NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s will present Night Market, an initiative taking place this summer in partnership with Civil Art. Supported by Christie’s ED&I Committee, Night Market is a philanthropic project aiming to shine a light on the rich culture of the API and POC communities woven into the framework of New York City. The project consists of a charitable auction, open for bidding online on Christie’s website from July 22 – August 2, with an exhibition on view at Christie’s Rockefeller Center galleries for the duration of the sale. The sale brings together the work of 34 artists, including: Asif Hoque, Bony Ramirez, Brian Calvin, Brittney Leeanne Williams, Cheyenne Julien, Christine Tien Wang, Dabin Ahn, Dominique Fung, Drew Dodge, Greg Ito, Hein Koh, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Ho Jae Kim, Jin Jeong, Johnny Le, KangHee Kim, Liang Fu, Liu Bolin, and more. In total, the sale is expected to realize more than $200,000 with sale proceeds going towards participating artists, Civil Art, and Apex for Youth.
In addition to the auction, on July 24 from 4-9pm Christie’s will host a live marketplace open to public, showcasing local business from across the city. Featuring vendors include Little Banchan Shop, Di An Di, Le Mieux / Kizo Lab, Hudson Wilder, NoEnd Denim, and Kickstarter.
Ho Jae Kim, Co-Founder & CEO, Civil Art, comments: “Art is a medium for storytelling as it amplifies complexity and diversity and fights simplification. With care and commitment, art can become an effective tool that can help to make cultural history and nuanced experiences of the Asian Pacific Islander community accessible through experiential and educational engagement. I hope that Civil Art can become a moment of empathy and self-empowerment for the API community and a point of accessibility and learning for those who are yet aware of my community's rich and diverse culture.
Jiyoon Mary Chung, Executive Director, Apex for Youth, comments: “At Apex for Youth, we help Asian American youth from low income and immigrant backgrounds envision and attain bigger possibilities for themselves through culturally responsive programming and transformative relationships with positive role models who look like them and believe in their potential. We are honored and grateful to be a recipient of the proceeds from Night Market through the incredible partnership of Civil Art, Christie’s, and its participating artists who, like us, promote education and culture and uplift individuals and the community.”
Rachel Ng, Christie’s Head of Sale, comments: “As a Chinese American woman working in the art world, I am eager and excited to amplify the diverse voices of today’s creative community and create space for POC artists of past, present, and future generations. We were lucky enough to first partner with Civil Art two years ago with the private selling exhibition At the Table. This summer, we are honored to continue our collaboration to present Night Market. Comprised of a public market alongside an online auction and exhibition showcasing an array of brilliant contemporary artists, Night Market has something for everyone and we could not be more excited to share it with the world.”
Civil Art launched two years ago with four co-founders with a shared dream of utilizing art, creativity and social engagement to amplify underrepresented communities and enact institutional change. Since then, the organization with an in-house team of eight staff members and a distinguished board of directors.
Night Market continues Christie’s partnership with Civil Art, which began summer of 2022 with At the Table, a private selling exhibition amplifying artistic voices of the Asian diaspora, initially conceived amid rising cases of xenophobia heightened during the pandemic.
