Sotheby’s saw some unconventional buyers at their latest Hong Kong auction. A group of millennial buyers wearing hoodies, skateboarding shoes, and cans of spray paint attended the auction, showcasing the latest wave of younger buyers.
“The auction room suddenly got a lot hipper, with all these cool millennial buyers in hoodies,” said art advisory specialist Edie Hu for Citi Private Bank in Hong Kong. “Their tastes are very different from their parents, and Sotheby’s is tapping into that.”
The piece in question was one of 33 items on the auction lot belonging to Japanese fashion designer Nigo. The painting was by a Brooklyn street artist KAWS based on the Beatles “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album cover, except it featured Simpsons characters.
The painting sold for $14.8 million to an unidentified buyer. The price was a record for the artist and almost 15 times the estimate.