America's Cup

It certainly is a remarkable year for the 34th America’s Cup Final, which for the first time brought racing to the shorelines. Known as the world sailing’s Holy Grail, the America’s Cup showdown held in San Francisco has been the event to be seen with New Zealand and the US giving us a show not to have been missed. Oracle Team USA made a historic comeback clinching the cup in a winner-take-all 17th race, where it defeated Emirates Team New Zealand to win by a score of 9-8. ‘This regatta has changed sailing forever,” team founder and Oracle head Larry Ellison said in a statement. ‘More people watched the first race of this America’s Cup than all of the America’s Cups in history, so I think it’s a success.’

The Third Annual WWF Fundraiser Auction

The Stelios Philanthropic Foundation and Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation joined forces to magic-up a third annual fundraiser auction in aid of The World Wide Fund for Nature Charity (WWF).

The auction, held in Monaco and hosted by the Space Gallery St Barth in July raised €190,000 for the charity that safeguards the world’s most precious species and habitats.

Items ranging from unusual jewellery to rare paintings were sold, resulting in the record amount being raised for the event.

Thanks to generous auction item donors, the event saw the highest number of pieces for auction ever presented.

The Stelios Philanthropic Foundation describes itself as a “foundation committed to dynamic philanthropy”, with areas of interest in education, entrepreneurship and environment. It is headed by Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, who is best known for founding the EasyJet airline. The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation is also committed to helping environmental charities and projects. Both Monaco-based Foundations have collaborated in the past to make successful events such as the Third Annual Fundraiser.

The Art Present and Future: Chinese Mega-Collectors

For the last couple of years Chinese art collectors have become more and more prevalent within the art buying sector. It doesn’t appear to be slowing, as the new generation of entrepreneurs are cropping up throughout China and so are their ever expanding art collections. According to the Hurun Report (the Forbes of China) there are now close to a million millionaires in China and some 115 billionaires, second only to the United States. Christie’s reports that in 2012, collectors from their Greater China region (to include Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as mainland China) accounted for 25 percent of sales worldwide. What are they purchasing? They are largely focusing their investments within the Chinese art sector. Curator and dealer Johnson Chang of Hong Kong’s Hanart gallery found that the percentage of mainland buyers of contemporary Chinese art in Hong Kong has gone from only 15 percent a few years ago to an astonishing 85 percent last year. Chinese art collectors see the art purchases as very interesting investments and growth is anticipated to continue.