Art SG a turning point for Singapore market?

THE brand new art fair Art SG ended its VIP preview with some sterling numbers. The mega-galleries, such as David Zwirner and White Cube, sold over US$2.5 million worth of blue-chip art. Singapore galleries such as FOST and Yavuz sold more than half of the works they brought, although at more modest prices. The overall sentiment among participants was positive – even if some galleries out of the 164 galleries at the fair did not generate satisfactory sales.

Ursula Sullivan, co-founder of Australian gallery Sullivan+Strumpf, was kicking herself after the vernissage: “We sold almost everything in our booth by the end of the opening day. We wish we’d brought more works.” Singapore artist Dawn Ng, which the gallery represents, saw about 20 of her works snapped up by buyers mostly from Singapore, South-east Asia and mainland China.

Stephanie Fong, founder of FOST at Gillman Barracks, was similarly thrilled with her sales: “The vibe has been amazing. We sold more than half of our booth to buyers whom we’d never met. This is important for any gallery – meeting new clients, cultivating new relationships and expanding our collector base.”