Last year was a prosperous one for Chinese investors, who scoured the market for investment opportunities and found them nearly everywhere. Among the big money earners was art, which fetched record prices at auctions.

Statistics show that in 2007, 114 auction houses held more than 771 auctions, with total sales exceeding 21.95 billion yuan ($3 billion), a 34.6-percent increase over the previous year. Among the items sold, the single piece price for 160 artworks exceeded 10 million yuan ($1.38 million).

The recently published 2006-07 China Art Market Research Report revealed that from the first half of 2006 to the first half of 2007, traditional Chinese paintings accounted for 37 percent of total sales; contemporary oil paintings and other artwork, 27 percent; and ceramics, 36 percent. The report, edited by Zhao Li, associate professor in the Chinese Central Academy of Fine Arts, was one of the most comprehensive art market reports on China's art market.

Traditional is hot

Sold at 79.52 million yuan ($10.95 million) at an auction held in 2007 by China Guardian Co. Ltd., The Red Cliff won the highest price ever paid for a Chinese painting and scroll, while the crown of the ceramics category went to a 14-cm tall enamel lantern, which sold for 84 million yuan ($11.57 million).

The Red Cliff was painted by Qiu Ying of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The painting depicts a boat tour made by famous poet Su Dongpo (1037-1101) on a river running between steep cliffs, on a moonlit autumn night. It was stored in the royal palace during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). When the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty was dethroned, he took the painting out of the palace. The picture was then kept by a mysterious collector for 80 years until it resurfaced at the auction and was bought by a Chinese firm.

Contemporary art wooed

While classical artwork is cherished both for its artistic value and rarity, contemporary Chinese art is also popular at auctions. In China, the concept of contemporary art is not well defined. Sometimes, contemporary art refers to Chinese oil paintings from the 20th century, while it may also refer to artwork created after 1979 that defies established norms. It includes paintings and other forms of art such as photography, video and multimedia.

Some contemporary art fetched high prices at auction in 2007. The China Association of Auctioneers listed the five "most expensive" paintings. Put Down Your Whip by modern Chinese fine art master Xu Beihong (1895-1953) topped the list at HK$64 million ($9.2 million). Xu studied Western classical realist painting in Europe, and was the pioneer of contemporary Chinese fine art. He was especially good at depicting galloping horses. Painted in 1939, Put Down Your Whip portrays a girl, who has left her hometown to escape the invading Japanese army, performing on the street to make a living.

Sunset of Tanshui fetched 50.2 million yuan ($6.9 million), making it the second highest priced Chinese oil painting auctioned in 2007. Painted in 1935 by Chen Chengbo (1895-1947), it captures the sunset in Chen's hometown Tanshui in Taiwan. In the painting, the setting sun casts its golden shadow on the blue water. Along the waterfront, rows of red-roofed houses line a winding country road.

Ode to the Yellow River painted by Chen Yifei (1946-2005) in 1972 fetched 40.3 million yuan ($5.6 million) at an auction hosted by China Guardian Co. Ltd. Chen's early works featured revolutionary themes. In the 1980s, he resided in the United States for a decade. After returning to Shanghai in the 1990s, Chen became entrepreneurial and dabbled in fashion design as well as film directing. Ode to the Yellow River features a happy and proud soldier, with a rifle in his hand, standing on the highland overlooking the Yellow River.

Wu Guanzhong's color ink piece, An Old Town on the Jiao River, painted in 1991 was sold for 40.7 million yuan ($5.6 million) by Beijing Poly International Auction Co. Ltd. With yellowish gray or black colors, this painting illustrates the broken walls in a desolated old town in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Wu's other piece Hibiscus, painted in 1975 also got a good price of 39.2 million yuan ($5.4 million). Hibiscus depicts a tall blooming plant covered with dark green leaves and white flowers, with the gray roof of the painter's house in Beijing in the background. Wu, born in 1919, received his art education in China and France. He blends traditional Chinese ink style into Western paintings. He likes to sketch the contour of natural scenery expressing it with simple lines and elegant style. His works were exhibited at the British Museum in 1992.