UBS presents The Hikers by Rashid Johnson at West Bund Art & Design, and shares key findings from A Survey of Global Collecting in 2022

• UBS celebrates its third year as Lead Partner of West Bund Art & Design in Shanghai
• The Hikers by Rashid Johnson explores the notion of escapism
• A Survey of Global Collecting in 2022 published by Art Basel and UBS highlights an optimistic outlook for art collecting in 2022, with the median expenditure of high- net- worth collectors surveyed surpassing pre-pandemic averages, and
• Spending increased in Mainland China and Hong Kong, representing some of the highest spending levels in the first half of 2022.

The UBS Lounge will feature Rashid Johnson’s The Hikers, a film in the UBS Art Collection that powerfully explores the body in space, drawn from the UBS Art Collection. Concurrently, UBS shares key findings from the recently published A Survey of Global Collecting in 2022. Authored by Dr Clare McAndrew, Founder of Arts Economics, the report revealed that spending on art amongst those surveyed increased in all markets, with Mainland China and Hong Kong seeing some of the highest spending levels in the first half of 2022.

Zhang Qiong, President and Head of Wealth Management at UBS (China) Ltd. said: “UBS has a long history of supporting contemporary art and artists, and our third year of partnership with West Bund Art & Design is testament to our commitment to connecting art with people – sparking new ideas, inspiration, and perspectives. A Survey of Global Collecting in 2022, co-published by UBS and Art Basel earlier this week, showed the continued importance of Greater China as one of the leading art markets in the world. We are excited to see China’s ongoing impact as a driver in the larger art ecosystem.”

Mary Rozell, Global Head of the UBS Art Collection said: “UBS has been collecting contemporary art for decades, and the Collection consists of more than 30,000 works from the 1960s onwards by emerging talents and some of the most important artists of our era. The UBS Art Collection is committed to collecting the most relevant art made today and ‘The Hikers’ by Rashid Johnson is a work that embodies the spirit that the firm stands for: questioning the status quo and exploring global perspectives with innovative thinking. We are thrilled to share this poetic video work with audiences in Asia.”

The Hikers by Rashid Johnson

On display in the UBS Lounge is The Hikers (2019), a poetic 16mm film by American artist Rashid Johnson. In 2018, the artist travelled to Aspen and went on a hike. The spectacular views from Smuggler’s Mountain inspired the film, shot on location on a Colorado mountain peak. Featuring two young dancers from the Martha Graham Dance Company who meet while wearing masks reminiscent of African tribal art, their performance is a graceful ‘pas-de-deux’ as their paths cross.

Created in collaboration with choreographer Claudia Shreier, The Hikers considers the iconographies and assumptions associated with movement and dance. The work sets out to challenge stereotypical preconceptions around athleticism and dance with which the Black community is often associated. Poetic and thought-provoking, The Hikers also reflect a natural human desire to connect, and is closely linked to the artist’s wider studio practice questioning notions of identity and cultural norms.

Key Findings from the A Survey of Global Collecting in 2022

Link to download the free full report: https://www.ubs.com/global/en/our-firm/art/collecting/art- market-survey/download-survey-report-2022.html?campID=NL-AMS2022-GLOBAL-ENG-ANY-ANY- ANY

UBS provides its clients with impartial insights into the art market through its research and publications including A Survey of Global Collecting in 2022, co-published with Art Basel on 3 November 2022. Conducted by Arts Economics and UBS, the survey in 2022 was the largest to date, with responses from more than 2,700 HNW collectors covering: The US, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan and Brazil. Key findings from the report include:

• International trade: Global imports of art and antiques increased 41% in 2021 and exports were up 38%, with double digit increases continuing in the first half of 2022 versus the same period in 2021. If cross-border trade was to continue at this same pace in the second half of this year, record levels of trade could be reached in the major art markets by the end of 2022.
• HNW collector spending: Expenditure in the first half of the year and planned spending for the remainder of 2022 indicates strong confidence in the market and significant purchasing intent. Spending increased in all markets, and the highest spending levels in the first half of 2022 were in France, Mainland China, and Hong Kong. Across all markets the median expenditure of HNW collectors in the first six months of 2022 (USD 180,000) was higher than the entire year in 2021 (USD 164,000), with both surpassing averages in pre- pandemic 2019 (at USD 100,000). In addition to buying more, HNW collectors were also buying at higher prices, with the share regularly buying works priced at over USD 1 million doubling from 12% in 2021 to 23% in 2022.
• HNW collections: Collectors tended to hold a balanced mix of works by new and emerging artists, mid-career artists, and established and top-tier artists. When it came to the gender of the artist, although still unbalanced (58% male, 42% female), the share of works by female artists in collections has slightly increased over time. The greatest increases in representation were among collectors surveyed in the UK (up 6% year-on-year and by 15% since 2018), and Hong Kong (up 5% year-on-year and 20% since 2018). Just under half (49%) of the objects in collections in 2022 were paintings, sculptures, and works on paper, while 15% were dedicated to digital art, 9% of which had an NFT associated with them.
• Buying channels for HNW collectors: In 2022, 93% of collectors surveyed bought art through a gallery or dealer, either directly, online, or via a fair. Art fairs have returned in earnest, with 74% of the collectors surveyed purchasing at an art fair in 2022 (versus 54% in 2021), including both in person and online-viewing-room purchases. Online spending remained strong and 95% of the collectors surveyed had purchased works of art without viewing them in person first, with just over half (51%) regularly doing so.
• Events and attendance: There were subtle changes to HNW collectors’ behaviors regarding events, with the number of events attended staying persistently lower than 2019 and a slight shift towards more local events. Collectors attended an average of 41 art- related events in 2019. This fell to 37 in 2022 (including those attended already and planned for the rest of the year). Interestingly, when they were asked if they plan to do more or less international travel for art related experiences and events in the next 12 months, the responses showed a majority (77%) wanting to travel more.
• More sustainable practices: With sustainability and the art market’s carbon footprint being one of the top four concerns for HNW collectors, 77% were considering sustainable options (up from 62% in 2019). 98% would be willing to opt for a sustainable option for the purchase and receipt of a work of art even if it was more expensive (versus 90% in 2019). Nearly all collectors would pay an extra 5%, and there was a considerable increase in the share of collectors willing to pay up to 25% more (57% in 2022 from 45% in 2019).
•  Collectors’ outlook: Most of the HNW collectors surveyed (78%) were optimistic about the global art market’s performance over the next six months and were committed to supporting the market. Some of the most active buying plans were reported by Brazilian collectors (82%), along with a higher majority in the US (65%) and Germany (67%). The pandemic also appears to have encouraged philanthropic giving among some collectors, with 45% intending to donate works to a museum over the next 12 months, up from 29% in 2020 and 43% in 2021.

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