Chinese art to highlight Asia Week 2015

A Chinese imperial guard silk and metal ceremonial uniform, circa 1910 and in mint condition, will be on auction at the upcoming Asia Week in New York by auction house Lark Mason Associates. The week-long Asia Week will feature 42 international Asian arts dealers as well as five major auction houses and 22 museums and cultural institutions. Provided to China Daily

The seventh annual Asia Week starts next week in New York, and many participants say they expect this year's weeklong art auction and sales event to be the biggest ever, with most of the items Chinese.

The nine-day event will feature exhibitions from 42 leading international Asian art dealers, five major auction houses and 22 museums and cultural institutions from throughout the US.

"If you are an Asian arts admirer and collector and operate in this field, this has become something that's in your diary every year," said Henry Howard-Sneyd, vice-chairman of Sotheby's Asian art in the Americas. "You know that you need to be in New York in March for Asia Week. New York has become the focal point of Asian art in March."

Sotheby's will be offering 11 catalogues of works to be auctioned, six of them Chinese art, the auction house's biggest offering for Asia Week since it began participating.

"It's very unusual for one of our departments to have five catalogues. That's a really significant. We have three formal departments and we also do a private selling as well, and we would normally expect five or six catalogues for the entire series, and this time we have11," Howard-Sneyd said.

The auction house will auction has two rare pieces of early Ming dynasty blue and white imperial porcelains, in addition to fine Chinese paintings.

Dealer Eric Zetterquist, owner of Zetterquist Galleries , said that "very splashy collections" of art being offered at auction are drumming up anticipation for this year's event.

"There's a lot of interest both domestic and overseas in those auctions. But also, the galleries are putting their best foot forward, and exhibiting good quality things with a sound thesis," he said.