The crowds of the spring auctions here are evidence of the art collecting fever that
has gripped this country. China is now the second largest art market in the world behind
the United States. Its growth largely fueled by wealthy Chinese, many of whom see it as
a more stable place for investment than the country's turbulent stock market. And yet
the expansion of the art market has led to a flood of fake art at galleries and auctions
here. Auction houses regularly allow prospective buyers
to carefully inspect goods for sale. Yet, for wealthy collectors, the rewards seem
to continue to outweigh the risks.
Liu Yichen's life story is the stuff of legend. The former taxi driver now cruises the streets
of Shanghai in a BMW. He was raised in a poor family here during the Cultural Revolution.
He dropped out of middle school and became one of the wealthiest men in China, worth
an estimated $800 million, according to Forbes.
Liu has become a leading force in China's booming art market. He brags about owning
dozens of homes, including this spacious villa on the east side of Shanghai, which he says
he bought because it's close to his private museum. The Long Museum is a $300 million
dollar example of China's emerging interest in art. As a child, Liu sold handbags on
the streets of Shanghai. By his late teens, he was driving a taxi. When China's economy
opened up to the outside world, he played the stock market, and won. And he began to
build up his collection.
But even a collector as experienced as Mr. Liu is not immune to the problems that plague
the art market here. Two years ago, he auctioned off a painting by artist Qi Bai Shui for a
record $65 million. But after one critic questioned the works' authenticity, the bidders refused
to pay.
Mr. Liu's collection is exclusively Chinese. He sees himself and his museum as a protector
of his country's rich history. His theory is that China's Confucian traditions strictly
defined style of artworks, which became highly valued and which persist today.
Reporting for the New York Times in Shanghai, this is Jonah Kessel.
