Week In Review: June 4-8, 2012

In case you missed them the first time around, here are some of Jing Daily’s top posts for the week of June 4-8, 2012: #

Private & Philanthropic: The Evolution Of China's Art Collectors #

If there’s one major distinguishing factor that sets the art market in China apart from the rest of the world, it’s the near impossibility of easy classification. Over the past three years, as newly wealthy mainland Chinese have plowed into the auction market, buying up “portable assets” like jewelry, rare watches, art and antiques and fine wine, they’ve become a closely watched new demographic, whose buying habits have major implications for the industry as a whole. In segments like wine, the bidding and collecting trends of mainland Chinese “new collectors” has caused major price fluctuations on a global scale for particular wines. In 2010 and part of 2011, an auction rush on Château Lafite Rothschild among Chinese buyers caused prices to skyrocket in 2010 and part of 2011, then fall back to earth over the past year as these collectors diversified into other Bordeaux labels and other French regions like Burgundy.

Stars Turn Out For Launch Of Montblanc's Largest Global Flagship In Beijing #

The latest in a series of large-scale luxury brand events to hit the Chinese capital in recent weeks, among them “Lanvin Loves Beijing,” the grand opening of Alexander Wang’s first Beijing store, the 3D “New Dimension Beijing” Hugo Boss fashion show and Armani’s “One Night Only In Beijing,” this weekend Montblanc inaugurated its largest global flagship store in the city’s Sanlitun neighborhood with a gala attended by Hollywood and Chinese celebrities.

Stars like Jessica Alba, Naomi Watts, Nicolas Cage, Amber Heard and Maggie Cheung came out for the launch of the four-story flagship, taking in Montblanc’s presentation of its acclaimed “Collection Princesse Grace de Monaco,” created as a tribute to the late actress Grace Kelly.

The Future Of Wine In China (Part 2) #

Large Chinese and select global players will blend low-value bulk wine and sell it like Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) brands. Not all of these players will come from a wine background, but, by leveraging their strong brand position and extensive distribution network, select large CPG companies may emerge as new leaders in the wine market. Some high-end and mid-range niche products will remain successful, although much of this will have to do with marketing acumen.

Large grocery chains, as well as a handful of wine retail chains, will dominate the business, selling Chinese and global brands alongside their own private label offerings.

Liu Xiaodong In Austria: Art For Art's Sake #

Just as Hong Kong hosts ART HK 12 and the Christie’s spring auctions in rapid succession, on the other side of the globe another essential component to the art world — an artist — works to produce two new paintings. In the small town of Eisenerz, Austria, blue-chip Chinese contemporary artist Liu Xiaodong, known for his on-site paintings that objectively document an often-decaying social milieu, paints two large canvases for his new project, “The Process of Painting,” in conjunction with the esteemed Kunsthaus Graz museum.

China's Second-Hand Luxury Market Rages Ahead #

What Jing Daily referred to as the “spreading wildfire of luxury second-hand shops in China” last year continues to rage in China’s first- and second-tier cities (as well as over the border in Hong Kong). Though China’s overall luxury market is expected to show slower overall growth this year compared to 2011, demand from the country’s less well-heeled, yet still chicly conscientious, for “almost new” handbags, apparel and accessories are helping chains like Hong Kong’s Milan Station and Japan’s Brand Off gain extreme popularity.