country at the Venice Biennale with the project “Sea of Love / Dagat ng Pag-ibig”. The exhibition will be curated by scholar and educator Mara Gladstone, the first Filipino-American to feature in the country’s national pavilion, marking a significant moment for the diaspora in the international exhibition system.
In the world of major exhibitions, the third edition of the Islamic Arts Biennale will take place from November 1, 2027, to March 1, 2028, at the Western Hajj Terminal of the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The initiative confirms the region’s growing role in the global dialogue on Islamic world arts.
What initiatives mark institutions dedicated to Asia in the United Kingdom?
In the United Kingdom, the non-profit art center Esea Contemporary, dedicated to East and Southeast Asian practices, celebrates its 40th anniversary. For the occasion, it presents the group exhibition “Thresholds of Becoming” at its Manchester location, accompanied by a fundraising event in London scheduled for Thursday.
Among the works on display is the installation Insomnia (2025) by artist Xin Liu, set in dialogue with the installation “Same place, within here” (2024) by Nicole Coson. The exhibition suggests new readings on identity thresholds and transformations of bodies in the exhibition space, in line with the center’s mission.
For an in-depth look at the role of institutions dedicated to Asia in the British context, it is useful to compare the programs of Esea Contemporary with those of organizations like Southbank Centre or Whitechapel Gallery.
What new spaces and collectives are emerging in Hong Kong?
In Hong Kong, Gold by Serakai Studio will open a new space on March 20 in the Wong Chuk Hang exhibition district, with the group exhibition “CERTAINLY”. The showcase is curated by Tobias Berger, co-founder and curatorial director of Serakai Studio, and will remain open until May 3.
The exhibition brings together a diverse selection of artists: from Hong Kong’s Pak Sheung Chuen, Lousy, and South Ho to the Seoul-based collective Young-Hae Chang Heavy Industries, to Japanese artist Shinro Ohtake, New Zealander Peter Robinson, and Macao artist Weng Io Wong. Moreover, this international constellation reflects the desire to position the space as a regional platform open to diverse languages.
The choice of the Wong Chuk Hang neighborhood, already recognized as a hub for galleries and studios, confirms Hong Kong’s tendency to periodically renew its artistic epicenters, in parallel with the evolution of the market and urban planning.
How are new cultural institutions reshaping Chinatown in New York?
In Manhattan, designer Alexander Wang and his mother Ying Wang have transformed the historic building at 58 Bowery, in the heart of Chinatown, into Wang Contemporary, a cultural space dedicated to Asian and Asian American creativity. The property, a Beaux-Arts style landmark, was acquired in 2025 for about 9.5 million dollars.
For the first time, the building comes under Sino-American ownership, marking a symbolic milestone in the neighborhood’s history. Wang Contemporary will host exhibitions, performances, and community programs, with the declared aim of supporting artists and intellectuals from or connected to the Asian world, as well as strengthening ties with the local social fabric.
The transformation of the building is part of a broader dynamic of redefining cultural spaces in New York, where areas historically linked to immigration are becoming sites of experimentation for new independent institutions. In this sense, the project ideally dialogues with initiatives like the Museum of Chinese in America, also dedicated to the memory and cultures of the diaspora.
The documents related to the investigation on Jeffrey Epstein
New documents released as part of the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein provide an unprecedented glimpse into the activities of Hong Kong art collector David Tang, founder of the brand Shanghai Tang. According to the files, in 2010 Tang asked Ghislaine Maxwell, then Epstein’s partner, to invest in his start-up ICorrect.
The platform, conceived as an online space to allow wealthy and famous individuals to respond to comments and rumors online, initially attracted Maxwell’s interest, who invested 145,000 dollars. Subsequently, Tang asked her to increase her stake, but the situation changed after a confrontation with Epstein.
Maxwell, convicted in 2022 for child trafficking, decided to withdraw the investment, describing the project as “a joke” in an email. The episode, reported by Hong Kong Free Press, sheds light on the intertwining of economic elites, digital start-ups, and public reputation in the early years of online culture.
Overall, these developments outline an ecosystem in which the art market in Asia, its diasporas, and related institutions are assuming an increasingly structural weight. Amid economic resilience, new exhibition geographies, and transnational networks, the sector continues to redefine medium-term priorities and strategies.
As expert in digital marketing, Amelia began working in the fintech sector in 2014 after writing her thesis on Bitcoin technology. Previously author for several international crypto-related magazines and CMO at Eidoo. She is now the co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Cryptonomist and Econique.
She is also a marketing teacher at Digital Coach in Milan and she published a book about NFTs for the Italian publishing house Mondadori, while she is also helping artists and company to entering in the sector. As advisor, Amelia is also involved in metaverse-related project such as The Nemesis and OVER.
