Author: Daily Upsider

There is an interesting shift in the art collection world. Wealthy young collectors in Asia, particularly millennials and Gen Z, are boosting the demand for art, notably through online channels.

High-net-worth millennials in Asia increased their spending on art, with notable contributions from mainland China, Singapore, and Taiwan. International auction houses, including Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Phillips, have seen a significant uptick in purchases by young Asian collectors. Millennials accounted for almost 40% of Christie’s buyers in Asia Pacific, with a 65% increase in Gen Z buyers in 2023. South Korea and Taiwan stood out as key contributors to the flourishing art market in 2023.

Young collectors are reshaping art preferences, favoring digital art and prints (Gen Z) and sculptures, installations, and film or video art (millennials), according to the Art Basel & UBS report. Millennials are drawn to figurative and surrealistic works, expressing a preference for emerging artists over blue-chip names .

In Asia, millennial buyers are embracing both contemporary and classical Asian art, reflecting a cultural connection. At Christie’s 2023 Hong Kong Autumn Auctions, 40% of new buyers acquiring Chinese ceramics, paintings, and artworks were millennials.

“We have increasingly millennials and younger collectors buying at Christie’s [and] starting to collect … that we’ve been able to also engage much more with all our digital innovations,” Francis Belin, president of Asia Pacific at Christie’s said

After Japan’s 7.6 earthquake on January 1st, Anne Hanson, a veteran educator, urgently sought information about her former host family in Uozu, near the quake’s epicenter. Unable to reach them through old email addresses, she filled out a form on Uozu City Hall’s website.

Anne, recognizing the slim odds, hoped someone would be able to locate Akihiko Kiyokawa, her host from 22 years ago. She included her Fulbright Memorial Fund alumni status in her email’s subject line. Knowing the community’s respect for American teachers from the program, hoping it might increase her chance of reaching her former host family.

Miraculously, within 24 hours, she received an email when friend of Akihiko, who spoke English happened to have seen Anne’s message and forwarded it to her.

The Japanese woman and her relatives had lost their homes, but nevertheless reported good news from the disaster.

“Fortunately, there were no injuries and my life was saved,” she wrote. “Under these circumstances, I never expected to receive a message of sympathy from America. I believe this is a truly miraculous event that should make it onto the news. I would like to cherish it.” Akhiko said.

Up until recently, owning a cat while housed on government property in Singapore was illegal. Around 80% of the country’s 3.6 million inhabitants live in government housing, so this is no small change.

Singapore lifting its 30-year ban on cat ownership in government housing is a step towards balancing the pet ownership regulations, as dogs were never banned. Many citizens have long felt that the ban on cats was unfair, especially considering the positive traits of cats as quieter and less disruptive pets compared to dogs.

A 30-year-old Singaporean, Sunny, who secretly owns a cat named Mooncake and lives in a government-built high rise, shared her thoughts on the matter with Taipei Times. “Cats are so much quieter than dogs. If they allow dogs, I don’t understand why not cats,” Sunny told the Times.

Despite the ban not being strictly enforced, the illegality of cats in government housing has posed challenges for owners like Sunny, who cannot obtain pet insurance or access certain veterinary procedures. Additionally, the inability to prove ownership makes it difficult in the event that a cat is picked up by animal control.

The decision to lift the ban on cats comes after a recent survey among government housing occupants, in which 9 out of 10 respondents said cats make good, non-disruptive pets. This shift in public opinion likely played a role in the government’s decision to change the law.