The scene of the K Auction in 2019. Photo@K Auction
According to the year-end report on the domestic art auction market for 2023 released by the Korea Art Appraisal and Valuation Association, the total winning bids this year amounted to 1535 billion KRW (Approx. 118M USD). The bid rate, at 51.2%, was based on 14,238 out of 27,814 total artworks, marking a decrease from around 47% compared to 2021 (which had a bid rate of 56.9%). The auction market had a total turnover of 2360 billion KRW (Approx. 181M USD) in 2022, 3294 billion KRW (253M USD) in 2021, 1153 billion KRW (Approx. 89M) in 2020, and 1565 billion KRW (Approx. 120M USD) in 2019.
Among the auction houses, K Auction claimed the top spot with a winning bid total of approximately 58.1 billion KRW (Approx. 44M USD), while Seoul Auction secured the second position with around 54.4 billion KRW (Approx. 41M USD). Although Seoul Auction conceded the top spot to K Auction for the second consecutive year, it maintained a significant lead in the average bid rate at 56.9%, surpassing K Auction’s 40%.
The scene of the Seoul Auction. Photo@K Auction
In terms of individual artists’ winning bid totals, Lee U-fan took the lead with around 13.46555 billion KRW (Approx. 11M USD). This year, Park Seo-Bo secured the second position with approximately 11.1 billion KRW (Approx. 8.5M USD), and Kusama Yayoi claimed the third spot with around 6.3 billion KRW (Approx. 4.8M USD).
In the category of individual artwork winning bids, the Joseon white porcelain piece ‘Baekja Cheonghwa Ojo Ryeongmunho’ took the top position with a winning bid of 7 billion KRW (Approx. 5.4M USD). The second and third spots were secured by Kim Hong-do’s ‘Jukha Maengho-do’ (39 billion KRW, Approx. 3M USD) and Joseon white porcelain ‘Baekja Daeho’ (34 billion KRW, Approx. 2.6M USD), respectively. Notably, the top three positions were all occupied by works from the Joseon Dynasty.
Left , 19.5×20×56(h)cm, Ceramic, Joseon Dynasty. MyArt Auction, May 2023.
Center, Kim Hong-do, Im Hee-ji , 91×34cm, Ink and color on silk, Joseon Dynasty. MyArt Auction, December 2023.
Right , 42.3×47.5(h)cm, Ceramic, Joseon Dynasty. Seoul Auction, October 2023.
Photo@The Korea Art Appraisal and Valuation Association.
Kim Young-seok, the Chairman of the Korea Art Appraisal and Valuation Association, expressed a cautious outlook, stating, “The prospects for a recovery in the art market are unlikely to be optimistic until at least next year,” and emphasized the need for a comprehensive examination of strategies to alleviate the prolonged economic downturn.
