New Technology A Global Hit In Art Sales During Covid Lockdown

New Zealand’s level 4 Covid 19 lockdown has not deterred investors from buying fine art, says one of New Zealand’s leading art auction houses.

The International Art Centre, in Parnell, Auckland, has achieved many record prices for work by artists such as the revered New Zealand artist, C F Goldie, and the globally renowned British street artist, Banksy, and has held two online auctions since the country went into a level 4 lockdown on August 17.

Director Richard Thomson said the company had used the lockdown to further develop its online bidding platform with a software company based in America and the response to the two online auctions during lockdown was amazing.

“We are the first auction house in the country to offer bidding on any device, such as a tablet, laptop, desktop, cellular phone or telephone and the response we have had from buyers has been huge.

“We have spent countless hours fine tuning the technology during the lockdown and because of those technological advances, our next auction is likely to be one of the most active online sales New Zealand has seen.

“It has put New Zealand art on the global stage. When we have works by globally significant artists such as Banksy, it also attracts people to New Zealand art and that wouldn’t happen without this technology.”

Mr Thomson said the first tranche of 174 New Zealand works of art from the David Silich collection of 750 works of art will be offered in Auckland next week (October 12) regardless of the lockdown level. It was expected to bring more than $1 million.

“The changes announced to alert levels by the Prime Minister Jacinda Arden yesterday (Monday) still mean we cannot hold auctions in our Parnell auction rooms and we do not know when that will change but the auction will still go ahead.

“I will be on the rostrum with my gavel and the auction will be to an empty room but because of the significant advances in our bidding technology we are expecting a world-wide audience and it will be very easy for people to bid from anywhere in the world, by landline, cellphone, tablet or laptop,” Mr Thomson said.

David Silich, an international businessman who was born in Whangarei in 1944 and died in Switzerland in 2018, was an avid collector of New Zealand art.

He has been described as a ‘mercurial personality’ but only began buying New Zealand art in the last decade when he returned each year to New Zealand before returning to his home in Switzerland.

For many years before he began collecting New Zealand art he had gathered a large collection of medals, medallions and antiquities in his office in Switzerland.

Art historian Linda Tyler, the David and Corina Silich Associate Professor in Museums and Cultural Heritage at the University of Auckland, said he was knowledgeable about the careers of many New Zealand artists and usually aimed to acquire a range of work by each artist in varying media and of different subjects.

She said his collection was assembled in a remarkably short period but “is distinguished by its range and depth, with both emerging and established artists represented.

“The Silich Collection exhibits a singular ability to provide insight into the careers of many less celebrated artists, as well offer intriguing and unusual examples of works by some famous names. It is a collection built on love of art and the pleasure taken in being surrounded by its beauty,” Ms Tyler said.

Mr Thomson said the Silich collection was one of the biggest collections of New Zealand art ever to be offered in New Zealand.

“There are some very interesting pieces and we have already had a very high level of interest. It’s a phenomenal collection. After next week with 174 works in the catalogue, the rest of the 750 works in the collection will also be offered online.”

Note: The sale begins at 6.30pm on Tuesday, October 12 at the International Art Centre, 202 Parnell Road, Auckland. Under Level 3 lockdown the sale will be online only with cellphone or telephone bidding or absentee bidding through https://auctions.internationalartcentre.co.nz

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