KEY POINTS:
The recent run of failing finance companies and the resulting public cynicism is stimulating investor interest in the international currency of art, jewellery and antiques, with auction houses reporting record prices while other markets are depressed.
Managing director of Auckland auction house Webb's, Neil Campbell, says local confidence in the sector mirrors a worldwide trend in uncertain times of seeking alternative investment avenues to traditional financial markets.
"High-quality collectables are by definition rare investment opportunities and the experienced collector will often see an ebb across the economy as a potentially good time to invest," Campbell says.
When the New Zealand dollar drops below US70 cents, international art collectors trawl the market here for good quality works.
The modern (pre-1970) and historical art market has enjoyed strong demand for significant works despite negative real estate corrections and the year's political uncertainty, Campbell says, proving itself as rewarding and stable, while the contemporary market operates under "ever growing expectations of uncertain, spiking value and potential returns".
Bill Hammond's 1996 painting Fortified Gang Headquarters sold in April for $330,781 - a record auction price for a work by a living Kiwi artist.
Campbell says this indicated that, across the top end of the marketplace, good works will always find homes.
A pair of rare Carlo Bugatti Orientalism salon chairs fetched $27,000 - well above estimate, despite being in distressed condition.
Bugatti was born in Milan in 1856 and Josh Williams, of Webb's decorative arts department, says a revival of interest in his work began in the 1960s, which has been reflected in auction prices. An auction at Christie's New York saw a double-sided Bugatti desk soar above its auction estimate of US$100,000-$150,000 to realise US$1.553m ($2.335m).
The company has a Charles Frederick Goldie painting on the market, which Campbell describes as a "classic" investment opportunity.
"Goldie works will continue to increase in value purely for the fact they are so pertinent to our sense of self as a nation - they're a cultural asset because of their innate reference to New Zealand."
The painting depicts Hori Pokai, considered the last tattooed Maori from the Thames district - a renowned warrior of great skill and leadership. He was painted many times by Goldie; the first in 1905, the last, this work, in 1937.
Purchased at John Leech Gallery, Auckland, in 1947 for £365, it carries an estimated value of $350,000 to $450,000.
The Ministry of Culture and Heritage recognises such works as taonga and a special dispensation is required for them to leave the country.
With paintings by artists such as Goldie, it is particularly important that their history be known - and that this is rare, and fresh to the market, Campbell says.
With the seemingly endless increase in prices for the artist's works, exhibition histories, publication details and family records form a vital part of a work's history.
The provenance of such paintings is the artistic equivalent of genealogy - details of which can greatly increase their value.
The work carries an interesting provenance, Campbell says. Labels and stickers on the back state its inclusion in the Royal Academy Exhibition in London in 1943.
The work was also exhibited at the Royal Paris Salon in 1938.
A New Zealand Post Office telegram accompanies the painting.
It was sent by Charles Smith, husband of Goldie's niece Betty, and dated July 1947.
It reads: "Pokai purchased. Feel sure you will approve, regards Charles." Having secured the painting on behalf of the vendor's deceased father, his assurance that he would approve would seem to ring true - the work stayed with the family until now.
