MANILA, Philippines - Salcedo Auctions continues to set the international standard for Philippine art at auction, as new world-record prices were reached during the Important Philippine Art sale held last March 8. With an impressive clearance rate of 91 percent, the atmosphere inside the packed sale room was electric as market benchmarks were raised for key modern and contemporary Filipino artists such as Ang Kiukok, Jose Joya, BenCab, Vicente Manansala, Santiago Bose, and Jose John Santos III.
“Fishermen†by Ang Kiukok was the highest selling work, reeling in P7,592,000, a world record for the artist at P8,880 per square inch, eclipsing the previous record of P7,632 per square inch set at a Hong Kong auction last year. “Family,†a 1968 acrylic and ink by BenCab from his “Scavengers†series soared to P4,672,000, an unprecedented price for a 16 x 13 1/4-inch work by the artist. The great demand for late ‘50s to early ‘60s oil impasto paintings by Jose Joya was shown by the winning bid for the 13 1/4 x 26-inch 1958 PAG piece, “Pastures,†which sold at P3,036,800. A new world auction record for a work on paper by Vicente Manansala was also set, with “Untitled (Sabungero)†attaining P2,219,200.
Leading the record-breaking contemporary Philippine artworks were Santiago Bose’s mixed media magnum opus “Mambo Manila†(P1,752,000), and two pieces that were offered to benefit the Asian Cultural Council Philippines Foundation: “Open Ended,†a 30 x 24-inch oil by Jose John Santos III (P2,803,200), and Joven Mansit’s “Pieta #3†(P934,400), a stunning debut for the artist at auction.
View the complete auction results at salcedoauctions.com. The next Important Philippine Art auction is on Sept. 20. Consignments are now being accepted. To inquire, e-mail info@salcedoauctions.com. or call 659-4094.