Art Basel Hong Kong 2026 Sales: Dealers Report More $1 Million-Plus Works Sold
In a week shadowed by geopolitical unease and a sharp rise in oil prices, Art Basel Hong Kong’s aisles still produced a familiar kind of clarity: collectors kept buying. Among the fair’s 240 exhibitors, dealers reported that more works priced above $1 million changed hands than at the previous edition, alongside a dense band of transactions in the mid-market, particularly in the five- and six-figure range.
The sales figures below were shared by galleries and their representatives over the course of the fair week. As is typical for fair reporting, disclosures are selective: not every dealer publicizes results, and some provide only partial details.
At the top end, Paris dealer Bastian reported a sale of Pablo Picasso’s “Le peintre et son modèle” (1964) for €3.5 million (about $4 million). Several of the week’s largest reported transactions came from David Zwirner, including an unspecified 2006 painting by Chinese artist Liu Ye for $3.8 million, an unspecified 2002 painting by South African artist Marlene Dumas for $3.5 million, and an unspecified 2019 painting by Belgian artist Michaël Borremans for $1.1 million.
Hauser & Wirth also posted multiple seven-figure results, led by American artist Louise Bourgeois’s “À Baudelaire (1)” (2008) for $2.95 million and “Couple” (2002) for $2.2 million, the latter reportedly acquired by an Asian foundation. The gallery additionally reported a $2.3 million sale of American artist George Condo’s “Prismatic Head” (2021).
Other million-dollar-plus sales reported during the week included an unspecified painting by Chinese-French artist Zao Wou-Ki for $2.8 million at Waddington Custot, and two unspecified paintings by Chinese artist Chu Teh-Chun for $1.3 million and $1.2 million, also with Waddington Custot. Cardi Gallery reported a $1.8 million sale of French artist Fernand Léger’s “Deux Papillons sur un Vase Bleu” (1948). White Cube reported selling British artist Tracey Emin’s “Take me to Heaven” (2024) for £1.2 million (about $1.5 million). Gladstone reported a $1.4 million sale of American artist Keith Haring’s “Untitled” (1983).
Beneath the headline numbers, dealers described a busy middle tier — the price bracket that often signals breadth of demand rather than a handful of trophy purchases. Gladstone reported selling American artist Alex Katz’s “Flowers 2” (2010) for $900,000. David Zwirner reported a $900,000 sale of an unspecified 1999 work on paper by Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara, as well as a $680,000 sale of an unspecified 1999 work on paper by American artist Raymond Pettibon.
Cardi Gallery reported selling Italian artist Giorgio De Chirico’s “La Torre” (1966) for $800,000. Hauser & Wirth reported a $750,000 sale of American artist Rashid Johnson’s “Broken Soul ‘Gifts and Messages’” (2025), and a $575,000 sale of American artist Avery Singer’s “Chambers St. (v.2)” (2026), which the gallery said went to a private collection in Asia.
Several additional sales in the $250,000–$500,000 range pointed to sustained appetite for contemporary painting and sculpture across regions. Thaddaeus Ropac reported selling Austrian artist Martha Jungwirth’s “Ohne Titel” (2021) for €460,000 (about $500,000) to a Chinese institution, and British artist Megan Rooney’s “The Reclining Sky” (2025–26) for £280,000 (about $373,090). Taka Ishii Gallery reported a £500,000 (about $630,000) sale of British artist Antony Gormley’s “Plane” (2025), and a £350,000 (about $440,000) sale of British artist Jade Fadojutimi’s “That day she grieved for the life she never had” (2026).
Berry Campbell reported selling American artist Lynne Drexler’s “Multiple Moons [Sic]” (1973) for $425,000 and American artist Alice Baber’s “The Mountain Ladder to the Sea” (1974) for $275,000. Hauser & Wirth reported a $395,000 sale of Chinese artist Qiu Xiaofei’s “Garden” (2025–2026) and a $325,000 sale of British artist Flora Yukhnovich’s “Be Walking Trees. Be Talking Beasts.” (2026), both said to have gone to private collections in Asia. The gallery also reported a $275,000 sale of Korean artist Lee Bul’s “Untitled (‘Infinity’ wall)” (2026) to a private museum in Asia.
David Zwirner reported additional mid-market sales including a $400,000 purchase of American artist Andra Ursuța’s sculpture “Phantom Mass” (2026), a $400,000 sale of an unspecified new painting by Swedish artist Mamma Andersson, and a $300,000 sale of an unspecified 2023 sculpture by Pakistani-American artist Huma Bhabha.
Taken together, the week’s reported results suggest a fair that, at least in public disclosures, leaned on both ends of the spectrum: a visible run of million-dollar works and a steady churn of six-figure transactions. In a market that has grown more cautious about speculation, that combination can read less like exuberance than like selectivity — collectors buying with conviction, and galleries emphasizing placements as much as prices.
