Considering the influence traditional Chinese culture has had on Japan, it should come as no surprise that Japanese collectors have long been attracted to Chinese antiques. From Japan's ancient Asuka Period in the 7th century to today, the country has slowly become a huge treasure house for Chinese antiques. From antique furniture to paintings, Japan has continually made outside collectors (mostly Chinese) drool with envy since non-Japanese's ability to access the antique market is limited.
In recent years, however, the emergence of local Japanese auction companies specializing in auctioning Chinese antiques is breaking market shackles. Combining international auction standards with a local Japanese work ethic, these companies have gathered a large collection of Chinese antiques to become outposts for lost treasures to return to China, while also helping reshape Chinese collectors' collecting habits.
Set up in 2010, the Chuo Auction Company in Tokyo is one of the first companies to auction Chinese antiques in Japan. Recently it completed an autumn auction in celebration of the company's 5th anniversary. Over the past five years, the Chuo Auction has not only witnessed an increasing number of Chinese collectors seeking fame by bringing home lost treasures, but also increasing competition from other local auction houses.
"It used to be that only our company specialized in this area in Japan, but now there are so many newcomers," Ge Wenhai, vice general manager of the Chuo Auction, told Artron.
"However, competition has also a positive side. It urges us to dig deeper to attract collectors."
Closed off private market
Having nurtured its own unique way buying and selling antiques via clubs or small-scale communities, Japanese society has been relatively closed off to outsiders interested in antique collecting. Having existed for more than a century, these clubs have strict entry requirements for members, such as being a Japanese national and needing at least three years of experience working at famous antique shops. Many of these requirements keep many foreign collectors from entering the Japanese antique market.
Currently there are only a few antique clubs that are open to Chinese collectors, and even then most of the time antique trading is conducted on a small scale.
"There used to be few standard auction companies in Japan and Chinese collectors that came to Japan either sought treasures at antique stores or tried to edge their way into clubs," said Chen Haibo, a veteran collector from Shanghai.
But while it was much easier to discover antiques in Japanese antique stores a decade ago, Chen now finds that it has become much more difficult to find Chinese antiques in recent years. With the number of collectors rapidly increasing while fewer antiques are being made available on the public auction market, many Chinese collectors have found themselves caught up in a dilemma.
"Even in public antique shops, regular customers very rarely get to see anything of real value. What they usually can get access to are common and sometimes even fake items," Chen told Artron.
Returning home
Seeing an opportunity to quench Chinese collectors' thirst, companies like Chuo Auction have appeared one after another. Cautiously advancing over the past five years, Ge said they are trying to find a business model that combines the best international auction standards with the essence of Japanese entrepreneurship.
During Chuo Auction's autumn auction, pervasive customer service such as offering food and beverages was a reminder of the exquisite attention to detail practiced by Japanese companies.
"Potential buyers were mostly Chinese, including collectors from Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as some living overseas," Ge explained.
Experiencing an economic boom during the 1970s and 1980s, Japanese collectors brought a large quantity of antiques from around the world into the country. In turn the antique market experienced a golden age.
Now with the current economic decline, entrepreneurs who were once the main force behind collecting during the 1970s have begun cashing in on their art collections for either financial reasons or because many of their children are not actually that interested in Chinese antiques. As such auction companies are embracing another uplift throughout the market.
"Many museums and private collectors are bringing out their collections, which offers great opportunities for companies like Chuo Auction to choose the best Chinese antiques to attract potential buyers," said Chen.
"This will also promote the return of these antiques to China."
Japanese influence
As Chinese collectors head to Japan to bring antiques back home, their collecting habits have begun to change. A special auction of Japanese tea wares by the Chuo Auction has now become a star attraction for Chinese buyers, even though it has nothing to do with Chinese antiques.
"We started with collecting and selling Chinese antiques, but later we saw many Chinese collectors coming here looking for Japanese tea wares," said Ge.
"So we opened a new area and invited professionals to educate Chinese collectors [about these wares]. Currently, other Japanese auction houses that specialize in Chinese antiques have started holding similar auctions."
Considering the cross-pollination of culture that has gone on between China and Japan over the centuries, Chinese collectors are a major force when it comes to buying traditional Japanese artworks.
"Japanese culture has a close relationship with Chinese culture. Although it has its own unique artistic style, its origins can be traced back to Chinese culture. And in some areas, Japanese do things better than the Chinese, such as the tea-making (sado). Their tea wares have long been admired by Chinese collectors," said Chen.
